Essay about Life Struggle on Minimum Wage - 693 Words

Life Struggle on Minimum Wage nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Sometimes life isn’t always as easy as getting a job, making money and paying you bills. In her fascinating book on extended essays Nickel and Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich poses as an unskilled worker to show the struggles encountered everyday by Americans attempting to live on minimum wage, â€Å"matching income to expenses as the truly poor attempting to do everyday.† (6) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ehrenreich gave herself three rules she had to live by and they were: 1. She could not use her education or professional skills to land a job, 2. She had to take the highest paying job offered and do her best to hold it and 3. She had to take the cheapest accommodations available with an†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"There is not vindication in this exit, no fuck-you surge of relief, just an over-whelming dank sense of failure pressing down on me.† (48) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In Maine she works in a care home on the weekends and a cleaning maid service throughout the week. She finds out that her work as a maid is so hard that her health begins to fail and she is revolted when a friend working with her struggles on, despite serious illness and pregnancy. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In Minnesota the author finds herself within the giant multinational Wal-Mart, working as a shop assistant. Where everything is very intimidating and overly done, all the way down to the orientation. â€Å"For sheer grandeur, scale, and intimidation value, I doubt if any corporate orientation exceeds that of Wal-Mart.† (143) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Ehrenriech in her evaluation of her experiences states: nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;â€Å"What surprised and offended me most about low-wage workplace (and nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;yes, here all my middle-class privilege is on full display) was the extent to which nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;one is required to surrender one’s basic civil rights and – what boilsShow MoreRelatedThe Working Poors Impossibility of Survival Essay907 Words   |  4 Pagesemployers must abide by the minimum wage policy which states that they must not pay their employees a wage below the set minimum wage. It is often believed that it serves as a protection for the citizens. 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