When Work Doesn't Pay

I know, I know, the world is on fire. ICE is still disappearing people, the U.S. is positioning military vessels near Iran, private companies are trying to get ahold of nationally protected lands, and other countries are taking steps to hold Epstein’s accomplices to account – just not this one. But let me throw another log on to incinerate. The log of work. Employment. J-O-Bs, or the lack thereof, and the rapid erosion of a society that’s been struggling for a while now, to meet today’s established financial obligations, yet can’t.

Like[NM1] many topics that stir me, I’ve been stewing on this one for years, even decades. Much of the U.S. work-life imbalance and stagnant pay culture has never made sense to me. And the confusion surrounding these phenomena isn’t getting any clearer. The dissection of the most recent jobs report, partnered with the impending blah-to-bleak next one, stoked a physical wave of panic, waves that wash over me more frequently.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced a modest addition of jobs in Jan. 2026. The report for February is predicted to show the economy flatlining. The jobs indicated in January’s report were in the healthcare sector, which, according to those in the know, isn’t a proper gauge of a healthy economy since growth in this sector is based on aging, not productivity needs. And, workers in healthcare need specialized skills to fill these roles, so they aren’t open to just any worker. Also, healthcare growth often comes with increased need for administrative staff, and increased insurance and taxes, which can take resources from other sectors, and drain any boost from jobs added. With tariffs and the taco-ing of them, AI-related job loss (creatives, admin roles, and entry-level positions), and good old-fashioned sexism and ageism, a lot of people – likely more than reports indicate - are without work or underemployed.

So, the job growth report, to quote our grandparents, wasn’t much and is expected to be even less, to shake a stick at.

Add to this wondrous state of employment, executive compensation continues to dramatically rise while workers cannot cover their monthly expenses[1]. The majority – 70% - of the population is financially unhealthy and one illness or two housing payments away from homelessness and bankruptcy. This means there are no savings for an emergency or retirement. Yet, certain groups will be really peeved and judgy that this 70% will need assistance approaching and post-retirement, if they can retire.

“Get a better job, don’t live beyond your means, save for the future,” they chide. Gee, no one ever thought of that (sarcasm). The problem is that the means are a far cry from meeting the cost of living, and better jobs aren’t doled out with the weekly garbage collection.

The message floating on the winds around us - if you have a job, don’t leave it. If you don’t have one, you’re screwed, as you’re likely not getting one.

WAGES AND COST OF LIVING

People work to make money to afford to live. It is mind-blowing that portions of this country, and maybe other countries, don’t think that people with jobs should be able to pay their bills. Anyone past the average age of attaining a bachelor’s degree should be able to work and pay for life’s expenses. Yet wages that do exist are stagnant. When applying for jobs, the salaries offered are virtually the same as those within a couple of years of when I graduated college ‘cough’ a long time ago. And I was living in monk-like frugality on those wages, including no heat, little food, and rarely new clothes, despite needing to be clothed for work. Recently, I read a piece that said $40K from the 1990s is about $100K now. In my calculations, I feel like it’s closer to $110 – 120K, but I also need an extra bedroom now. But that report and my numbers are in the same ballpark. Yet most of the job ads I see still pay like it’s the 1990s. Who can live on that, let alone support a family and save for the future so we’re not dependent on “entitlement” programs?

I’m not an economist or politician, but I am someone who’s lived in a few states and a couple of countries, and continuously struggling to cover the basics, even with increasing skills and experiences, has been a struggle that gets increasingly stressful. To me, people who can’t afford the market-rate cost of living are in poverty or close to it[2]. Obviously, governments and employers, and maybe many fellow citizens don’t agree with this assessment. But whether it’s classified as poverty or not, there are real expenditures that we all need to pay from income, when we (hopefully) have jobs. And since nothing is free, nor will it be when AI creates the non-work Utopia it pushes to distract from job and wage losses, we all still need to work[3].

Roughly 80% of the U.S. population lives in cities or urban areas, which are expensive. I’ve always lived in cities or nearby suburbs, and have tracked my scrimping cost-of-living for decades. I’ve found this cost-of-living calculator comes in lower than my tracking – its housing estimates are low and don’t account for trying to save[4], but otherwise it’s a decent estimate of what you need to live somewhere https://livingwage.mit.edu/.

EDUCATION AND ACCESS

Wisdom once was that 1) education helped elevate your living standards through gaining better-paid work because of the additional studies. Education, though, has traditionally been costly and therefore afforded to the wealthy. Then the wealthy increased wealth through hard-to-obtain education and the income inroads it provided, while those who missed out on higher education are trapped in a circle of low-paying, unenviable work. And 2) when out of work, go back to school to wait out the slow work time and get more, different, or better work after. But, if I thought education was costly when I was in school, um, I almost had a heart attack at what it will likely cost for my kid to earn a bachelor’s. So, U.S. workers have been priced out of getting skilled. And those with skills aren’t paid enough to repay their education costs or live.

If you can get a job, wages aren’t meeting the cost of living, and more education is insanely expensive, so many people are working side jobs to make ends meet[5]. But then the car needs to be repaired, unexpected housing costs come up, or, hopefully not, but a medical emergency strikes, and the bulk of this country’s citizens are S-O-L, turning to GoFundMe to stay afloat. During the pandemic, I put a bill on hold and called about another. The guy on the other end of the phone thought he was being helpful when hesaid, “Have you thought of launching a GoFundMe?” Really? Is this where we are? Profits hit record levels, and wages are 30 years-old. The 1% gets everything, and everyone else is pooling scraps to GoFundMe each other?! If so, I need to get mine going because the state of work, cost of living, and wages are no bueno.

Do the U.S. government and corporations/employers think it’s ok for most of the population to be barely housed, fed, and unemployed? Employers often hint at, if not demand, work past the number of hours hired for. This is not only rude and unsustainable, it’s also not possible. If jobs aren’t paying enough, workers have to go out and get 2^nd and third jobs, and therefore, can’t be available for extra work. Is this the end goal of the world’s richest country? A small number of people accumulating extraordinary wealth while millions struggle to remain housed and secure?

Overshadowed by the question of his age, President Biden had a whisper of an idea to take a small chink out of the cost-of-living crisis – cap rent increases. This is sweet, but with wages being 30 years behind the eight ball, incomes need to be doubled and rents halved to help the bulk of the country’s citizens out. But it was the start of an idea, which is more than most people or policies have provided.

IF WAGES DON’T WORK, THEN WHAT?

Some people have bandied about the idea of a universal income. On one hand, a minimum base income sounds appealing, keeping people from destitution and homelessness. But it raises practical questions. Where would the funding come from? If large numbers of people are un- or underemployed, the tax base that would sustain such a program becomes smaller. And as the current job market quietly suggests: if you have a job, don’t leave it. If you don’t have one, you’re likely not going to get one.

I once lived in a building in which many of the units were covered by many different social programs, one of which was Social Security. One year, Social Security recipients were given a small income boost. And the building raised rents by a certain percentage for those units, in the end, squeezing the renters more than before. The argument was that retirees received more income, so they could and should pay more for rent. Forget allowing these people a small financial buffer. So, will we be able to pay our bills or live comfortably off a universal income? Especially since jobs are dwindling.

Some of the population grumble that people ‘just don’t want to work.” People want to work. They want, though, to use their talents and skills, and have a purpose and grow – a story for another day. But every time I’ve witnessed an at-work borderline frightening breakdown, one of the first things out of the person who’s having the breakdown’s mouth is “I’m not paid enough for this shit.” We absolutely should not have toxic work environments that cause people to break down. What these situations show, though, is that people need to not only be monetarily appreciated for their work, but they also need to earn enough that they aren’t always stressed and on the verge of a breakdown.

This applies across sectors. NGOs and nonprofit organizations do essential work, but mission alone doesn’t pay rent. People cannot serve communities effectively if they are worried about keeping a roof over their own heads. Like the familiar airline instruction to secure your oxygen mask before helping others, workers need financial stability to sustain the work that helps others.

So how does this end? What can be done to tackle the problem of making sure people still have work to do, if we still need it to exist, and to make that work meaningful in mission and compensation? If market forces alone are not solving this, is this now the responsibility of the government or public policy?

The Declaration of Independence declares that we have the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. In today’s age, those come through a civilization with the freedoms bestowed by a democracy built upon strong citizens who have work and housing, and who receive healthcare and an education. I’ve never been one to reach out to my representatives, but I’m going to ask them directly what they are doing to ensure that work still sustains life in this country. Their answers and actions, or lack thereof, are a story for another day.