The story of Julia and and Jaqueline starts by letting the reader know their living experience. Jaqueline a mother of 3 and her new born baby girl Julia. She had been constantly changing from place to place from one shelter home to another. Always relaying on some type of assistance from food to shelter. She mentions that due to lack of information she did not do finger printing and lost her food assistance and went starving for almost months. Jaqueline stated that when she and her children were starving reality hit her and she wanted to do something with her life. So she went back to college. However time got tough after breaking up with her husband and she needed another job plus the internship she was doing. She had to drop out for a while form college to get to work and at the same time quit her job at a local burger joint or else she would loose her PA benefits. Trying to succeed she continued with her new internship but the help or for better words the lack of help she was getting from public assistance made her pay more that what she was suppose to in order for the provider to keep her in mind. The public assistant or how was in charge kept “messing up” She says. They would kept messing up the payments to the provider and pay them late or not at all.She then had to put some of her money into the child care assistance that was intentionally made to help her not give the little she made. She was later cut off all benefits because they found out she was working a bit more.
It is essential to understand that just because someone is getting paid minimum wage does not precisely mean they can make it above the mean. It simple means they can only have some resources available for them . Minimum wage jobs add to the poor working women ability to find and maintain stable child care and make a better living only deceitfulness. It is not just a salary to make it through the day but a salary to barely have the essentials. It only brings instability and not stability. It seems as if one works at minimum wage nothing really changes at least financially better yet it strains and incapacitates. If there was a salary increase it might work but as long as minimum wage exist it seems that we will all go about thinking that if one earns a little bit more than what minimum wage is someone might think that person can survive. Why would the government set a minimum wage if they have not research what is above poverty line and what type of wage would be the ideal wage to go above the poverty line..
The video “7 Days at the Minimum Wage” those being interviewed talked about having to work long hours or multiple jobs and feeling like they could never get ahead . The tone of their voce was just simple sad and depressing to hear that they were saying they really do not really on ever advancing. It is difficult to see these videos because one way or another I know someone in the same case and it just makes me realize that they will never overcome this glass ceiling and go beyond it. There really is a need for a typr of minimum wage reform or assistance to low income mothers other than imposing programs to go and work but also help them with everyday things they need.
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