The Negative Impact of Low Wage Jobs

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What if one had to work long hours, with countless hours of no sleep, a stress level that was skyrocketing, earning money that could barely support a family? There is a woman approximately the age of forty working full time at a restaurant. Her hands were wrinkled from washing dishes in bleach water. A few white hairs have grown under her thick, black hair. Dark bags are under her eyes, which seems as though she does not get much sleep. This is how the average low working employees suffer! Many people are stuck in this crisis. Behind this woman the truth has not yet been seen, but these truths will soon be revealed. The forty year old woman comes home with a backache and eventually when her conditions get worse she would have to go see a doctor. However, there is one problem: she does not have medical insurance and she cannot afford to go see a doctor when she is already behind with her bills and rent. She has enough stress at home and she works hard to make ends meet, but it is not enough. Low wage jobs negatively affect the physical and psychological state of the working poor.

Many households cannot survive with one income. Prices are going up, and low income families are struggling in this economy, which mean parents must work more than one job. Twenty two percent of U.S workforce earns $22,350 per year--an amount that means families of four subsist at the poverty line (Lehigh). Americans who are living paycheck to paycheck cannot afford to miss a few shifts because it can leave families struggling to pay rent and buy groceries. These people work day and night scraping every penny they can earn. They take no days off which can cause problems to their health. According to researcher Davis J. Paul Leigh at the University of Ca...

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...tional Injuries | UC Health." Low-wage Workers Vulnerable to Impact of Occupational Injuries | UC Health. N.p., 17 Dec. 2012. Web. 21 May 2013.

Spross, Jeff. "Low-Wage Jobs Don’t Just Harm Workers — They Harm Their Children." ThinkProgress RSS. N.p., 7 Dec. 2012. Web. 21 May 2013.

Johnson, Justin. "The Effects of Minimum Wage on Health Care | EHow." EHow. Demand Media, 30 Nov. 2010. Web. 21 May 2013.

Shemkus, Sarah. "Increasing the Minimum Wage: Pros & Cons." Salary.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 May 2013.

Greenwald, Robert. "Walmart: The High Cost Of Low Prices FULL MOVIE." YouTube. YouTube, 01 November 2005. Web. 21 May 2013.

Ehrenreich, Barbara. Nickel and Dimed: On (not) Getting by in America. New York: Metropolitan, 2001. Print.

Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001. N. pag. Print.

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