A Minimum Wage That's an Adequate Wage

Even after graduating from the University of Pittsburgh with a BA in Spanish and Russian and a 3.8 GPA, my first long-term job was as a bookkeeper in a retail clothing store.  That gig brought me $5.00 per hour.  Over several years, my hourly rate rose to the rich-beyond-the-dreams-of-avarice amount of $7.25.

That was the minimum wage in the late 1970s.  It still is.  Then, it was possible, with careful planning and constant attention, for one person to support himself or herself on such a wage.  That can’t happen today.

Assume a full-time ob of 2000 hours a year, at $7.25 an hour.  Yearly gross income would therefore be $14,500.00.  Now, subtract expenses, like so:

Amount	Explanation
$14,500.00	Annual gross income
(10,800.00)	Rent, at $900.00 per month (typical for a small apartment in Delaware County PA)
$3,700.00	Balance after rent
(2,400.00)	Groceries at $200.00 per month (no eating out)
$1,300.00	Balance after groceries
(170.00)	Utilities (at rates typical in Delaware County PA)
$1,130.00	Balance after above
(1,440.00)	Commuting expenses (whether car- or public transport)
(310.00)	$310.00 per year in the red isn’t where anyone should want to be.

Before we move on, note that the estimates above do not take into account taxes or medical care.  We should also note that if the minimum wage were even $10.00 an hour, the person earning it would be $5190.00 in the black at the end of a given `12-month period, rather than a few hundred in the red, as the table below shows.

Amount	Explanation
$20,000.00	Annual gross income
(10,800.00)	Rent, at $900.00 per month (typical for a small apartment in Delaware County PA)
$9,300.00	Balance after rent
(2,400.00)	Groceries at $200.00 per month (no eating out)
$6,800.00	Balance after groceries
(170.00)	Utilities (at rates typical in Delaware County PA)
$6,630.00	Balance after above
(1,440.00)	Commuting expenses (whether car- or public transport)
$5130.00	A difference in someone’s pocket of over $5,400.00.

All of the declared Democratic candidates support some increase in the minimum wage.  In particular, Cory Booker and Kamala Harris have taken positions that are in keeping with the first point in the Second Bill of Rights – income sufficient to supporting decent housing, and adequate food, clothing, and leisure.