9 years ago
5
I am a cook in the US Senate but I still need food stamps to feed my children
I work 70 hours a week doing two jobs but cannot make ends meet. Presidential hopefuls must make profitable federal contractors pay living wages. By Bertrand Olotara
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http://www.theguardian.com
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If he doesn't make OT for any of those 70 hours and you assume 15% tax withholding as well as 2 weeks off per year... that's about $36,000 take home pay.
That's not a lot, but I bet if he wanted to he could get by without food stamps... unless he has 5. rent = $1000/month, transportation = 80(ins) + 100(gas) = $180/month, utilities =$200/month, and food = $150/month/person = $600/month (assuming 2 kids... don't know exact number), and cell phone/internet = $200/month. That all adds up to $2180 out of his $3000/month take home pay. I'll assume that he went out and financed a car, so I'll add $320/month for a car payment. that is $2500 out of his $3000 accounted for monthly. That leaves $500/month for savings + misc child costs.
I think I overshot just about every cost, so in reality, there should be more for misc costs at the end of each month. I'm not saying it would be easy, but he should be able to make ends meet without food stamps.
Obviously that's all fairly wild speculation, so of course it's quite possibly way off the mark. You've not accounted for relative prices where he lives, the impact of even one or two prescription medications or medical costs, the family itself, but beyond that, the way you're gainsaying the man based on little more than back-of-the-envelope calculations appears to show you just can't accept that there is such a thing as people who work hard and are still poor.
Fundamentally, are you calling him a liar?
I am speculating. I'm not calling him a liar. I am not denying that he is poor. I do know that Washington DC is a very expensive place to live. I also don't know any extraneous circumstances such as chronic medical costs for himself or his children. (Medical costs in the US are another issue entirely that can be discussed elsewhere)
All I'm saying is that barring extraneous circumstances he should be able to make ends meet without food stamps. I'm not saying he's rich or that he doesn't need to be paid a higher wage. Perhaps he made poor financial decisions and has an extra $1000/month in loan payments on top of the costs I listed. All of a sudden $3000/month isn't enough. Perhaps through no fault of his own, one of his children has a chronic medical condition that costs $1500/month. I can't fault him for that. Perhaps he's still making poor financial decisions and is spending $1000 in miscellaneous costs each month instead of $500. I don't know.
I would be curious to know the following: 1. does he have cable/satellite tv at home? 2. does his car have less than 50,000 miles on it? 3. do his children have smartphones?
With all the media attention, we may find out more. A single parent with five kids, student loan payments and the exorbitant cost of health insurance, I'm not sure he has to be dining on rib eye steak and tasting the finest of wines before feeling the pinch. Let alone if, with all the hubub, he gets fired. Say they don't have cable, a car, or smartphones for the kids: how would you feel then about the strike he's in for a $15/hr wage?
thanks for the links with more information.
In my initial comment I said I assumed 2 children and that he should be able to make it unless he has 5 kids. Turns out he has 5 kids. I won't comment on being a single parent with 5 children because I don't know the circumstances. however, there could have been poor decisions that led to his current situation.
His degrees are law and business, which are two of the most difficult degrees for finding a job in those fields. I don't want to say that he shouldn't have gotten those degrees, because without the first degree, he may not have been able to come to America.
His oldest son may be ready to bear some of the family responsibility. It's almost summer, so if he can find an $8/hr summer job working 30 hours a week, it may not be fair, but he can help the family out.
I said before that medical costs are an entirely different issue, but I'll tell you that in ten words or less, my personal opinion is: healthcare should not be private sector.
I do think that he should be paid more. I've never tried to argue that. Even if he wasn't using food stamps, he should be paid more. If he were in my state of Alaska, any work that is done for the State by a Contractor has to meet Davis-Bacon wages. He would be considered group 1 and his rate would be $29.25 with $22.15 worth of fringe benefits.