The Poverty Trap

[weswelker#83]

Woman moved from a $25,000 a year job to a $35,000 a year job, and suddenly she couldn’t make ends meet any more. Considering getting her old job back.

The poverty trap is still very much a reality in the U.S. A woman called me out of the blue last week and told me her self-sufficiency counselor had suggested she get in touch with me. She had moved from a $25,000 a year job to a $35,000 a year job, and suddenly she couldn’t make ends meet any more. I told her I didn’t know what I could do for her, but agreed to meet with her. She showed me all her pay stubs etc. She really did come out behind by several hundred dollars a month. She lost free health insurance and instead had to pay $230 a month for her employer-provided health insurance. Her rent associated with her section 8 voucher went up by 30% of the income gain (which is the rule). She lost the ($280 a month) subsidized child care voucher she had for after-school care for her child. She lost around $1600 a year of the EITC. She paid payroll tax on the additional income. Finally, the new job was in Boston, and she lived in a suburb. So now she has $300 a month of additional gas and parking charges. She asked me if she should go back to earning $25,000.

http://content.ksg.harvard.edu/blog/.../2008/02/08/8/

[PatsFanInEaglesLand]

She lost free health insurance and instead had to pay $230 a month for her employer-provided health insurance. Her rent associated with her section 8 voucher went up by 30% of the income gain (which is the rule). She lost the ($280 a month) subsidized child care voucher she had for after-school care for her child. She lost around $1600 a year of the EITC. She paid payroll tax on the additional income. Finally, the new job was in Boston, and she lived in a suburb. So now she has $300 a month of additional gas and parking charges. She asked me if she should go back to earning $25,000.

Welcome to the real world with the rest of us, who pay our own way.

[weswelker#83]

I heard that a lot people work only (31/34) hours a week , to avoid losing all the governmental help . Make less money is better than more money . Go figure.lol

[BelichickFan]

So why do we keep hearing about all the people without health insurance when the poor get "free health insurance". Every time you turn around these sob stories are made to look more and more silly. Now, I'm not against people getting help for catastrophic health issues but I'm tired of hearing about how we "leave people on the side of the road to die" when it's just not true.

[weswelker#83]

Originally Posted by BelichickFan

So why do we keep hearing about all the people without health insurance when the poor get "free health insurance". Every time you turn around these sob stories are made to look more and more silly. Now, I'm not against people getting help for catastrophic health issues but I'm tired of hearing about how we "leave people on the side of the road to die" when it's just not true.

The guy who makes 250$ , 350$ or even 450$ per week can't keep up with the Cost of Life .Wages today are almost 10 percent lower than they were in 1973, after accounting for inflation.Thanks to the irresponsable republican politics .

[wistahpatsfan]

Originally Posted by weswelker#83

The guy who makes 250$ , 350$ or even 450$ per week can't keep up with the Cost of Life .Wages today are almost 10 percent lower than they were in 1973, after accounting for inflation.Thanks to the irresponsable republican politics .

You're going to lay all of this at the feet of "republicans"?
That's pretty funny.......

[weswelker#83]

Originally Posted by wistahpatsfan

You're going to lay all of this at the feet of "republicans"?
That's pretty funny.......

The government was mainly republican for the last 8 years ( white house + congress) The government didn't have checks and balances within itself,
On top of that there should be checks and balances against abuse by corporations, since they effectively exist in a role where they govern society.If you want the economy to run smoothly you have to provide grease or the gears clog up.

[BelichickFan]

Blaming Republicans for it is just stupid. There's been lots of positive things for the lower 25% of incomes including extremely low inflation and very low unemployment.

[Real World]

It's the republicans fault people! Wake up!

What's funny about that excerpt from the article is that it's what I see everyday. People benefit from making, and therefore doing, less. When you hand sh!t out for free, people take the easiest route. Also, the cry of poverty, or "poor", is beyond overblown. There are those who have less, but the way people make everyone out to be living on the streets is comical. A guy making $50k a year is worse off than that woman when she was making $25k. Why? Cuz he/she has to pay EVERYTHING on his own, while also paying for people like her. In that woman's case, tell me why she should ever try to make more money? The system is set up for her to be in perpetual "poverty" (I put it in quatations cuz it ain't poverty when you're living just as good as me). The welfare state has so destroyed this country. It hasn't only destroyed it fiscally, but it's destroyed it ideologically. People no longer feel the requirement to better their lives through their own efforts. They simply expect & demand, while trying to find the path of least sacrafice. That woman, instead of looking to jump to $45k a year, since $35k wasn't enough, is doing what? Yup, she's looking to go back to $25k and the free ride. I bet nobody looked at it that way.

[QuiGon]

Originally Posted by weswelker#83

The guy who makes 250$ , 350$ or even 450$ per week can't keep up with the Cost of Life .Wages today are almost 10 percent lower than they were in 1973, after accounting for inflation.Thanks to the irresponsable republican politics .

You realize that "poverty" in America means you probably still

- Own a home (have your own mortgage)
- Own multiple televisions
- Have access to health care

right...? Where's that article that talks about the average American family living below the poverty level...?