welfare vs wages

[GenuineRisk]

Originally Posted by Danzig

http://news.msn.com/us/govt-aid-pays...b-in-35-states

i know there's been a perception that welfare might actually pay better than a job....well, guess what?

Though the article points out that the study assumes that every family is receiving every single program offered, and combined the value of all those programs to get the stats, whereas eligibility for individual programs may vary- a family may qualify for one program, but not another.

That said, even $15/hr is not going to make anyone rich. That equals an income of just over $31,000 a year. For a family of six, that's still under the national poverty line.

And the national minimum wage is $7.25/hr. Which comes out to an income just over $15,000 a year. For a family of 2, that's under the poverty line.

I think I've touted it here before, but Barbara Ehrenrich's Nickeled and Dimed, about her attempt to live on a minimum-wage job, is really interesting and a very good read.