Essay On Underpaid And Unemployed

Throughout the United States, are individuals who are underpaid and are abused in the labor force. These individuals take it because they have no choice and it is an ultimate necessity. The minimum wage they earn is barely getting them by every single day. The upper and middle class are not aware of their circumstances because their situation is distinctly different. They are distinctly different due to their level of education, but what happens when an upper class person decides to become and underemployed employee? Barbara Ehrenreich decides to put this to the test by hiding her identity in Nickel and Dimed and shows how it is like On (not) Getting By in America in their shoes. Her experience shows the daily struggle of the employees whose …show more content…
Yet they have a tough time living in it. The increase in poverty is hurting the poor because the more there are of them the more competition there is for one of these under paid jobs that they need to get by. Moreover, the upper class and the lower class are in competition over housing and land. There are places that are much more developed than others and the rich are within that area making the poor move to further housing that is cheaper. Housing that is closer would be too expensive. Farther housing also means more gas money, which is something they can barely afford. People in poverty are earning less than they …show more content…
It seems as if it was a huge eye opener for her because it was not what she thought it would be. She was actually one of them and experienced the struggle of being bossed around, desperately looking for a place to sleep, and desperately looking for a job. However, I believe she did not accomplish this by taking on much actual risk. She had her ATM card to fall back on, her bank account, and even her car was available should she need it. But it showed Ehrenreich the two different types of life styles there is are and how much of an impact a piece of paper can potentially have on someone’s