BLOG: The Plight of the Working Poor Gets Some In-Depth Newspaper Focus...In Seattle
Sam Adams
To learn their plight firsthand and help put a spotlight on Portland's working poor, this summer I worked 100 hours at Portland's lowest paying jobs. I worked as a cashier, retail salesperson, waiter, receptionist, hotel maid, janitor and more. [Read More...]
Based on what I learned, my staff and I have been working to overhaul the local agency - Worksystems, Inc. - mandated with the responsibility to help the unemployed and working poor qualify for Portland's family wage jobs. Later this month, I will be bringing to the Portland City Council an ordinance to structurally reform the agency.
Up North, the Seattle-Post Intelligencer has done an in-depth and sobering series on the working poor...interesting to note that they report that over 29% of people living in Multnomah County (we tie with Chicago's Cook County) have income twice below the federal poverty level.
"Hard work, hard times - In King and Snohomish counties - the state's most prosperous region - nearly 300,000 people live in poverty even though at least one family member works full-time. In an ongoing series that began with a three-day special report in February 2005, the P-I takes a closer look at the region's working poor and the challenges they face. A key part of the series is an examination of the lives of those who are getting squeezed by the region's high cost of living..." [Read More...]
Posted by Sam Adams on February 20, 2006
(4) Comments | Permalink | TrackBack (0)
Filed Under 100 Hours, Blog, Front Page, Jobs & Economy
Comments by site visitors
Sam - I'm sorry, but this is a country of opportunity and if you want something badly enough you do what it takes to get it. Example, me - I've got a wife (presently unemployed) and a 16 year old daughter; my present work is very spotty and doesn't pay very well. They take health and dental insurance out and I'm bringing home even less. I'm almost exactly what you are talking about - except where the 'almost' part comes in. How many of these working poor are doing something in their off time to better themselves? For me, I'm studying for tests that, when I pass, will increase my hourly wage and more work. How many of the folks not earning a 'family wage' are doing that? Or are they sitting at home watching TV? We have programs galore for those who want to help themselves. We have financial aid galore for folks who qualify as 'working poor', were the maids and cashiers, etc looking to better themselves? Or are all the rest of us just suppose to suck it up and pay them more for the job they are doing now?
The resources are there, if a person wants to do something for themselves they can. There is case, after case after case of folks who do that - there are also tons of cases where people don't want to put out the effort.
Like the Bible says Sam - The poor will always be with us.
Posted by: mmmarvel | Feb 21, 2006 8:51:09 PM
Mmmarvel:
Shut up and sit down. Big Government depends on victims who need to be saved. Just wait until some third world "off-shoring" company gives your job to some Indian for half the pay. That'll show you. Then you'll know what it's like for the rest of Victim Amerika.
You can't pull yourself up by your bootstraps if you can't afford any boots. You're probably a Republican stooge, too. Didn't you get the memo: they hate all poor people.
O.K. Disregard all of the above: I was being sarcastic. Congratulations for taking control of your life. It takes more courage than many people will ever know. You're providing the best kind of "do as I do" message to your daughter: financial security is only possible through hard work, or inheritance. Hard work feels better.
Posted by: Alice | Feb 21, 2006 9:29:53 PM
In response to the republican stooge above, this *used* to be the land of opportunity. For me, I am putting myself through school, with no help from anyone but a bit of financial aid (which is a meager amount compared to what my loans will be when I'm done...) It kind of seems like when you're down, you tend to stay down unless someone does have the heart and compassion to help you out. Not everyone knows how to get themselves out of debt or "better themselves" as you say. To better yourself could simply mean getting off heroine or not beating your wife anymore. When I was 19 I had a really great job and everything my young little heart could desire, but now with the current political structure and their behaviors, it is obvious to me that things have changed. When they want you down, they tend to keep you there. At this point I owe a ton of money to corporations, (who themselves are not being treated as such by allowing them to NOT pay their fair percentage of taxes. This tactic alone would take care of the dire situation the schools are in!) I *could* pay them, or I can pay my rent, buy food, pay my new bills, etc. This is a continuous cycle. Yes, this is a personal problem, but I am definitely NOT the only one dealing with this. I hate to hear that people think it is so easy to pull yourself up by the bootstraps, when as Alice said before, you cant pull them if you cant buy them. I'm just glad to see that someone is taking this working poor thing seriously. You really shouldn't comment on it if you have never had *bare feet*
Posted by: Renee | Mar 6, 2006 9:02:30 AM
Post your comment
Please note: your email address, although required to post, will not be visible. We remove inappropriate or offensive content, and content deemed improper by State and City election and ethics law. The comments posted do not necessarily reflect the views of the office or the City of Portland.
Sam,
This is a very complex issue and it is one that is fraught with political action groups focusing on a narow agenda. I can sympathize with the commentary reagrding the Seattle electrician whose income had dropped sharply. Seattle construction went into a severe decline in 2002 and is slow to come back. That, however, is part of the 'boom and bust' cycle of construction and gives one a clue as to why we are called "journeymen." There are many construction jobs in Las Vegas and New Orleans.
With the construction boom taking place in Portland why is Multnomah Co. so high on the poverty list? Well, construction is now exploiting whatever cheap labor it can find, so we have flocks of workers coming across both borders to get in on the action. However, since we are still recovering from a recession this places undue hardship on local talent which would like to go back to full employment. Bucking this goal, however, are groups which make their reputation from defending what they perceive as an unfairly treated class. It would be nice if America could continue to welcome everyone from other lands who are disdavantaged compared to us. But we have reached a limit: American workers are being displaced by this trend.
In times past I had enough earnings to generously support relief aid to develoing countries. This is good policy for the US. But now I can't because I don't have the income to do so. Every other modern society has had to, now, regulate immigration to its lands.
We are high on the poverty list because, just as we are coming out of a recession (typical for Oregon) we get hit with a massive influx of job seekers.
Posted by: ron swaren | Feb 21, 2006 12:27:55 PM