Long story short, I got something akin to a back sprain when working with the military. When I returned to my regular job as a truck mechanic, the first two weeks back were littered with hospital visits. While at physical therapy on week 2, my boss calls me telling me “he is running a business, not a daycare” and he is firing me because of my inability to show up to work.
I notified my supervisor of all of the dates and times I would be gone and he never relayed that information up. And now I am unemployed with my only Job offers being around 17 an hour. How can I afford anything with a wage that Is half of a living wage?
Average rent for anywhere that isn't the hood in my area is 1.8k for a STUDIO. Realistically, I don't even care where I live, I just don't want my car broken into because that will end up being an expense I cannot afford.
I've picked up various skills that I thought would be marketable, but I feel like I'm being undercut on everything. I will literally do anything to create a good life for my future wife and kids but the job market vs living costs makes progress seem impossible. Every time I think I'm doing okay, costs get higher and jobs pay less. At this rate, I'll just have to go off the grid and live out of my car. I'm just at my wit's end. How can I prepare for the future when I can't even afford to live now?
Maybe I'll have to get into some more dangerous jobs like high altitude work or underwater work. But I'll do what has to be done, I'm just frustrated that current workers have to work twice as hard for half the pay deserved. Things just look so bleak because of it.