“Jobs these days pay more than they did in the 70’s!”
“We can’t pay more because of inflation!”
In 1975 my dad was working at a movie theatre making $18 an hour to run the projector. Running the concession booth paid $10. Valet was considered an upscale position and paid $18.50. Popcorn cost $1.50. Buying a house cost $20,000. He was hired because the new equal hiring laws stated that they had to have at least one black employee. He was hired as a high school dropout with no skills, especially not the “technical skills required” to use a projector.
In 1976 he was conscripted to the national film board, a unionized position. $26 an hour. He decided to become the first member of his family to graduate university and took out a bank loan to pay for it.
He graduated in 1986 and paid off his student debt in less than 6 years. After graduation he was immediately hired in his field, in a social work position, $30 an hour. BECAUSE of his past criminal record, he became one of the more prominent prison social workers in the area and was specially requested by prisons to work on the toughest cases.
He didn’t use his vehicle at work, the driver was a specific position and staff went with the driver and organization vehicles to transport clients.
In 2010 when I graduated, equal hiring no longer existed. Banks didn’t give loans to students. McDonalds wouldn’t hire you without a BA, and a lot of jobs wouldn’t hire students at all. I graduated with a more advanced degree than my father and applied to the same position.
I was expected to have 6 certifications dad didn’t have, 4 of which were not included in my degree and 2 of which I’d have to travel across the country to get. Each one cost over $200 and the ones that required a 7 day commitment and 2 hour flight. Over $1500. I would have to undergo an advanced criminal record check and provide it to them ($150) and I needed 3 letters of reference from employers and at least 2 years of social work experience. Oh, and I needed to have a clean drivers abstract and pay for gas and insurance to transport clients in my own car.
The organization has millions MORE in funding these days. The job that paid my dad $30 an hour is now hiring at $16.20 to start. The CEO is making $8,000,000 a year.
How about my mom? Well in the late 60’s when she graduated high school, the school suggested her for a FREE course in medical tech. She was pushed to the course straight out of high school, did parts of it while still in high school, and by 1975 she already had seniority working in the hospital lab at $25 an hour. I can’t even get a volunteer job at a hospital these days She went to university part time and by the time she got her masters she was being paid to teach other students. Part time.
When she didn’t have childcare, mom took me to work. When my brother was born, she sent him to the free daycare program at work. She was an unapologetic feminist and a heavy smoker who spent her smoke breaks in a ventilated basement lounge (near the morgue lol) so you never saw or smelled hospital staff smoking. When I went into oncology for treatment, a lot of hospital staff were smoking outside the cancer door.
Our house was a rental, 4 bedrooms at $1000/mo until she and my (other) (step) dad decided to buy a home. On 20 acres. For $110k. My dads 4 bedroom house in the city was purchased for 20k. His old house sold last week for 250k. My moms place can’t even be valued in this market. People would pay any price.
In 1992 I had a paper route making $300 a week. Now adults do the same job for hourly pay of 7.00 plus set commission. My commission was based on sales. You literally can’t even get a child to work for what they pay adults. Oh, and the adults have to use their own vehicle. They need a G license and clean drivers abstract.
In 1995 I was scouted by a talent agent at a community play and started making $80-$250 an hour. Because of my “unique look” I was pretty popular. In 2007 when my cousin started modelling she had to take modelling lessons, acting classes, speak the language of any country she’d be working in, and because of “film authenticity” every job required ridiculous special skills. Eg if you were hired for a cheer shoot you were tried out like an all star cheerleader.
In 1996 half the kids at my school were working 5-9 at $10/hr to save up for Uni. Raises put them at $16.50 before they finished high school and places like McDs had scholarship programs that paid for your college.
My uncle was hired by a steel company at $25 an hour, unskilled, in 1970. In the 80’s they paid for his engineering degree. They also paid for his kids.
Oh yeah, and University professor s like my dad (stepdad)? Their kids tuition used to be free until they changed it in 1998. So my brother went to school on a free ride. I thought I would too, but they pulled the program the year I graduated.
TL;DR Nobody has EVER wanted to work for these wages. No business has EVER required these over the top qualifications. If you don’t believe me, ask your parents.