UNITED STATES—It is amazing sometimes the things that you learn in a classroom. Taking my graduate sociological course on theory has totally opened my mind once again that I’m settling in a job position that is not allowing me to fully reach my potential. I mean in a single week we’ve studied the importance of a labor wage and how that wage can be utilized by workers as a bargaining chip.
Yet, so many of us, fail to utilize the wage we earn to our advantage. Yes, we’ve heard time and time again about how the minimum wage being increased would be detrimental to the economy, especially those small businesses, but what about the employees who are put in positions where they have to work 2-3 part-time jobs just to make ends meet. Why do we become so comfortable at a low-paying, dirty and in some cases jobs that can lead to death.
Are we comfortable with the notion of getting a paycheck? Yes, to some degree, it’s about not putting ourselves in a situation where we’re not aware how and when our next load of income will come from. No one wants to be placed in a position, where we have no idea how bills for the month, for the week, for the year will be taken care of. It’s not fun people, but at the same time should we continue to allow our bosses to become super rich at our expense?
We live in a world where the rich continue to get rich, while the poor continues to get poorer. The idea of the middle class doesn’t even exist anymore and the fact that we continually speak as if it does is unfathomable. We live in a capitalist society, and as our professor clearly laid out for the class, this is a society that is not disappearing anytime soon.
This country is all about making money, those that make money will continue to make money, and those of us who work for the bourgeoisie will continue to make their pockets fatter, unless we start to make it clear that our WORTH matters. Money will always be that commodity that every human being wants more of. With money we can do so many things, but at the same time, the more money one has the more problems that come as well.
The big question that still has to be brought to our attention is WHY OR WHAT CAN BE DONE TO RAISE THE MINIMUM WAGE to a decent, living wage? It appears there are those politicians that are all for an increase, but at the same time, we have those politicians that are against it. So we’re at a stalemate. So it’s up to the workers at this point to make the next move to see some sort of action.
Protests have already ignited across the country from fast-food workers hoping to earn at least $15 per hour. It’s not going to happen, but at the same time, they do have to earn a living wage. So to what degree are the owners willing to allow a bit of wiggle room to give the workers a bit of the perks of the company’s success and still allow the business to continue making profits.
Understand that if you’re at a job that isn’t paying enough to help you live without worrying about everyday expenses; it’s time to consider a bit of change. Change is never easy, but at the same time, if you know your worth, it’s something worth fighting for, even if it seems impossible in the beginning.
