this post was submitted on 18 Jan 2024
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A Boring Dystopia
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McDonald's made an article about how to live on a McDonald's wage with average costs. They couldn't make it work so the first line in their budget was to get a second job.
I'm not sure it's still online
Love how the breakdown of monthly expenses that McDonald's provided includes "Heating: $0"
Warmth really is a luxury when you think about it though...right? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
They were basically saying it's perfectly normal to work 70-hour weeks and still hardly be able to cover their made-up costs of living (actual costs are much higher in my area, and presumably in most others as well). Oh, and I'm using heat--so I'm pretty much gonna be in debt for life. Guess we should have gone to college/less avocado toast/whatever. But that's just business! Don't hate the player, hate the game! Blah blah blah (งツ)ว
$600 for rent? I haven't paid less than $700 in over a decade. For an apartment.
When I first moved out on my own in the mid 90s I was paying $525/month + utilities for a 3 bedroom semi detached house.
It could be done with roommates.
While it's a stretch, that's not the most glaring thing here...health insurance at $20/mo is an absolute joke that should've never gotten past any of the eyes that had to look at this thing before it went out.
The last time I had to pay for health insurance out of pocket, my premium was closer to $250/mo.
Granted that was for good coverage, but even a "just the basics" plan was at least half that.
One of the other things that "breakdowns" like this miss too is that these places typically don't have sick days or paid vacation at all. You don't come in, you don't get paid.
So getting seriously ill is a major issue. If you catch the flu or covid and you're down for two weeks, that's half your month's budget, from both jobs, gone. Plus your expenses are likely spiking for one or more doctors appointments, covid tests, medicine, etc. that you wouldn't normally be spending on.
Add to that that a shitty manager might also just decide that missing two weeks makes you unreliable, so they just fire you, or just decide not to schedule you anymore, and now your future income is gone too.
...all because you caught an illness.
$20 health insurance my sides
That is because McDonald's offers employee health insurance for only $10/pay period… They do offer that insurance, right?
If it is not clear, I very much doubt that they offer such cheap health insurance (and that is assuming that they don't have a policy in place that forbids workers from being scheduled for more than 29 hours per week per franchise so they can be classified as "part time" at each location and not offered health benefits).
Are they eating 3 meals at McDonald's? I don't see the food line item.
The heating thing is easily explainable by it being included in the electric bill in this scenario. I don't know why people go after something like that when the actual egregious thing is them telling people to get a 2nd job instead of paying them more.
My gas furnace would like to argue otherwise
And why itemize it if it's included in another bill?
I remember seeing that a few years ago and it was woefully out of touch then. But rent has spiked, nearly doubled here, since Covid. I guess I just need a third job and to never sleep again.