The state of the American working class

Senator Bernie Sanders -I see a nation where 63 percent of workers live paycheck to paycheck — paycheck to paycheck. What does that mean? It means that every day you are living under incredible stress — scared to death that if your car breaks down, if your kid gets sick, if your landlord raises the rent, if you get divorced or separated, if you become pregnant, if for whatever reason you lose your job, you will find yourself in the midst of a financial catastrophe. Living paycheck to paycheck leaves you with no sense of security, no cushion to fall back on, and no quality time to spend with your family in a relaxed environment. It is one of the reasons why the life expectancy of working people is much lower than those who are upper-income.

I see a nation where nearly a third of our workforce — almost 52 million workers — earn less than $15 an hour.

Let’s do the economic math. If a full-time worker makes $15 an hour — at most — that worker receives an income of $31,200 before federal, state and local taxes. Well, today, the average landlord in America is asking new tenants to pay $1,900 a month for rent, $22,800 a year. The average household in America spends over $5,200 a year on groceries. And then there are the costs of childcare and education, health care, medicine, transportation, clothing, a cell phone, and a computer.