Running head: COST OF SURVIVAL ON A MINIMUM WAGE DOLLAR 1
Cost of Survival on a Minimum Wage Dollar
Kimberly Johnson
Belhaven University
Dr. Alexius Branch
March 9, 2016
COST OF SURVIVAL ON A MINIMUM WAGE DOLLAR 2
Introduction
Working Americans contribute to 58.3% of populations, and 47% of those individuals
make minimum wage. (Ilargi, 2011). Working adults making the federal minimum wage
struggle to provide for their families. According to Neumark (2015), a single mother of two
earning the federal minimum wage of $7.25 earns about $14,500 a year. Despite the increase in
the economy, over 45 million Americans still live below the poverty threshold of $19,073
(Gongloff, 2014). Families living below the poverty thresholds have more health issues, rely on
government assistance, and children have lower academic performance.
The purpose of this study is to show the psychological impact poverty has on low income
working families and how increasing the federal minimum wage can reduce poverty and improve
our society. The sub-research questions are:
