Happy (What are the Fruits of Your) Labor Day?

I've written about the history of Labor Day before, so I didn't figure it was necessary to repost that information. I don't think the past has changed, so perhaps it might be beneficial to connect this wonderful day to the broader topic of homelessness and present a narrative for discussion.

The more I thought about this, the more it seemed logical to cast Labor Day and labor issues to the challenge of poverty and homelessness in America. For many people, poverty and homelessness has roots that derive from their place of employment. In other words: there are a whole lot of people who cannot afford to live on the wages they receive. How maddening it must be to work hard but still feel captive to the looming and constant threat of homelessness because the wages earned are not sufficient to exist on.

If you earn $8.05 per hour (which is minimum wage in Montana), this is your budget if you work 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 40 hours per week, 52 weeks a year. This does not allow for any vacation, sick days, maternity leave, or any other unexpected time off:

$64.40 per day

$322 per week

$1.288 per month

$16,744 per year

According to bestplaces.net/housing/county/montana/flathead, here is the average cost of rent for Flathead County. Keep in mind, this does not include utilities, health care, transportation, groceries, clothing, or anything other than rent.

Single Studio Apartment $508
1 Bedroom Home or Apartment $595
2 Bedroom Home or Apartment $736
3 Bedroom Home or Apartment $1,085
4 Bedroom Home or Apartment $1,304

Living on minimum wage is not a realistic life. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr once stated, "there is nothing except shortsightedness to prevent us from guaranteeing an annual minimum and livable income for every American family."

But can today's reality truly be a product of simple 'shortsidedness?' Many in the business sector resist paying livable wages and benefits to workers because of the cost and potential loss of jobs. Yet, few businesses and government policy-makers dare to honestly factor the high economic and human cost of unlivable wages and denial of basic benefits for millions of Americans.

I understand this is a complex issue with many mitigating circumstances and factors that need examining. But I am calling for an examination that stems from the heart and not the bottom line. Is it too naïve to ask society to look at this issue from a humanitarian perspective and not simply from a platform of fiscal decision-making? People are in jeopardy of never rising above the fray of generational and cyclical poverty if things are not seen through more empathetic eyes. The problem is that many people never consider what life is like for others.

I hope you have a great Labor Day. Enjoy the final days of summer with friends and family and barbecues and well-deserved rest. But I also humbly ask you to remember that there are millions of people who are working just as hard to avoid homelessness. They are not lazy or unwilling to work hard; they're just underpaid.