Jezebel: wages

The "Hecession" Is Just Hype

LatoyaPeterson — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EDT

Sorry David Zinczenko, but most recessions have been "he-cessions" - more men are in the workforce than women. And considering "Female compensation has fallen more during the recession than has male pay," both sexes are getting hammered. [Reuters, Economist]

You Call $1 A Week A "Living" Allowance, Barry Obama?

Moe — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 13:30:00 EDT

Suspicious news out today: Malia and Sasha Obama get weekly allowances of: ONE DOLLAR A WEEK. Now, I understand that those two don't exactly have to worry about filling up the Dodge Ram in times like this, but seriously, a dollar? About the best thing one dollar will get you these days is four chicken McNuggets. (Or wait, two cigarettes.) Even I recall getting three dollars, I think, although I don't remember because I am fucking old, but anyway, presupposing that in today's dollars that is $5.78. Of course, slut dolls and handheld electronic toys were probably made in countries with higher living standards than Laos in those days, but that is more than offset by the fact that Crayola crayons are not only still manufactured in Pennsylvania, rising commodity prices have sent the price of a 24-crayon box soaring to $4.95. That's 35 made beds.

Okay, seriously, I have no idea whether commodity prices have anything to do with crayon prices. Binney & Smith, which is now called Crayola LLC, makes crayons mostly from wax, which I guess is made from oil, but really, the point is, most people are probably not mature enough to spend money wisely (ahem, Dick Cheney) and the Obamas know this, and kids probably don't even need allowances now that Babysitters Club books are no longer being released. And from the looks of Malia and Sasha's outfits, they are probably best letting their mom make their purchasing decisions for the next few years. So suck it, Cato Institution.

Obama Daughters Keep Hectic Schedules Of Their Own [AP]

Related: Inflation Calculator [Bureau of Labor Statistics]

Child Care Professionals: Worked Like Dogs, Paid Like Stay-At-Home Moms

Megan — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 16:00:00 EDT

In Emily Yoffe's Human Guinea Pigs column today, the Slate writer tries out being a day care worker in D.C.'s Gap Community Child Care Center, which mostly provides subsidized child care to low-income women so that they can work. It is, to say the least, not a fun job. There's screaming and fighting and crap-filled diapers, runny noses and messy meals and the constant need to entertain a squirming mass of children to prevent even more screaming, fighting and snotting (because nothing can stem the tide of shit). At the end of a long say, Emily (a mother herself) catches herself thinking, "This is the reason television and cocktails were invented, " and, amen to that! But Emily also points out one sad but true fact of the child care industry: expensive though it might be for to put kids in child care, some of the women least likely to be able to afford child care are the women who provide it.

Child care professionals are responsible for the health, well-being and development of the fruit of other women's loins (not mine!) But in exchange for that, the median average salary in 2006 was $17,160. The government survey shows that other comparatively poorly remunerated jobs include bellhops, ($16,120), gaming dealers ($13,179), bartenders ($13,104), dishwashers ($16,012), maids ($16,640) and cashiers ($17,992). Of course, none of those people are responsible for your children on a daily basis, and, though I do love my cadre of bartenders it does seem like, if I had kids, I'd want the women in charge of making sure my kids grow up relatively normal to get paid more than the guy who helps gets me wasted on a Friday night. But I guess that's what happens when women start demanding money for what many of us are socially expected to do for free. At least child care workers, unlike stay-at-home mothers, will earn credit toward their Social Security even if they get paid so little they would barely be able to afford the child care if they had any children to take care of them in their dotage.

Diaper Genie [Slate]
National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, June 2006 [Bureau of Labor Statistics]

Sports Bra Saves Stranded Hiker • L.A. Strippers Sue Clubs For Tips

Maria — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:30:00 EDT

An American hiker in the Bavarian Alps who was stranded for 3 days was rescued after she attached her sports bra to a cable used by lumberjacks to get their attention. • A new study has found that men are more likely to share their creative work online than women. • Lesbians are barred from donating blood in China because they are semantically lumped in with gay males and therefore thought of as being "high-risk" for HIV. • How long until there is a mass squealing conservative outrage over this JC Penney "teen sex" ad? • Strippers are suing top strip joints in L.A. over unpaid wages and tips and making the strippers pay other workers in the clubs. • Oh, also, high gas prices are hurting legal brothels in Nevada that relied heavily on randy truckers with extra (probably company) cash. Hard times. • The U.N. Security Council unanimously approved a resolution to reclassify rape as a "weapon of war." It's about time. • Female college students in England have been warned about whistling at construction workers near their college. However, no complaints have been made and no women have come forward about the whistling.

Young Women In Big Cities More Empowered Than Ever To Go Shopping

Moe — Fri, 03 Aug 2007 09:40:00 EDT

City-dwelling women in their twenties are making slightly more than urban men, according to a demographic study featured in today's New York Times. Oh, hallelujah. Maybe this will make up for the money we spend on tampons, birth control, Sephora, getting shoes reheeled every two weeks, manicures, pedicures, eyebrows, bras, earrings, cinchy accent belts, self-tanner .... except, ha ha ha yeah not even close! We looked for more on the work of Andrew Beveridge, the demographer who penned the study back in March, and found the abstract to his more recent work slightly more up our alley.

No Quick Riches for New York's Twentysomethings (June, 2007) Overall, today's recent college graduates in New York are not making as much money as their parent's (sic) generation did, with men's wages falling substantially and earnings for women increasing slightly.

In terms adjusted for the fact that signing a lease on a tiny one-bedroom in this town costs more than the down payment on your parents' house, twentysomethings' salaries in New York have actually decreased since the seventies. WHEN THE CITY WAS ON THE VERGE OF BANKRUPTCY AND TIMES SQUARE WAS A HEROIN-ADDLED PROSTITUTION DEN. Take that and put it on your most-emailed list.

For Young Earners in Big City, A Gap In Women's Favor [New York Times]