Six of Ohio’s 10 top jobs won’t support family of three
Posted May 01, 2019 in Press Releases
Policy Matters urges support for 10-point plan for working people
New data from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that in 2018, six of Ohio’s 10 most common jobs paid wages so low that a family of three would need to use food assistance to make ends meet.
Today, on the anniversary of organized labor’s first demand for an eight-hour work day, Policy Matters Ohio releases a 10-point policy plan to protect and support working people. The urgent need for these reforms is made clear through the new data, detailed by Policy Matters in metro area fact sheets. The data shows that across the state, people are working, but they aren’t earning enough to support themselves and their families.
Ohio’s 2018 unemployment rate was 4.8 percent. The national average was 3.9 percent. While Ohio has recovered all the jobs lost during the 2007 recession, 185,000 people have left the workforce. Those who continue to work and look for work, are finding it harder to support themselves and their families. Many of the most common jobs pay less than they did in 2000, when wages did more to lift working people out of poverty. In 2000, four of Ohio’s most common occupations paid so low that a family of three would need help to afford food.
On May 1, 1886, more than 300,000 workers walked off their jobs to demand just that: “Eight hours for labor, eight hours for rest, and eight hours for what we will.” Today many Ohioans are patching together multiple jobs just to get by.
“Ohioans who work full-time should be able to support themselves and their families,” said Policy Matters Project Director Hannah Halbert. “Job growth alone will not fix poverty or eliminate the need for assistance. This data should help Ohio leaders develop the political will to pass policies that improve job quality, make education and training affordable and fund transit and childcare to help people work.”
Policy Matters 10-point plan for working people:
- Protect working people’s right to organize by opposing so-called “right to work” laws.
- Instead of tax cuts for the wealthy, invest in training, education, child care and transit.
- Empower local governments to protect working people in their communities.
- Fix Ohio’s unemployment compensation system by having employers pay their share.
- Protect workers on the job with strong workers’ compensation benefits.
- Increase the minimum wage to $15 by 2023 to give 2 million Ohio workers a raise.
- Restore overtime protections so Ohioans get paid for the hours they work.
- Enact legislation to provide workers the opportunity to earn paid leave.
- Enforce rules that protect workers from wage theft.
- Improve job quality and training and avoid work requirements for food and health care.