According to the 2011 Community Voices for the Economy survey of 1,515 adults nationwide, which was conducted in mid-March, American women are profoundly affected by the recession. The impact of the recession, which began in September 2008, continues virtually unabated, and in some cases has gotten worse, especially for low-income women and women of color.
Basically, the so-called economic recovery is not reaching women or others in need.
In a key indicator of economic security, the percentage of Americans who report living paycheck to paycheck all or most of the time was up five points over 2010 to 49 percent. But the increase among low-income women is especially staggering: 77 percent report living paycheck to paycheck, a 17-point jump from last year. Other highlights include:
Seventy-one percent of women and 65 percent of men say the economic downturn had some or a great deal of impact on their families.
Nearly half of Americans (46 percent) remain concerned that they or someone in their household could be out of a job in the next 12 months.
Low-income women continue to feel the greatest impact from the downturn, with 80 percent saying it has had some or a great deal of impact compared with 73 percent of low-income men. Other groups experiencing a particularly strong impact are: Latinas (74 percent); single mothers (73 percent); and women without a college degree (74 percent).
And, I’d be remiss to not mention what a terrible time young, single men have had, some of whom are fathers. In Canada, and probably everywhere else, too, they’re not fairing well at all.
To determine what a living wage is where you live, visit Living Wage Calculator. In Oklahoma County where I live the living wage for one person is $1.06 an hour above minimum wage. In Los Angeles County where I was born, the living wage for one person is $3.99 an hour above minimum wage.
The other night, I caught a few minutes of the Fox debate among contenders for Republican nominee for President of the United States. The whole thing made me a bit uneasy with flat delivery of the coming economic collapse of our nation. Friday night, KFOR, the NBC affiliate in Oklahoma City ran a story about stockpiling in preparation for economic disaster.
I can’t stand doomsdayers, but in reality, the economy is still languishing. For the working poor, doomsday arrived a long time ago.Japan Today published an article last week about single moms squeezed by the recession turning to prostitution out of sheer desperation. To add insult to injury, CEO pay now exceeds pre-recession level.
Do you know any single moms struggling through the Great Recession?
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