Peter Duncan·
Corporate
·

Where Working Families With a Child Have the Best Shot at a Livable Wage

LendingTree study

Where Working Families With a Child Have the Best Shot at a Livable Wage
© Getty Images

Making ends meet can be difficult. But with a federal minimum wage of $7.25, it may be an impossible task for some — especially those with children to support.

To figure out where families are making it work, analysts used the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Living Wage Calculator and jobs data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) to find the states with the highest percentage of workers in occupations that pay, on average, above a living wage.

Since the average family size in the U.S. is 3.15, researchers focused on families with two working parents and one child. However, they also looked at single parents with one child and adults living alone to provide some context.

Key findings

  • 57.2% of working Americans are in occupations where the median pay is greater than the living wage for families with two working adults and a child. This percentage jumps to 65.3% for one adult living alone, but plummets to 21.7% for one adult with a child.
  • The District of Columbia offers the best chance for two working adults with a child to earn a livable wage. In D.C., 75.4% of workers are in occupations that pay more, on average, than the local livable wage of $20.69 per working adult. North Dakota (71.0%) and Alaska (70.9%) are second and third, respectively.
  • In four states, less than 50% of workers are in living wage occupations suitable for two working adults and a child. In California, 46.9% of workers are in professions that pay more than the local livable wage of $21.76 per working adult — worst across the U.S. Arkansas (47.6%), Hawaii (48.4%) and Louisiana (49.7%) join California as the others below 50%.
  • Even in the most uncomplicated household structures — one adult living alone — between 20.1% and 49.1% of people aren’t in occupations where most workers make above the living wage, depending on the state. In North Dakota, 79.9% of people work in professions that pay more than the livable wage of $13.08 for single adults, versus 50.9% in Hawaii at a livable wage of $19.43.

To view the study, click here.

© 2024 Markets Herald