Shannon NickinsonIn Escambia County, minimum wage jobs aren’t just for kids.
And that’s part of the reason this metro area lags behind others in the state in terms of prosperity.
That’s according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, shared by the UWF Office of Economic Development and Engagement.
About one of every five jobs (23.6 percent) in Escambia County pays minimum wage, the data shows.
That means 39,247 of your neighbors get by on $1,250 a month. Of those 16,135 are 29 or younger, and 15,998 are between 30 and 54.
That’s the prime time for raising families and building up a nest egg, something that’s next to impossible on $1,250 a month.
Florida’s minimum wage is $8.05; for tipped workers it is $5.03.
Retail, accommodations and food service are the lion’s share of those jobs, 19,282 in total. Health care and social assistance are another 4,386.
As many have no high school diploma as have a bachelor’s degree or higher (10 percent each).
Most have a diploma (19.4 percent); 18.3 percent have some college up to or including an associate’s degree.
In the past 15 years in the Pensacola metro area, four industries have seen some of the largest percentage increase: administrative and support jobs; arts, recreation and entertainment; accommodation; and food services.
Accommodation and food services alone have seen a 36 percent increase from 2001 to 2015. And it’s an even money bet that many of those jobs fall into the minimum wage family, which comes out to about $15,000 annually.
It is a sin to handicap a big swath of young people with job opportunities in the low-wage service sector.
Now, think of what it says about our economy when 41 percent of the people in minimum wage jobs are in the prime of their working lives.
It could go a long way toward explaining why, for example, 66 percent of the children in Escambia County schools qualify for free or reduced-price lunch as of this school year.
Those income guidelines, in case you’re curious, are:
- $26,117 a year for a family of three for free lunch.
- $37,167 a year for a family of three for reduced-price lunch.
The federal poverty line for a family of three is $20,090 a year, about $5,000 short of what one minimum wage job will net you.
Saving money for retirement, saving money for anything in that circumstance is nowhere near the radar.
At that level, it’s about getting by.
Rick Santorum is the only Republican presidential candidate who would raise the federal minimum wage – and even that is only 50 cents a year for three years.
Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton has spoken in favor of the $12 minimum wage; candidates Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley both say they favor the $15 hourly minimum wage.
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Shannon Nickinson is the editor of studeri.org, a news and commentary site in Pensacola. Follow her on Twitter @snickinson. Column courtesy of Context Florida.
