what are some of the pro and cons of Nickel and dimed by barbara Ehrenreich?

Question

what are some of the things you agree and dont agree with in the article or the book of nickel and dimed.

Answer 1

That's a great book. I read it about two years ago and was impressed that someone would go to such extremes to gain knowledge and experience for writing a book.

To answer your question could take me all day but a quick response, I'd say the Pros are:

- It does a great job of examining the issues of the "working poor"

- That many wage jobs are NOT capable of generating sufficient income need avoid living in poverty.

- It sheds light on the reality that adults (not kids in the first job) are occupying these jobs.

- That once you're in such a system of low paying professions, it's next to impossible to get out of it.

The Cons:

- Frankly, it doesn't make enough of a point that many of these jobs are just that, a job, not a career and they were never intended to be. This is a choice that needs to be made early in life so as to avoid such a "life." The real lesson is that we don't live in a utopian society and that we must exercise personal responsibility, not expect others to make up the difference...

- That raising the minimum wage would have little to no real effect in improving the lives of people in such jobs. Government statistics show that mimimum wage jobs represent a proportionally smaller amount of jobs and to raise the minimums might actually lead to a net loss of jobs because of the increase in costs to the employer.

Answer 2

I can't think of one thing I disagreed with about the book. The thing I liked best was how Ehrenreich addresses how it is the high cost of rent, not only the low minimum wage, that makes it so difficult to live off of minimum wage. I think it is clear that a living wage needs to be offered -- can you believe that congress has raised their own income 9 times since minimum wage was raised? It is getting so expensive to live in this country. We already have difficulties with outsourcing. Raising the minimum wage shouldn't increase that dramatically. I do wish that Ehrenreich would update the book with some reflections on the problem of increased outsourcing we've been experiencing since the book was published.

Answer 3

Having struggled in the service industry until quite recently, there's very little overall that I disagree with. It's ridiculous that someone who works on a steady basis can't take care of herself. She's a bit whiny, and her bourgeois bohemianism shows, but I love that she tried.

Answer 4

she's preachy but she's right. i see no reason why someone should not be able to live when they work full-time, and the premise of her book is that it is impossible in many areas of the country.