Research Assignment #2

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Living Wage Calculation for Los Angeles County, California The living wage shown is the hourly rate that an individual must earn to support their family, if they are the sole provider and are working full-time (2080 hours per

year). The state minimum wage is the same for all individuals, regardless of how many dependents they may have. The poverty rate is typically quoted as gross annual income. We have converted it to an hourly wage for the sake of comparison. Wages that are less than the living wage are shown in red.

For other family configurations that aren't shown here, we've provided a spreadsheet to help with adapting the results below.

Hourly Wages One

Adult One Adult, One Child

Two Adults

Two Adults, One Child

Two Adults, Two Children

Living Wage $11.99 $21.75 $17.14 $26.92 $34.07

Poverty Wage $5.04 $6.68 $6.49 $7.81 $9.83

Minimum Wage $8.00 $8.00 $8.00 $8.00 $8.00

Typical Expenses

These figures show the individual expenses that went into the living wage estimate. Their values vary by family size, composition, and the current location.

Monthly Expenses One

Adult One Adult, One Child

Two Adults

Two Adults, One Child

Two Adults, Two Children

Food $237 $386 $458 $607 $756

Child Care $0 $622 $0 $622 $1,102

Medical $93 $185 $187 $278 $370

Housing $1,041 $1,300 $1,041 $1,300 $1,300

Transportation $277 $476 $553 $753 $953

Other $200 $392 $399 $592 $785

Monthly After-Tax Income That's Required $1,847 $3,362 $2,638 $4,152 $5,264

Annual After-Tax Income That's Required $22,170 $40,341 $31,655 $49,826 $63,171

Annual Taxes $2,770 $4,895 $3,986 $6,176 $7,704

Annual Before Tax Income That's $24,940 $45,235 $35,642 $56,002 $70,876

Required

Typical Hourly Wages

These are the typical hourly rates for various professions in this location. Wages that are below the living wage for one adult supporting one child are marked in red.

Occupational Area Typical Hourly Wage

Management $43.86

Business and Financial Operations $28.69

Computer and Mathematical $32.13

Architecture and Engineering $33.24

Life, Physical and social Science $30.20

Community and Social Services $21.83

Legal $41.96

Education, Training and Library $24.37

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media $21.78

Healthcare Practitioner and Technical $34.47

Healthcare Support $21.83

Protective Service $23.05

Food Preparation and Serving Related $9.43

Building and Grounds Cleaning and maintenance $11.90

Personal care and Services $11.77

Sales and Related $16.20

Office and Administrative Support $15.31

Farming, Fishing and Forestry $10.03

Construction and Extraction $21.17

Installation, Maintenance and Repair $19.93

Production $15.13

Transportation and Material Moving $14.35

© 2011 Dr. Amy K. Glasmeier and The Pennsylvania State University

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