30 Days Minimum Wage Essay Example
“Minimum Wage” from 30 Days
For most Americans the word “poverty” suggests an inability to provide a family with food, clothing, shelter, and other basic necessities. Many Americans live in impoverished conditions, which include people who are economically disadvantaged despite the fact they are employed. These particular individuals are living check to check on what the government deems sufficient to provide reasonable living standards in a society where the cost of living increases every half decade.
Morgan Spurlock, creator of the show 30 Days, features an episode called “Minimum Wage,” in which he and his fiancé, Alex, live on minimum wage for thirty days in the heart of America; Columbus Ohio. Morgan and Alex subsist on forty dollars a day, relying on public transportation to get to and from work. Morgan and Alex fully immerse themselves into the life of the working poor, are not part of this socioeconomic status, but from a wealthy class who undertake the role of the working poor to show viewers certain aspects of life while working for minimum wage.
There is one instance in this episode where Morgan receives his medical bill for an emergency room visit costing $551 and an ace bandage cost him $40. One of the major issues in America is the high number of our own citizens who do not have health insurance. Many of these individuals are from the working class. These are people who are fully employed; yet do not receive benefits from their employers, or simply cannot afford to pay the premiums.
Morgan and Alex both made emergency visits to the hospital in this episode. Neither had health insurance and in Alex’s case she developed a urinary tract infection and Morgan had a severe swollen wrist. There hospital bills alone totaled over $1000. Such a rate is impossible to pay on a salary in which only the basic expenses, such as rent, can be covered. Medical insurance is not affordable for a large part of our society. Morgan speaks to a doctor in the film
For most Americans the word “poverty” suggests an inability to provide a family with food, clothing, shelter, and other basic necessities. Many Americans live in impoverished conditions, which include people who are economically disadvantaged despite the fact they are employed. These particular individuals are living check to check on what the government deems sufficient to provide reasonable living standards in a society where the cost of living increases every half decade.
Morgan Spurlock, creator of the show 30 Days, features an episode called “Minimum Wage,” in which he and his fiancé, Alex, live on minimum wage for thirty days in the heart of America; Columbus Ohio. Morgan and Alex subsist on forty dollars a day, relying on public transportation to get to and from work. Morgan and Alex fully immerse themselves into the life of the working poor, are not part of this socioeconomic status, but from a wealthy class who undertake the role of the working poor to show viewers certain aspects of life while working for minimum wage.
There is one instance in this episode where Morgan receives his medical bill for an emergency room visit costing $551 and an ace bandage cost him $40. One of the major issues in America is the high number of our own citizens who do not have health insurance. Many of these individuals are from the working class. These are people who are fully employed; yet do not receive benefits from their employers, or simply cannot afford to pay the premiums.
Morgan and Alex both made emergency visits to the hospital in this episode. Neither had health insurance and in Alex’s case she developed a urinary tract infection and Morgan had a severe swollen wrist. There hospital bills alone totaled over $1000. Such a rate is impossible to pay on a salary in which only the basic expenses, such as rent, can be covered. Medical insurance is not affordable for a large part of our society. Morgan speaks to a doctor in the film