It’s not ‘the economy,’ it’s low wages

In 1992, the phrase “the economy, stupid,” became a prominent slogan of Bill Clinton’s presidential campaign. Indeed, every election cycle politicians routinely promote themselves as the best candidate to address voter concerns about the state of “the economy.”

Lately there has been a lot of justifiable hand-wringing over significantly higher gasoline and grocery prices. Recent polling indicates that 76% of Americans are dissatisfied with current economic conditions, specifically identifying the high cost of living as the biggest problem. Although the media, politicians and political pundits often cite “the economy” as the culprit, they almost never mention the true underlying cause of the problem, i.e., low wages.

Higher prices and even moderate inflation cause exponentially severe monetary pressure on lower income workers struggling to afford basic needs. A comprehensive August 2024 Dayforce Inc. research report conducted in partnership with the Living Wage Institute, found: “Only 56% of full-time workers in the United States are making a living wage. . . . . Although the United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, our research shows that 44% of full-time workers do not earn enough to cover their family’s basic needs, assuming a family size of two working adults and two children.”

The media has been negligent, if not complicit, in its failure to emphasize low wages as the root cause of the economic hardship facing nearly half of the American workforce. And it’s downright appalling that our elected representatives have miserably failed to pass legislation requiring a basic living wage for all adult workers. So rather than blabbing about “the economy,” all the talking heads (including the media, pundits and politicians) have a duty to tirelessly focus on the scourge of low wages if we want to meaningfully improve the lives of our fellow citizens. I won’t hold my breath waiting for them to do so.

John Clark

Fox River Grove