The Economess

Lately, I've been paying a lot more attention to politics and the economy than I ever have before.  It used to be that if you went to school and worked hard, you could get ahead.  Twenty years ago, life seemed more affordable.  Now it seems that no matter how hard you work yourself to death, paycheck to paycheck living is the only thing that you can muster.  And that's only if you are lucky.  There has been a lot of belt tightening here in the middle class.

Salary jobs used to be a perk to attract qualified employees.  The concept was that even if you worked only 30 hours, you got paid the same.  Now salary is offered as a company method of controlling costs.  No matter how many hours over 40 you work, they only have to pay you for 40. They also introduced a new concept called mandatory overtime.  Simply translated, the company got itself in a bind and now expect you to work harder and longer to bail them out, and if you are salaried that's at the expense of your time, family, and wallet.
Hourly wages seems to be reserved for employees who are not exempt by the FLSA for overtime pay. But good luck finding an hourly wage job in these times that is considered full time. Most companies would rather keep an army of part-time workers than fewer full-time workers so they can cut costs on benefits.  No matter how you look at it, it is less money coming home.

Are things likely to change?  Probably not.  For as long as lobbyists are being paid by big business, it is big business that is going to get all the protection. I feel the average American has lost their voice in politics, it is being drowned out by the sound of money. The same money that has been squeezed out of us.