4 ms·

Hard to live and work around Boston on $18,000 salary

by seibelj 8y ago

darpa_escapee 8y ago
Hard to be human and get sick on $18k a year.
- ams6110 8y ago
  One good thing about university employment is that the health benefits are usually very good, even if the salary isn't.
  - dominotw 8y ago
    Till you get laid off and get sick with no savings :)
  - munin 8y ago
    Adjuncts aren’t employees.
  - darpa_escapee 8y ago
    The new trend in university employment is hiring adjuncts at <$20k/yr without benefits.
- Waterluvian 8y ago
  Don't bin us all in together. Most of the modern world it's really not that expensive to go get real sick.
  - sonnyblarney 8y ago
    It's expensive to get sick everywhere nowadays, it's just that the cost is spread out in most Western countries. Though socialized medicine countries have much less per-capita medical spending, it's still quite a lot. Or rather ... maybe getting sick is not so expensive. But getting sick and old is ...
    - roganartu 8y ago
      I see what you're saying, but I think it's safe to say they were suggesting it is expensive to the individual if they get sick, not to their entire society. The two are very different problems. Yes, the burden of healthcare costs in places with universal healthcare are spread across all taxpayers, but for that you get a society that can be reasonably confident that getting sick won't bankrupt them (especially if your socialised healthcare nation also has good welfare). It's easy to dismiss as a "won't happen to me" kind of thing, but in reality it can happen to anyone. A couple of years ago my wife was suddenly admitted to hospital for a couple of weeks and then physical therapy for 6+ months and it didn't cost us anything except her lost income. In the US that could've easily run us several hundred thousand dollars with bad or no insurance. There's a reason medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy in the USA.[0] [0] https://www.fool.com/retirement/2017/05/01/this-is-the-no-1-reason-americans-file-for-bankrup.aspx https://www.fool.com/retirement/2017/05/01/this-is-the-no-1-...
anoncoward111 8y ago
My rent and food in NYC are less than $14,000 with roommates. I have a savings if something goes wrong.
- dralley 8y ago
  Take out taxes, transportation, entertainment, medical expenses, etc. Living off of savings for emergencies is inherently not sustainable. Setting aside retirement entirely.
  - anoncoward111 8y ago
    Taxes on $18,000 is $800 in usa. Entertainment we just do for free through torrenting and walking. Medical expenses, well, we live in the Usa. You just find a way to skate by until you don't. Obviously the political solution needs to be "Medicare for all", but I don't have the power to fight the multi billion dollar insurance lobby :) Living off of savings is sustainable if you have $50,000 saved and only $1,000 a year in excess spending. I currently make $50,000 a year. But, I usually get laid off, because I am precariously employed. So, after taxes, I usually only take home about $25,000 a year. I would be much happier with a guaranteed $17,000 a year instead.
    - wallace_f 8y ago
      Just a nitpick, but medicare for all is not necessarily an obvious solution for those who want universal healthcare
      - anoncoward111 8y ago
        I can see where you are coming from. Ironically I have been working as a group health broker for 6 months now and I can tell you that at least from my inside view, this industry is incredibly, incredibly broken. The incentive structure is perverse. There is no reason why losing your job should mean the choice between paying $800 a month for Cobra or going uninsured. Medicaid fills this problem ($30 in NY state for those who make I believe below $19,000 a year), but many doctors do not accept it. So I think it's time to either force doctors to work for less or to force the rich to pay for Medicare for all. Because right now prices are inflated and only the rich/employed can afford relatively accetable care. And no, even I don't have coverage in this job! XD

Hard to live and work around Boston on $18,000 salary

darpa_escapee 8y ago

Hard to be human and get sick on $18k a year.

ams6110 8y ago
One good thing about university employment is that the health benefits are usually very good, even if the salary isn't.
- dominotw 8y ago
  Till you get laid off and get sick with no savings :)
- munin 8y ago
  Adjuncts aren’t employees.
- darpa_escapee 8y ago
  The new trend in university employment is hiring adjuncts at <$20k/yr without benefits.
Waterluvian 8y ago
Don't bin us all in together. Most of the modern world it's really not that expensive to go get real sick.
- sonnyblarney 8y ago
  It's expensive to get sick everywhere nowadays, it's just that the cost is spread out in most Western countries. Though socialized medicine countries have much less per-capita medical spending, it's still quite a lot. Or rather ... maybe getting sick is not so expensive. But getting sick and old is ...
  - roganartu 8y ago
    I see what you're saying, but I think it's safe to say they were suggesting it is expensive to the individual if they get sick, not to their entire society. The two are very different problems. Yes, the burden of healthcare costs in places with universal healthcare are spread across all taxpayers, but for that you get a society that can be reasonably confident that getting sick won't bankrupt them (especially if your socialised healthcare nation also has good welfare). It's easy to dismiss as a "won't happen to me" kind of thing, but in reality it can happen to anyone. A couple of years ago my wife was suddenly admitted to hospital for a couple of weeks and then physical therapy for 6+ months and it didn't cost us anything except her lost income. In the US that could've easily run us several hundred thousand dollars with bad or no insurance. There's a reason medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy in the USA.[0] [0] https://www.fool.com/retirement/2017/05/01/this-is-the-no-1-reason-americans-file-for-bankrup.aspx https://www.fool.com/retirement/2017/05/01/this-is-the-no-1-...

anoncoward111 8y ago

My rent and food in NYC are less than $14,000 with roommates. I have a savings if something goes wrong.

dralley 8y ago
Take out taxes, transportation, entertainment, medical expenses, etc. Living off of savings for emergencies is inherently not sustainable. Setting aside retirement entirely.
- anoncoward111 8y ago
  Taxes on $18,000 is $800 in usa. Entertainment we just do for free through torrenting and walking. Medical expenses, well, we live in the Usa. You just find a way to skate by until you don't. Obviously the political solution needs to be "Medicare for all", but I don't have the power to fight the multi billion dollar insurance lobby :) Living off of savings is sustainable if you have $50,000 saved and only $1,000 a year in excess spending. I currently make $50,000 a year. But, I usually get laid off, because I am precariously employed. So, after taxes, I usually only take home about $25,000 a year. I would be much happier with a guaranteed $17,000 a year instead.
  - wallace_f 8y ago
    Just a nitpick, but medicare for all is not necessarily an obvious solution for those who want universal healthcare
    - anoncoward111 8y ago
      I can see where you are coming from. Ironically I have been working as a group health broker for 6 months now and I can tell you that at least from my inside view, this industry is incredibly, incredibly broken. The incentive structure is perverse. There is no reason why losing your job should mean the choice between paying $800 a month for Cobra or going uninsured. Medicaid fills this problem ($30 in NY state for those who make I believe below $19,000 a year), but many doctors do not accept it. So I think it's time to either force doctors to work for less or to force the rich to pay for Medicare for all. Because right now prices are inflated and only the rich/employed can afford relatively accetable care. And no, even I don't have coverage in this job! XD