The time needed to get $1 in international dollars is 63 minutes in the US. This is about twice the average in Germany, France and the UK according to an Oxford University researcher. This suggests that average poverty is significantly higher in the US.
Here’s my take on it.
Read Hunter Thompson’s nonfiction book, 'Hell’s Angels."
There’s a chapter in it about the economics of being a hippie/biker/dropout circa 1970.
A biker could get a Union stevedore job, work six months, and have enough to go out on the road for two years. A part-time waitress could earn enough to support herself and her boyfriend.
This is still largely the case. The problem is that there are not many skilled manufacturing jobs around that allow you to drop in and out like that, and that rental prices in larger cities have gone through the roof.
Sure, those are somewhat related to the economy at large, but also very specific issues that have less to do with general poverty or income levels.
Where do you live where a part time waitress makes enough to support two people?
In Germany minimum wage for a 20h/week waitress job would be 940€/month + tips after taxes. The boyfriend would get unemployment benefits of 500€/month. The main issue here is cheap housing, but especially in east Germany and more rural parts of the country, you can still find flats for 500€/month. It is obviously living on the cheap, but entirely possible.
Idk how it is in Germany, but here in Italy you have to have held a job that fired you for, let’s say, non-disciplinary reasons, you must not have resigned yourself, and you have to subscribe to unemployment lists, which means an agency will have the task of finding you a suitable (shitty) job which you can’t refuse or you’ll lose your benefits.
Nice to know that some places are still living the american dream.
That’s amazing!
In the hypothetical scenario of not having to pay rent, that is pretty much the case anywere in Europe.
Where did I say they weren’t paying rent?
“Supporting yourself” implies an entire household. A place to live, food on the table, clothes, and miscellaneous expenses.
And by ‘part-time waitress’ I meant someone working at a regular diner/restaurant. I’m sure there are people working high end strip clubs who bring home thousands in tips.
Even if the young couple is living in a parent’s house they’d be hard pressed.
Finally, stevedore in the 1970’s meant a laborer unloading ships by hand. Maybe today it means someone operating a crane, but back in the day it was not some high tech/high pay job.
I said it is mainly a rent issue, and not an income or general price level issue. Yes two people on a single part-time income (living rent free) in a low income sector isn’t easy, but it wasn’t easy in the 1970ties either.
As for the other example. This still exists. I know people working as scuba divers on oil rigs that work 1-2 months a year only. This isn’t a very highly skilled job and mostly involves manual labor, but it is difficult to find jobs like that these days, which was probably easier in the 1970ties due to various factors that are not directly related to income or poverty levels.
First, scuba diver on an oil rig is a skilled job. Highly skilled.
Commercial divers must have completed a diver training program through an Association of Diving Contractors International, Inc.-accredited commercial diving technical institute or military program. Diver training programs often teach students both how to dive underwater with oxygen supplied from the surface or scuba diving equipment and how to perform construction work underwater, such as welding and rigging, as well as first aid and other skills.
Many employers require commercial divers to have an Occupational Safety and Health Administration-compliant commercial diver certification. The Association of Diving Contractors International, Inc., or the International Marine Contractors Association, offers certifications in various different diving tasks and specializations.
Commercial divers generally start as entry-level tender divers and, with experience, hours of dive time, and additional certifications, can advance to work on more complex projects and receive greater compensation.
US government publication.
I did a quick search. In 1970 the Rolling Stones did a concert in Toronto. Ticket prices were $8.00, well within reach of our waitress.
2026 tickets are $150.00.
It is a job with a lot of bureocratic red tape, but the work they actually do does not require years of study and deep understanding of a specific subject.
They also don’t earn exceptionally well. The reason they can do that is because it is largely gig work that can be done 1-2 months a year easily.
Also you can’t compare tickets prices of a classic band that largely caters to now well off boomers with what they charged in the 1970ties.
The $8 with inflation and all that comes to approximatly $25-30 or so in 2026 dollars, which is similar to what an entry ticket to a concert of a lesser known band costs these days. And as an occasional treat that is still affordable for low income people.
Oil rig divers need training in industrial scuba diving and underwater welding. That are two specialized skills, both usually requiring some years of training. That’s not bureaucratic red tape, you simply can’t do the job if you don’t know how to weld underwater and are going to die if you have no industrial diving skills. This is part of the reason why they are well paid. It’s a very bad example for the discussion.
The Stones were the top band in the world in 1970. Comparable with Taylor Swift today.
Not some indie group.