Nickel and Dimed, by Barbara Ehrenreich
Chapter and Location | People and employment |
#1 – Serving in Florida | Hearthside: Billy – cook Gail – waitress and trainer Lionel – Haitian busboy Phillip – top manager Stu – assistant manager Jerry’s (waitress): Vic – assistant manager George – 19-year-old Czech dishwasher Jerry’s motel (housekeeping) |
#2 – Scrubbing in Maine | Woodcrest Residential Facility – dietary aid The Maids: Ted Holly – ill, injured on job |
#3 – Selling in Minnesota | Menard’s Hardware Wal-Mart |
For discussion:
1. Discuss the importance of transportation to job opportunities. Did transportation issues play a role in your job choice?
2. Review the author’s various housing locations. What worked and what didn’t. Would you be able to adapt?
3. Discuss people’s reaction to those employed in minimum wage jobs. For example, review the discussion on pages 99 – 100 about how cleaning people are viewed by others.
4. The author was faced with several incidents where she had to make a decision to act or not. Why do you think she reacted the way she did in each instance? What do you think she should or could have done?
a. In chapter 1 when George was accused of stealing supplies (pages 40 & 41)
b. In chapter 2, when Holly fell and was injured
5. Also in chapter 2, why do you think Ted’s approval means so much?
6. Review the hiring process described on pages 149. How is this different from the hiring process for your current job? How does this process play into the entire minimum wage culture?
a. Discuss the real reason behind pre-employment tests. (See page 59.)
7. She lists several consequences of working minimum wage jobs. Do you see how this can happen? Why?
a. Page 106 – “tunnel vision,” work issues loom larger than life
b. Page 117 – “…feel like a pariah.”
8. On page 177 she describes a theory that women shoppers like to shop because they can “behave like brats” and have someone else pick up after them. Do you agree or not? Why?
9. In the second-to-last section, “Evaluation,” review why minimum wage workers do not either demand higher pay or leave for a better paying job (pages 204 - 210). Are you able to understand this reasoning?
10. What did you learn from this book? Do you now view minimum wage earners differently than before?
