Have you ever wondered, dear young millennial, why you can't seem to save a measly $5 per paycheck so that one day, during a mid-life-crisis meltdown, you can by a convertible PT Cruiser? Well, turns out it's not because you're bad with money or economically ignorant, as your overachieving younger brother may suggest. New research shows that the reason you're not saving is because you're not making jack shit at your job.
Have you ever wondered, dear young millennial, why you can't seem to save a measly $5 per paycheck so that one day, during a mid-life-crisis meltdown, you can by a convertible PT Cruiser? Well, turns out it's not because you're bad with money or economically ignorant, as your overachieving younger brother may suggest. New research shows that the reason you're not saving is because you're not making jack shit at your job.
Millennial wages are falling behind the cost of basic goods, services and utilities, and many of you are going into debt to pay for a college degree that you'll probably use all of once in your life.
The disappearance of legitimate wages for young Americans is confounding because it coincides with what is otherwise a real economic comeback for the rest of the country.
Our economy has been growing steadily since 2009. We added 200,000 jobs a month in 2014. General U.S. wages are growing for older Americans, but still, wages for you and us and Bob over here are growing 60 percent more slowly than overall U.S. wages. How the shit are we supposed to save in the face of that? How will we ever afford a speed boat and an attractive 23-year-old mistress?
Since the Great Recession in 2007, the median wage for guys n' gals between the ages of 25 and 34, adjusted for inflation, has fallen in every major industry except for health care. Health care, it seems, is the precocious favorite son of the economy.
Healthcare is the only sector that didn't see a decrease in millennial's wage growth, which is probably because healthcare and health insurance costs are growing faster than your dick on Viagra. You should have listened to your Dad about becoming a doctor, you beautiful, beautiful fool.
Savings Rates by Age, Since 2004
There are, of course, are a few reasons for your inability to save.
First, and most obviously, that damn recession. The Great Recession of 2007 decreased American's spending on wholesale, leisure and hospitality, which make up more than 25% the jobs millennials hold. And you thought your English degree would land you somewhere hot. Nope; retail it is, you James Joyce lover, you.
Second, millennial jobs are being largely replaced with automation and software, which is ironic, because millennials are the generation most reliant on technology. A 2013 study by David Autor, David Dorn, and Gordon Hanson found that although the computerization of certain tasks hasn't reduced employment per se, but it has reduced the number of well-paying jobs. Cheaper jobs are all that's left for the nation's youth, and overall pay has declined. Gross.
Young people's wages have fallen between 2007 and 2013
Also, molly has become very, very expensive.
Just kidding. We meant to say legal weed. Or should we say "unattainably priced thing we can get on the black market from our buddy SkullCrusher."
So, how are millennials supposed to grapple with this shit pay that'll ruin them financially in the future? Here's a few ideas.
1. Ask your boss for a raise
Hello, this is Captain Obvious speaking. We've set the course for Obvious Island, and it looks like smooth sailing the whole way.
If you can prove you've earned it, ask your boss to work with you on your salary. That's something that's much, much easier said than done, because given the current recession, almost every boss will refuse your request using the current economy as an excuse.
"I'm your boss, nah nah nah," they'll say. "We'd really like to pay all our valued employees more, but unfortunately in this economy, we're all just lucky to even have a job."
But, if you employ the right tactics, you can circumvent that excuse and haggle your way up the pay scale. Here's a little video that shows you how.
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