The good job they’re referencing here is equivalent to about $37K with benefits.
You may notice down trends that started in 2000 for College educated. I suspect those lines will begin to look like high school lines over the next thirty years unless we make fundamental changes or advances. That percentage is the percentage of that group of workers. i.e. ~20% of the some college work force have good jobs.
In aggregate, the rate is about 25%.[/quote]
$37K annually will go a l-o-o-ong way in a lot of US markets. And with or w/o benefits, a $37K salary will qualify an individual for a small healthcare subsidy and a family for a huge healthcare subsidy to sign up on their state’s exchange.
Even $24-$27K job for ONE household member will allow a family of 2-4 to rent a 2-3 bdrm house, condo or apt (without rental assistance) in many US markets (and perhaps still qualify for SNAP/EBT). And at that income level, they can qualify for “free” healthcare.
Your Mother Jones chart doesn’t specify if the “college or more” line represents ALL persons who attended college or trade school at one point or only the college graduates.
If only 25% of the college-educated of working age have “good” jobs (jobs paying $37K + benefits?), then we, as a nation, have to ask ourselves if college is actually worth the money for the masses OR if the fault of underemployment is due to a former student’s “unemployable” major (on a case-by-case basis).
I suspect it is due to the latter, combined with a refusal to relocate for a good job.
