Progress? (Oklahoma City: sales, rent, insurance) - City-Data Forum

CDMOK · 01-03-2009, 09:54 AM

I was curious as to everyone's opinion on how Oklahoma City is doing in terms of cost of living v. living wages.

I just quit my dead-end retail job making $7/hr, mostly in protest of the pay. Granted it only screwed me in the end because here I am with NO income - but thankfully right now I can afford it (living with mother, ftw).

I was furious that they expected me - or anyone, for that matter - to be able to afford life's expenses on that pay. Car payment, insurance payment, phone payment, utlities, etc. as well as monthly rent. It just seemed impossible, like I was drowning in my own life.

I know Oklahoma has an extremely low cost of living, but I believe that is increasing as well, without the support of increasing wages. I do know that the law in place will eventually up the minimum wage to $7.25/hr as of July of this year. But man... that just seems like a joke.

Is this simply the recession finally hitting home or is there a real problem here?

runnerguy45 · 01-03-2009, 10:19 AM

Go into sales , you will make what you deserve. Do you have a degree ? if not maybe get one. Living with Mom ? not likely to make you feel very good if you are over 18. The military might be a nice option, ever think of the Coast Guard ?

CDMOK · 01-03-2009, 10:27 AM

I don't think I'm cut out for the military. Ha!

I am in the process of getting a degree, though still up in the air about what.
I have interviews with a few sales positions Monday.
And no, living at home does not do much for one's ego. But it's the only option right now.

That said - I was curious as to everyone else's situation/opinion, not burdening you all with mine.

Synopsis · 01-03-2009, 01:38 PM

Sadly, those jobs aren't meant to pay a living wage. The market lets retailers and other employers get away with such low wages because people will work for that wage; mainly students or someone that is splitting the rent with two or three other people. Or a retired person or someone that is only working to have spending money.

My first jobs back in the early 80 paid only $8.00 per hour, and at the time I had a technical degree in electronics. Yep, I was being paid $8.00 per hour to fix complex satellite systems.

The wages may be slightly higher elsewhere. For example, down here in DFW doing the same type of retail sales might pay you $9.50/hr. but the cost of living is higher here as well.

Essentially what you are going to have to do is find something that is demand and will be for years to come and move into that field over time either through education or an apprenticeship program depending on the skill. You can bet that anything to do with the energy sector and developing new technologies for that will be in demand for years to come.

Possibly waste management as well because of the need to manage our waste more effectively. I could imagine a high level job in waste management would pay quite well; I am talking about research into more effective technologies and such.

Something I guarantee that will be in increasing demand in the near future is Transportation Management. Google it and look up what it entails.

CDMOK · 01-03-2009, 02:28 PM

True, I guess I can't expect much out of retail. I wasn't sure if it was ALL of the general job market though, professional and non.

How is living in DFW and being a Sooner fan? Ha! I know that when any poor Texas fans venture up north around game time it can get pretty messy.

karibear · 01-03-2009, 02:42 PM

My word, I feel old! The very first job I had that I got a paycheck for was .85/hour. I thought I'd died and gone to hog heaven when I went to AK in '69 and made 3.00/hr in the canneries, 3.50 overtime. But the last job I had I was making just over 14.00/hr and it just wasn't enough to live on there, we did a lot of other things as well, including taking in roomers.

CDMOK · 01-03-2009, 02:44 PM

That's awesome, Kari!

It's amazing how much everything's increased in the last few years, and I love hearing about it strictly from a historical standpoint.

Synopsis · 01-04-2009, 07:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CDMOK

True, I guess I can't expect much out of retail. I wasn't sure if it was ALL of the general job market though, professional and non.

How is living in DFW and being a Sooner fan? Ha! I know that when any poor Texas fans venture up north around game time it can get pretty messy.

It's not too bad. There are a lot more of us down here than you think!