By Leticia Miranda -
NBC News
Two weeks ago, Mendy Hughes used $ 4 from her narrow bank account to buy a family dinner at McDonald's on her day off as a cashier at Walmart, the nation's largest supermarket chain.
After 12 years with the company,
Hughes earns $ 12.85 per hour as a full-time employee.
After paying rent and utilities, she has about $ 200 left, every two weeks, to cover essential expenses like food for herself and her three children.
"Food is stressful," acknowledged Hughes, 47, of Malvern, Arkansas.
“I think all day: 'What am I going to buy when I get out (of work) that I can afford?
What can i get?
It's too difficult, ”he lamented.
This is recommended by experts to yield the money during the historical inflation that hits the country
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As prices have skyrocketed due to inflation triggered by the pandemic,
Hughes's budget for groceries fell to zero
, leaving fast food his only affordable option for survival.
The cost per pound of ground beef, for example, rose 19% between January and October in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
However, the last time Hughes got a pay raise was last year when Walmart raised his hourly rate by $ 1, which was just an 8% increase.
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Walmart's recent salary changes for its workers, implemented beginning in September, put it just 85 cents above the company's standard starting salary.
"Now it's worse because things have gone up so much," Hughes said.
"I can't even afford the groceries," he lamented.
"I think all day: 'What am I going to buy when I get out (of work) that I can afford?"
Mendy Hughes, walmart worker
Walmart declined to comment on payments to specific workers.
In September the company raised the starting wage by $ 12 to $ 17 an hour, depending on the market.
For specialty positions like those required in your store bakery, it can go as high as $ 34.
The company's average pay is now $ 16.40, Walmart said in a statement.
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In the 12 months through October, consumer prices rose 6.2%, according to the BLS.
Salaries, on the other hand, increased by just 4.2% in the 12 months ending in September, the agency's figures indicate.
The gap between the salary increase and inflation does not mean that all users feel the impact of the rise in prices in their portfolios.
Workers with lower incomes suffer the most.
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In May 2020, store and sales clerks earned an average of $ 13.02 per hour, or $ 27,172 per year for a full-time job, while a computer or IT technician earns $ 151,150 in the same period, according to the Latest BLS data.
"The main conclusion for these industries (the hospitality and retail) is that
wages are not keeping up with inflation and that those jobs are barely keeping you afloat,
" said Nela Richardson, chief economist at payroll processing company ADP. .
Essential workers are more vulnerable to getting infected and losing their income during the pandemic.John Minchillo / AP
"As you earn more money, the increase in prices impacts your budget less, but if you have a lower salary, inflation is a severe blow to your total income," he explained.
The pandemic highlighted the economic divide between those who can work from home and those who cannot.
Those who couldn't, such as store clerks, bus drivers and delivery men, were more vulnerable to getting infected and losing their income.
And if they got sick, they were less likely to have savings or benefits to help them, a report from a federal advisory group to the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources revealed in September.
Data obtained by the International Union of Food and Commerce Workers indicates that, between March 2020 and August 2021, 198 out of 835,000 supermarket workers died from COVID-19 and
at least 43,900 were infected or exposed to the virus.
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Meanwhile, the food sector had a record sales year as people locked themselves at home to avoid the virus.
The sector traditionally grows between 1% and 2% a year, according to consulting firm McKinsey and Co., but the North American grocery industry registered a 12% increase last year.
Kroger supermarkets had a turnover of $ 135 billion in 2020, 10.6% more than the $ 122 billion in 2019, according to the company.
Costco's sales rose 9% to $ 163 billion from $ 149 billion a year earlier.
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Walmart's food sales rose by $ 3.6 billion in the third quarter of 2021 alone, the strongest growth in six quarters, Walmart's chief financial officer told investors in a call about its earnings last week.
Bianca Agustin, director of corporate responsibility for United for Respect
,
a nonprofit labor advocacy group, noted in an email that the stress of rising costs over low wages is “an urgent reminder for Congress to raise the federal minimum wage to at least $ 15 ”.
As you earn more money, the increase in prices impacts your budget less, but if you have a lower salary, inflation is a hard blow on your total income. "
Nela Richardson, ADP
"This is the minimum to ensure that essential workers and working families are included in the economic recovery," he said.
A wave of calls to raise the federal minimum wage was reported as the pandemic exposed store workers like Hughes to the front lines of the virus and fueled political resentment toward safety protocols like face masks.
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In response to the additional occupational risk of contracting the virus, some retailers temporarily improved their benefits, such as paid sick days, and in the first months of quarantine they put in place a pay for essential workers.
However, in June, Albertsons, Kroger and Fred Meyer were among the supermarkets that eliminated additional pay for working during the pandemic.
In 2021, retail sector workers left their jobs en masse due to low pay and burnout.
The Labor Department reported that 730,000 employees in that industry resigned in August and 685,000 in September.
In response, companies scrambled to raise salaries to retain them and improve benefits to attract those interested in filling the growing list of job openings.
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Costco raised its minimum hourly wage to $ 17 a month ago.
Natural Grocers said in October that it would raise his starting wage to $ 14 and $ 18 an hour.
In August, Aldi announced that it would drop its median wage at $ 15 an hour.
"The salary increases have been hopeful signs
,
"
said Gary Burtless, senior fellow for economic studies at the Brookings Institution.
"Although it is not yet widespread enough to be reflected in the economy," he added.
At the same time, increased consumer demand for goods, the global supply chain crisis, and labor shortages have driven higher prices.
In October inflation reached its highest point in 30 years at 6.2%.
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In terms of wage earnings, hospitality workers saw a 1% increase in September compared to the previous year, Richardson said.
Salaries in the commercial and sales sector increased 6.7% compared to 2020, which means that salaries are barely keeping up with prices, he said.
The gap between hourly payments and the cost of food often means that many supermarket workers are faced with the daily experience of being around food they cannot afford.
“It's terrible to go through food baskets and baskets knowing I can't afford them,” Hughes lamented.
While changing jobs means higher wages for some, leisure, hospitality and retail are unique segments, so quitting isn't as profitable in other industries, Richardson explained.
The few benefits that some workers obtain from companies such as supermarkets are too valuable to lose for better wages but fewer benefits.
Many supermarket workers face the daily experience of being around food they can't afford.Goodboy Picture Company / Getty Images
A supervisor at a Kroger store in Tennessee, who asked to remain anonymous because she is not allowed to speak to the media, confessed that she often skips breakfast and eats a couple of cookies to stretch her budget.
Earn $ 10 an hour for a half-day while attending
community
college
.
For this student,
the benefits of the company compensate for the low salaries.
"I have looked for other jobs," he admitted.
"But Kroger has certain benefits that I want to keep in case I need them like health insurance and in case something goes wrong with my scholarship there is a tuition refund," he added.
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Kroger spokeswoman Kristal Howard said in an email that the company has allocated $ 800 million to salaries and training in the past three years.
He is investing an additional $ 350 million in 2021 to increase his median salary to more than $ 16 an hour.
It has also launched pandemic-related compensation of $ 1,200 for part-time employees and $ 1,760 for full-time employees.
Hughes said he has considered leaving Walmart, but only got a full-time at the company last year, which brings long-term and short-term disability benefits.
"It's hard to pay my bills and get ahead," he
said.
"It's about figuring out how to get by each day and budgeting for how I'm going to pay for food," he said.