The Vanishing Family Wage

In 1975, a single-income family in Lodi could comfortably purchase a home, raise two children, and build savings on one wage earner’s salary from a local agricultural, manufacturing, or public-sector job. The median home cost roughly 2.5 times the median household income. Today, that same home costs more than 6 times the median household income, childcare alone can consume 20–30% of a family’s take-home pay, and the commute required to earn higher wages adds thousands of dollars in annual transportation costs.