I respect your experience growing up. I have had similar situations over the years including some growing up, and been close friends with many and watched how it can "work".

Living for years by skipping oil changes, hair cuts, dental health, bald tires, all those things - not good for the family or the community really, but it can be done.

Not sure how long ago it was for you and where, but I know that things are harder today money wise than they were when I was growing up, in several ways. Aside from gas being under $1 / gallon and food prices and such being different, there was not the need for broadband internet and some other modern day "staples" -

without getting into a debate about the need for $200/mth cable not being a need, and other things, the divide has greater effects socially / in schools etc I believe. You did mention the issue is cultural and these things are part of that I guess.

The city I describe is my experience in Nashville TN - before out last full term mayor, perhaps around the time you were growing up? - apartments near the airport area could be found around $600 /mth - they weren't the best, but they did not have gangs blocking the corners either.

A decade of hastened gentrification and it's hard to find decent apartments for double the old price. Gas, food, and other things have gone up - yet for many going from $8 /hr to $12 an hour is not going to get you far around here these days.

I think it's easier for me to think that guys would have an easier time living on $25k per year, and that many women would find the living conditions with that kind of money with today's prices around here to be tough to live with.

The few cheap places to live around the city, and even the next county or two over, are likely to be less safe than one of the gated communities down the road from Miley's or Taylor's places.

I've been expanding my searches to the middle of the state and looking at other states to find affordable places to suggest people consider looking. There are some trailers about 2 hours from here for about $400/mth - but the utilities will be high, especially this time of the year.

Of course people living two hours away are not likely going to come to the city to fill these jobs at $12 /hr.

So I guess those businesses who want to keep paying less than a living wage around here need to consider that the pool of people willing to work those jobs are people who can't get a better gig, so probably male, willing to live in sketchy places, likely can't pass a drug test or they would get a home depot gig or similar.

With such a small pool to draw from, some kind of perks will need to be advertised, like comped transportation, no drug tests, etc.

There are plenty of places around town that I walk out of or choose not to go to, knowing that the labor making the food, or cleaning, or watching kids, or all kinds of important things, is probably not the best choice for important things like food safety, etc.

I also get that this can be a cultural thing, and different strokes for different folks and all that. I'd really love to see the monthly spending budgets of lots of the people around here that work for under $22, it just doesn't seem possible in most parts around here, and certainly not sustainable long term.