'Mad As Hell': A Look Inside Life At Just Above Minimum Wage
A juicy prime rib. A glossy art book. A few days off work without worrying about bills. These are the unreachable desires of some of America's workers earning close to minimum wage.
Joyce Barnes sometimes pauses, leaving the grocery store. A crowd shifts past, loaded up with goodies. Barnes pictures herself, walking out with big steaks and pork chops, some crab meat.
"But I'm not the one," she says. Inside her bags are bread, butter, coffee, a bit of meat and canned tuna — a weekly grocery budget of $25.
The shopping has to fit between her two jobs. Barnes, 62, is a home care worker near Richmond, Va. In the mornings, she takes care of a man who lost both his legs, then hustles off to
