Why people are moving out — wages and generation gap
To the editor:
Recently there was a question as to why people are moving out — well, I think the current wages and a generation gap is part of the problem. The wages are between $9 and $13 an hour, give or take.
Anyone that is a single female or male without kids can’t live on those wages or even make a living in Newcastle. The lowest rent I’ve seen is $625 a month, $780 deposit, and might include utilities and wi-fi — the rest of the bills are in the hands of the renter.
Do the math! One can’t even come close to having any money left in their pockets at the end of the month — they are in the hole by mid month. There is no affordable housing for a person in this situation. That is and has always been a big problem here and all over. Yes, there are coal mining and refining jobs, but not everyone wants to work those jobs. They are good jobs and I respect all who work there, however, we have relied on them too heavily and almost demand that everyone is to work there. A lot of people want to do something else and there are not a lot of options for the ones who choose to stay here.
Also, the generation gap is real in this town. Some are still living in the 1950s and think these wages are good and forget how the cost of living has changed. The over 60 crowd do work hard, but they were able to do things that young people can’t do now. Things have changed so much I don’t think they are aware of how it has come down the pike, and how hard it is for some of the young people to get ahead. They got to do their career here in Newcastle, they got to make their money — on the backs of hard-working people — some did not do it all by themselves. Some got to have the monopoly while others did not get the same choice. Now a lot are working jobs at these wages and some of the businesses think it’s okay to pay the younger people the same $9 to $13 — it’s not the ‘50s anymore! The over 60 crowd are supplementing their social security and retirement — the young people don’t even get a chance to put into those with the wages some of them are making. There is a disconnect in our way of thinking.
We need our young people if this town is to survive, and we are slowly pushing them away. I was in poverty in the 1980s and ‘90s, 2000s had it not been for being married. Had I been single with kids I would have been considered poverty level, think about that! It’s 2023 now and no further ahead. The over 60 (me included) crowd has no future without our young people. They have energy, good ideas, life, want to belong and help with change — it’s that we can’t and won’t think outside the box on a lot of good possibilities. So we choose to judge, label, discount, laugh at them and keep them disadvantaged, and they move away for something better or try to survive here.
We have a lot of phony bologna here in Newcastle, and the young people pick up on that in a heartbeat — so do the people that have come and gone and taken their good ideas, businesses and energy elsewhere. Don’t get me wrong, Newcastle has been good to me, however, I do see why people move away.
We must do better and can do better. If we don’t we will shrivel up and slowly die. Too much has passed us by and now we’re paying for it. If nothing else, encourage the young people. See how many 2023 graduates come back to Newcastle. I would say very few, if any. Think about that.
Thank you for your time,
— Barb Riggs
