In 1965, a worker who made $10 an hour could afford to buy a house, buy a car and raise a family in fairly comfortable circumstances. I know, because my family did this. We felt ourselves to be part of the middle class.
In 2019, this wage results in a family living in poverty. If a person makes between $20,000 to $30,000 a year today, their family essentially lives from paycheck to paycheck. The upper middle class probably make more than $50,000 a year. CBS Money Watch on Jan. 29, reported that 40 percent of Americans live one paycheck away from poverty.