low-wage jobs unexpectedly a way of life for many

[xchrom]

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_WEALTH_GAP_WAL_MART?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2014-03-12-16-06-16


FILE - In this Sunday, Nov. 13, 2005, file photo, customers at a Wal-Mart store head to the checkout lines past a worker with the company's motto on the back of her vest, in Salt Lake City. With fewer middle-income jobs available, low-wage work is becoming a dead-end for more Wal-Mart employees. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) -- For years, many Americans followed a simple career path: Land an entry-level job. Accept a modest wage. Gain skills. Leave eventually for a better-paying job.

The workers benefited, and so did lower-wage retailers such as Wal-Mart: When its staffers left for better-paying jobs, they could spend more at its stores. And the U.S. economy gained, too, because more consumer spending fueled growth.

Not so much anymore. Since the Great Recession began in late 2007, that path has narrowed because many of the next-tier jobs no longer exist. That means more lower-wage workers have to stay put. The resulting bottleneck is helping widen a gap between the richest Americans and everyone else.

"Some people took those jobs because they were the only ones available and haven't been able to figure out how to move out of that," Bill Simon, CEO of Wal-Mart U.S., acknowledged in an interview with The Associated Press.

[raccoon]

1. Who don't know that? Recd. nt

[WinkyDink]

2. "....haven't been able to figure out..." = Blame the Workers.