Items Cost

food and groceries $821.33
medical $751.33
housing $1,324.17
transportation $1,251.00
monthly taxes $882.58
other necessities $745.67
The table shows the monthly basic needs budget for a 2-child family with 1 working adult in Fort Worth, Texas. Determine what hourly wage, working full-time, is required to meet the family’s basic needs. Round to the nearest hundredth.

1 answer

To determine the hourly wage required to meet the family's basic needs, we need to calculate the total monthly basic needs budget.

Total Monthly Basic Needs Budget = food and groceries + medical + housing + transportation + monthly taxes + other necessities

Total Monthly Basic Needs Budget = $821.33 + $751.33 + $1,324.17 + $1,251.00 + $882.58 + $745.67

Total Monthly Basic Needs Budget = $5,776.08

To calculate the hourly wage required, we divide the total monthly basic needs budget by the number of hours worked in a month. Assuming full-time work consists of 40 hours per week and 4 weeks per month, the number of hours worked in a month is 40 * 4 = 160 hours.

Hourly wage required = Total Monthly Basic Needs Budget / Number of hours worked in a month

Hourly wage required = $5,776.08 / 160

Hourly wage required ≈ $36.10

Therefore, the hourly wage, working full-time, required to meet the family's basic needs is approximately $36.10.