Fueled in part by welfare reform, in 1996 Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW) developed what they called the “self-sufficiency standard.” The standard estimates the minimum amount of money working adults must earn to meet their family’s basic needs for housing, childcare, food, transportation, medical care and taxes. WOW’s calculations, published in The Self-Sufficiency Standard for California, assume that the adult(s) in the household work fulltime. Therefore the calculations include costs associated with employment, specifically childcare and transportation. The standard takes into account cost variations based on geography, particularly in housing, as well as family size and the age of household members. It also assumes that the household receives no public or private subsidies, such as welfare, Medicare, free babysitting from relatives or friends, or food provided by a church or food bank.

According to the organization’s calculations, a single-parent family with one preschool-age child living in Sonoma County would need $1,840 a month, or $10.50 an hour, to achieve self-sufficiency. In San Francisco, where jobs are more plentiful but housing quite expensive, the stakes are higher. Here a single parent would need to earn $2,550 per month, or $14.50 per hour. Both hourly wages far exceed the pay of most entry-level or unskilled jobs.

Monthly Self-Sufficiency Wage required by One Adult and Perschool-Age Child

Not surprisingly, households with two wage-earners fare better. For example, a San Francisco couple with one preschool-age child would need $2,880 per month, only $330 more than the single-parent family. This salary could be achieved by two adults each earning $8.20 per hour. However, their hourly rate would exceed the $5.75 California minimum wage, the pay scale of many entry-level and minimally skilled jobs.