I mean, you can get rent for $500-600 in some rural parts of Ohio. I don’t know anywhere in Ohio – unless you’re going for literally the most expensive area – that’s $1,400 for a single bedroom.
For a high school student working fast food … which is really who these jobs are best suited for $14/hr is a pretty great deal. I mean not 10 years ago, they were paying like $8/hr. I know inflation has changed things but we haven’t seen 50% inflation since I was in high school.
But yes, it’s not a comfortable wage, it’s just pretty decent as far as minimum wage standards go.