The service sector is at the heart of the American economy. Hourly workers – from Starbucks baristas to Walmart Associates to Amazon Flex Drivers – ensure that the shelves stay stocked, packages are delivered, and everyone is caffeinated.
While we might imagine that these jobs offer a first rung on the job ladder or just a way to pick up discretionary income, the reality is that for millions of hourly workers, jobs in the service sector can be a dead end and fall far short of workers’ needs to provide for their families.
These economic challenges are likely to be especially acute in our current “K-Shaped” economy (TransUnion 2026) where consumer spending is increasingly driven by a small share of super affluent households at the very top, while the base of millions of working people struggle with housing costs, transportation, and grocery bills.
It’s easy to point the finger at rising prices, and prices have indeed risen, but every household ledger has two sides – what is spent, and what is earned. Jobs in the service sector, including at some of the United States’ largest and most profitable firms, appear to be falling far short of providing what workers need to get by.
We surveyed 9,644 hourly workers employed by 67 of the largest firms in the service sector – from Walmart to Waffle House — to understand the economic gaps that these families face and the role that economic and labor policy can play in helping to close rifts in the household budget. One theme comes through above all: What workers want and need in terms of basic labor conditions—pay and hours—is remarkably consistent across all demographic groups, and, most strikingly, across political lines. Workers across the board say that it would take earning $24 an hour and at least 40 hours a week to make ends meet. And whether in the last Presidential election they supported Democratic or Republican candidates (or chose not to vote at all) they support policies that would substantially raise the minimum wage and provide for more hours of work.
Suggested Citation
Schneider, Daniel, David Weil, and Kristen Harknett. 2026. “What Do Workers Want and Need: Partisan Consensus on What it Takes to Make Ends Meet.” Shift Project research brief.