Joseph Merrill
Mr. Thomas
English 101
October 18, 2014
A Summarization In the article The Pay is Too Damn Low by James Surowiecki, the author discusses the financial difficulties of today’s economy. Within the last few weeks fast food workers have staged walkouts and strikes, demanding that they receive fifteen dollars an hour. Surowieki states that “low-wage earners have long been the hardest workers to organize, and the easiest to ignore. Now they’re front page news” (1). The workers are upset about having too little pay for the work that they preform, without any benefits. In the past, low wage jobs were occupied by teens and women whom were unemployed. In today’s economy, many heads of households are being forced to take these jobs in hope to support a family or finance their homes. In the 1960’s, the country’s biggest employers were (GM) General Motors along with Ford and Standard Oil while workers were protected by unions. Now the country’s biggest employers are fast food companies and large retail stores like Walmart and McDonalds, which dictated there employee’s benefits and built their companies on low wages. As Surowieki says, “the situation is the result of a tectonic shift in the American economy”. In order to dissolve this situation, we must expand middle class jobs, while raising the minimum wage is only part of the solution of repairing the national infrastructure and economy.
Works cited
Surowieki, James. “The Pay Is Too Damn Low” The New Yorker 12 and 19 Aug. 2013: 35.Print.
Criteria
Points
INTRODUCTORY SENTENCES
___ The author and title of the source are introduced in a clear manner.
___ The author’s thesis or governing idea is stated accurately.
You don’t really address the author’s thesis.
8/10
SUMMARY: READING COMPREHENSION
___ The summary is faithful to the source.
___ The author's ideas are understood and expressed clearly.
___ The intended function of each paragraph or section is understood.
9/10
SUMMARY: COMPOSITION
___ The summary is objective.
___ Paraphrases and quoted material are used purposefully.
___ The summary includes key ideas and significant details but excludes minor points.
You missed a few key points in the article, such as the discussion of the minimum wage over
