You need internet access if you want to find a job.
Or you could walk around looking for "Help Wanted" signs, stand with the other day laborers at Home Depot, ask friends to tell you of any job openings they know of... been there, done that. The internet isn't the only place to find a job.

You have increased telecommunications costs if you want to work.
I don't know why an employee at the bottom rung of McDonald's would need a phone. Or the bottom rung of any other place, either. BT,DT

There are limited housing options.
It's been shown that rent controls kills affordable housing because it removes any incentive to build more homes/apartments/condos. Sometimes you just need to move in with someone else or multiple someones even if you don't like them. Been there, done that.

Salaries have not kept up with inflation.
The value of a minimum wage dollar is less now than ever. Minimum wage work used to be for a minimal standard of living where you could afford simple food, simple housing and you could afford to get to work and back, and not much else. It does not - and can not - do that anymore.
Minimum wage has never been considered a "living wage" or meant to be. It was ment to be the base pay for an unskilled laborer. Think of it this way, a bagboy makes minimum wage when he first starts out. No one expects the bagboy to earn enough to support a family. I'm really curious to know why you think it was.

Just as big of a problem is the feeling that you must have lots of "goodies" in your life. Every weekend I'm down in the 5th Ward of Houston (poorest section of the city) working among the dilapidated shacks...and each one of these shacks has a satellite tv dish mounted on the roof, the kids are wearing gold chains, and the cars have fancy wheels. Single motherhood is the norm. No wonder they can't escape poverty.


-Blast