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Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
If Nashville is a welcoming city, why are so many of its residents struggling?
Over the last two weeks, with ICE agents and Tennessee highway patrol officers arresting and detaining hundreds of undocumented immigrants, metros government has repeatedly emphasized one key message: Nashville is for everyone. It's a honorable position to take, and one that is incredibly important in this era of dividing and ostracizing, when it seems that many on the right want nothing more than to Make America Whiter Again—both demographically and culturally. Yet two key reports released this week reveal that Metro's messaging is, honestly, just that: A message. A narrative. An approved talking point or soundbite meant to be repeated, even if not realized. Indeed, all may be encouraged to come to Nashville, with its leftist sensibilities. But whether those who come will be afforded the same opportunities and advantages of all other residents remains another story altogether. After all, Nashville is still struggling to care for the people who already live here, and whose families, in many cases, have been here for generations. On May 14, the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, an organization that advocates for economic justice, released a study examining gentrification rates across the country, from 2010 to 2020. In its findings, Nashville exhibited the most "intense" gentrification of any American city. Put differently, from 2010 to 2020, there were more historically Black neighborhoods transformed into predominantly white enclaves in Nashville than anywhere else in the U.S. Here in Nashville, we tend to call this 'progress,' or 'growth.' We get excited about the new restaurant helmed by the James Beard Award-winning chef, now open in another one of Nashville's historic neighborhoods. And we bemoan the hikes in property taxes and costs of living now impacting the city's more affluent residents, those who are being shoved aside by the influx of moneyed out-of-towners. But never do we acknowledge that a lot of folks were already priced out of this city—their city—decades ago. Opinion: It will take strong leadership to address gentrification and affordable housing Also on the 14th, Metro Social Services released its annual 'Community Needs Evaluation' report, its yearly analysis of Nashville's socioeconomic health. The theme of this year's report: There's a 'High Cost to Low Wages,' and, well, you can probably guess the demographics of the Nashvillians who most frequently face that reality. Those low wages don't just make it hard to cover bills. They impact every aspect of life—from health outcomes (low-income workers are more likely to suffer from chronic disease and die prematurely) to education (low-income earners are also more likely to be zoned for underperforming public schools). If you're keeping track, you may be starting to piece together the cyclical nature of marginalization. Low-wage earners are often confined to neighborhoods zoned for Nashville schools, which will drastically increase the likelihood of their children also working low-wage jobs. Moreover, a neighborhood full of low income, Black and brown earners is also likely to have depressed property values—the kind of smoke signal that beckons to overzealous developers and the buyers of those properties, the ones happy to plant roots and Black Lives Matter signs in 'transitioning' neighborhoods in order to get the greatest return on their investment. But the people forced out, low-income earners as they often are, aren't just pushed out of their homes. They're often pushed out of the city. Mayor Freddie O'Connell attended the Metro Services-hosted event to mark the release of the 'High Cost of Low Wages' report. He also spoke before the presentation and subsequent panel, noting that the average Black and Hispanic residents of Nashville cannot afford to buy a home in 99% of the city's neighborhoods. It's a startling truth, and one that runs directly counter to his earlier assessment that, 'broadly speaking, Nashville has been an amazing success story.' I wrote recently about O'Connell's eagerness to tout the record-high graduation rates of Metro Nashville Public Schools during his State of Metro address. The idea that the number of graduating Nashvillians is higher than ever, and therefore some indication of district success and student achievement, may be accurate. But it's not completely honest. The statistic doesn't reveal how, for many students in this majority-ministry district, those diplomas are little more than certificates of participation. Those students aren't prepared for the careers or post-secondary studies that will allow them to buy a home in their hometown—or, at minimum, to break or avoid a cycle of low-wage living. More: How many in Nashville earn less than a living wage? New report details the 'high cost of low wages' But it is the kind of thing you say when you lead a city that is more concerned about optics than reality. It's no different than saying that Nashville welcomes everybody, even though it hasn't done a good job caring for the citizens who've been here all along. 'Those of us in policy areas, we generally know these things because we're always getting reports, we're always getting questions about income,' said State Rep. Harold Love, D-Nashville. 'But to see the numbers in this report, I think, really brings it home because the data is the data. And you can look across the city, look at the football and hockey and soccer teams, and it gives an illusion that it's a different city. 'But then, when you look at the data, you really get to see what is underneath that beautiful skyline.' Andrea Williams is an opinion columnist for The Tennessean and curator of the Black Tennessee Voices initiative. She has an extensive background covering country music, sports, race and society. Email her at adwilliams@ or follow her on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @AndreaWillWrite and BlueSky at @ This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Reports reveal truth that Nashville's 'It-City' status hides | Opinion
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How many in Nashville earn less than a living wage? New report details the 'high cost of low wages'
Hundreds of thousands of workers in Nashville's top 20 occupations earn less than the area's living wage, a third of students in Metro Nashville Public Schools are economically disadvantaged, and about one in five kids in Nashville don't have enough to eat. These are just a few of the statistics highlighted in Metro Social Services' latest Community Needs Evaluation, a report on Nashville's socioeconomic well-being published by the office annually. The office released the full report on May 14 and unveiled it during an event in western Nashville. This year, the report focuses on 'the high cost of low wages' in Nashville — that is, that the city experiences a high cost of living because of its large number of low-wage jobs. 'Like so much of our work, responding on the topic of wages will require a network of partners larger than Metro,' Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell said at the event. 'We will be working to share this evaluation broadly, to make sure people understand the high cost of low wages.' Here's a look at some of the highlights of the report, which is available to view in full on the city's website. The report lays out the difference between a 'living wage' — defined as what a full-time worker needs to earn to cover the costs of their basic needs — and federal poverty guidelines. To calculate that difference, the office utilized the MIT Living Wage Calculator, a widely used tool aimed at addressing cost of living disparities in American cities. What the research team behind the report found was that a single, childless worker living in Davidson County requires an annual income of $52,858 to achieve a living wage — a number more than three times higher than the federal poverty guideline for the same individual, which is just $15,650. 'The official poverty guidelines used by the federal government are highly inadequate in relation to the ways that economic hardship is experienced by a large portion of the Davidson County population,' the report reads. The report calls the federal poverty guideline, which is based on a calculation established in the 1960s, as 'outdated and misleading.' In part, that's because official poverty guidelines make no distinction between urban and rural areas, and as a result don't account for regional cost of living differences. That means when an individual or family does manage to earn enough money to achieve a living wage, they've fallen off what the report refers to as 'the benefits cliff' — when an increased income triggers an abrupt loss of public benefits, which typically are tied not to a region's living wage but to the federal poverty rate. The report notes that 326,000 workers employed in the Nashville area's top 20 occupations are hanging off that cliff. That's because they're earning a wage well under the area's living wage, but not nearly low enough to qualify for poverty relief programs. For example, the largest group of workers — 37,980 laborers who move freight, stock and other materials — earn an annual median wage of just $39,350. No group in the top 20 area occupations, ranging from retail and fast food workers to security guards and construction laborers, earns an annual median wage higher than $49,090. The report notes this is because Nashville's economy is closely tied to low-paying job sectors like tourism, retail, health service and transportation, exasperated by further demand for low-wage service jobs as high-paying technology jobs and corporate headquarters move into the community. Many of those workers face worse health outcomes, the report reads. Overall, 16.2% of Nashville workers earning $25,000 to $50,000 lack health insurance, and one in five Davidson County residents experiences poor or fair health — worse than that of the state of Tennessee or the nation. Other knock-on effects of low wages, according to the report, lead to instability in more ways than just inside Nashvillians' wallets. Along with lacking savings both in case of an emergency and toward retirement, low wages can lead to food insecurity. In Nashville, that means one out of every five kids doesn't have enough to eat. For families with kids, rising child care costs may also be an insurmountable cost. And that all leads to intergenerational impacts, according to the report. Kids in living wage poverty are more likely to be in poorer health than other children. They also see lower levels of educational attainment, coupled with higher high school dropout rates. In the report, that's reflected in the rate of MNPS students who are economically disadvantaged — 32% of them, who collectively went to college at a rate of 39.3% in the 2023 graduating class, compared to a 65.3% rate for their non-disadvantaged peers. With limited access to employment opportunities, the report notes, those individuals can end up with fewer positive role models and higher rates of incarceration and violence. Austin Hornbostel is the Metro reporter for The Tennessean. Have a question about local government you want an answer to? Reach him at ahornbostel@ Get Davidson County news delivered to your inbox every Wednesday. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 326,000 Nashville workers earn less than a living wage, report finds
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Report reveals more than 200K workers in Davidson County earn less than a living wage
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — On Wednesday, Metro's Strategic Planning & Research team released the annual Community Needs Evaluation report. Here's a peek at what's inside. The report included several findings, but the Strategic Planning & Research team highlighted a few, including: 71% of the 70,000 food service jobs in Davidson County pay less than $40,000 per year Almost 1 in 5 Nashville children do not have enough food to eat Highest income inequality on record in 2022-2023 Workers with sustained low wages are 38% more likely to die over the course of 12 years Read the full report here 'The economic suffering experienced by some of our seniors, disabled, and families was already acute, but we are now witnessing a rapidly deepening impact. In fact, our client demographic is changing as we are seeing more middle and upper-middle class residents coming to us for help,' executive director of Metro Social Services, Renée Pratt, said. 'Thankfully, our department closely monitors these trends and develops data and trauma-informed solutions to respond to the evolving needs of our community.' Additionally, the report found that of the 25 occupations with the most workers in the Nashville region, 20 pay a median wage less than a living wage in Davidson County. The report described a living wage as the minimum earnings necessary to meet basic needs while also maintaining financial self-sufficiency. The report added that consistent low-wage work affects health outcomes for Nashvillians, with 16.2% of workers earning between $25,000 and $50,000 lacking health insurance. Health outcomes weren't the only cost to workers highlighted in the report — the team found that unstable, irregular and unpredictable work to 'make ends meet' also negatively affected workers. At a release event and panel discussion about the report, Nashville Mayor Freddie O'Connell said the report provides insights so that city leaders can adjust the support they provide to Nashvillians. ⏩ 'Understanding these needs helps us improve our response. It's a big reason that I've been attending this event — in person — for more than a decade,' O'Connell said. 'The things that we know are in this evaluation help us keep getting better, but like so much of our work, responding on the topic of wages will require a network of partners larger than Metro.' Metro Social Services' Food Pop Up, welfare calls to area seniors, assistance with curbside trash enrollment, a workforce development program and the emergency medical document bag were all cited as programs developed in response to needs reports. 'Know that the future holds much hope and opportunity, as we are actively addressing these needs. I am most thankful to Mayor Freddie O'Connell, Metro Council, other elected officials and community partners who are equally committed to this work,' Pratt added. 'They have proven to be a great ally in the 'heart' work needed to support and protect the citizens of Nashville.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
