Mum shares post about how she was only paid €8 after working over 70 hours

This is unacceptable.

It's difficult enough being a working mum without coming home with hardly any wages after you've worked full time hours. From having family who live and work in the United States I know that this is a common problem for parents working in the service industry as many of them are not paid minimum wage and are instead living off of their tips. It's a problem that many people know about but I don't think that even I fully comprehended how dire the situation is until I read this post by mum and waitress Aaliyah Cortez. Cortez posted a TikTok of her take home pay which showed that the Texas based mum only received $9.28 (approximately €8) after working over 70 hours. The mum spoke in the video about how money has to be taken out of her pay check every month for social security and Medicare which leaves her with less than ten dollars. Cortez reiterates a few times in the video that 'this is why you tip'. Living in Ireland where tipping is not that big of a thing and more of a nice gesture for good service it really astonishes me that some parents are trying to live on these kinds of wages. Yes mums like Cortez get tips but what if there aren't many customers in or if those customers decide not to tip? How is a parent supposed to support their child on less than ten dollars. Speaking to Bored Panda Cortez said;

"I cannot afford to live off of $2.13 an hour, so I solely rely on the generosity of my customers."

I find it entirely ridiculous that restaurants like the one Cortez works in will not pay their staff a fair living wage and that it is being left to customers to make sure that staff have enough money to pay their bills. The United States are due for an election soon so hopefully whatever new government is formed will start to address these issues.