Robert C

My sister went through that. She really enjoys driving and has spent years trying to make a living doing it. She went through years of near slave wages but finally (after close to 20 years of trying) got a job with a package delivery service and makes a decent living (after all expenses, about 25-30k/year, which in Rural US is a mid level wage).


Back to the topic of how to get a job without a car, I have seen that it really depends on the nature of the job. The job duties are not an important determinant; the determinant is what the job pays.

A job that pays more than 2x minimum wage seldom seems to require a car. Further, if one is needed, it will generally be provided.

At the same time, a job that pays 1-1.5x minimum wage almost always requires a car; this is true even if the car is not needed for the actual job. As an example, my daughter once applied at a McDonald's that was literally across the street from our apartment, at the time.

She was told that they needed someone with a car so that they could get to work on time.

Of course we know it had nothing to do with getting to work on time; she was able to point out the window and show where she lived. It is simply a gauge of commitment. People applying for higher pay jobs have generally already demonstrated their commitment through whatever is on their resume. They have established themselves.

When applying for, what are, interchangeable jobs, the people are treated as interchangeable gears. For whatever reason (and yes, this needs to change) the car serves as a visible level of commitment, it helps to establish the person. Frankly, it is visible evidence that if the job were abandoned, the worker would suffer.