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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. ___________ is a Christian with a working husband and grown children, some of who have had major problems in their life.

2. Barbara notes that Wal-Mart is a __________ system and when one is working there, one forgets there is an outside world.

3. What drug is Barbara afraid might skew the results of a drug test she might have to take?

4. What does Barbara have to care for when she stays in a friend's house at the beginning of her adventure in Minnesota?

5. Nobody seems to make eye contact, Barbara notes, when she applies at _____________, which strikes her as weird.

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Barbara decide about the entire hiring process after noticing she didn't even ask about salary at Menards?

2. Describe what 'time theft' is according to Wal-Mart and its slick produced videos that the author watches during orientation.

3. Why so the Maids think that the job they are offering is easy for someone to learn and to do?

4. What is the one upside of the Twin Lakes apartment that compels Barbara to sign up for a lease there?

5. What is the rate of pay that the Merry Maids claims to offer to those who work for them?

6. What does the author do on a night when she has nothing to do and no money to spend on entertainment?

7. What comes in the emergency food package that Barbara eventually gets from the Community Emergency Assistance Program?

8. When Barbara goes back to Wal-Mart in order to fill out a new test, what happens when she gets a few wrong?

9. What does the long employment test at a Wal-Mart job fair seem to be trying to do?

10. What is the story of Caroline, the women Barbara uses as a guide to her own difficult situation in Minneapolis?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The working conditions in which you work might change you, according to Barbara.

Part 1: Why might the working conditions in which you are placed change the person you are?

Part 2: How do companies attempt to reshape and to mold the employees they have hired?

Part 3: What do you think happens when some people refuse to change for the job in which they have been hired? Why?

Essay Topic 2

The idea of a living wage is something that is hotly debated these days.

Part 1: Why do you think a living wage is necessary?

Part 2: What do you think a good living wage would be for your current location today? Why did you choose this number?

Part 3: If prices keep rising, but the living wage does not, how can a minimum wage worker ever get ahead? What might you suggest as a plan to keep people from living off of fast food and avoiding healthcare?

Essay Topic 3

It seems that the odds are against those who are in minimum wage jobs. From the costs of housing to the way these workers are often not paid well, it seems the cycle of poverty may never end.

Part 1: Why do you think minimum wage workers can not get ahead in their lives?

Part 2: Do you think outside influences are the main reasons why people can not lift themselves from poverty? Why or why not?

Part 3: Do you think society willfully creates conditions in which minimum wage workers can not succeed? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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