My oldest daughter worked in a roast beef sandwich place. My middle daughter worked in a place that served tacos. My youngest daughter worked in a place that served hamburgers and ice cream. All three hated the work in varying degree. It was hot, smelly, greasy, tiring, fast-paced and excessively demanding. I wanted them to experience how the lack of education and opportunity can result in a misery they could choose to avoid. I will admit this was a decidedly privileged place to come from. It did open their eyes and a lot of good came out of it for them. The oldest is a commercial electrician. The middle girl works in Mental Health and the youngest used her innate talent to engage positively with people to become a very effective manager. Such places should be stepping stones and they should be safe, clean and pay a living wage. There is something wrong with the way we exploit people, especially young people and people whose choice has been limited. One respondent talked about 'late-stage capitalism'. I don't think he was insulting the author. I think he was trying to point out that we have serious problems as a result of capitalism that does not recognize the needs of people but instead thinks of workers as disposable and therefore ripe for exploitation. Certainly I've encountered this attitude and so have many people I've worked with. As the author points out, no one wants their loved ones to suffer because of their need to work. Certainly I don't.