Workers earning a minimum wage in Washington today (that’s $8.07/hour – sub-poverty level for a single adult) are probably spending 18% of their paychecks on gas, at $4.00 a gallon, 15 gallons of gas a week.

Reporter Renata Stiehl (WENY-Twin TIers, NY) recently spent a week shopping on the paycheck of an average minimum wage worker. Her two-part series gives viewers a glimpse into the realities of trying to live on a minimum wage job: Part 1 | Part 2

Eight states have no minimum wage law on the books, or set a standard lower than the federal minimum of $5.85. Ten others match the federal rate. ACORN and the AFL-CIO have put together a video series of seven different families working full-time – and still falling behind – on minimum wage.