(I don't really know which forum this belongs in- I felt it might seem hostile to put it in the Working Women forum, but if it doesn't belong here, feel free to move it :D )

This may have already been posted here, but this is even better than those second income calculators you usually find. It gives you a really detailed breakdown, with percents and everything, of what it costs a family to have a second job.

http://www.jobsformoms.com/income-test/

Thanks! If I took a FT staff RN job I'd be making 44¢ an hour! I get $3.33 an hour delivering papers.

Oops, I did it wrong, it's $2.08 as opposed to $20.00.

Thanks for the link :)

i have no college degree and am basically concidered unskilled. so the best i could do with out going to school forst woyuld be retail. We (dh and I) figured it would COST US if i went to work. Child care, gas, meals, etc etc etc would eat up all the money, and then some, that i would bring in. not to mention other costs we'd have to factor in as well. It is cheaper for us if I stay home. and we like it better this way too.

(please understand I am not downing perople who work retail, please, please, please understand I don't mean it that way)

Hey now--Steve worked retail for almost 15 years!! JUST KIDDING Missy!!! I know what you mean :)

It's cheaper if I stay home as well. I worked when we just had Ashley and we were screwed every year on our taxes. Steve likes me home...less work for him around here and I'm home to cook every night lol

I only work when DH is home with dd, right now that is about 14 hours a week. Just enough to buy our groceries and put one tank of gas in the car. We just can not live on what he makes as a short order cook. He is attending college part-time as well, so that doesn't leave much available time for me to work if one of us is to be home at all times. We have only one car also. Our COMBINED income is only around $22,000 a year.

I did the test, and my work expenses are very minimal. I take my lunch on the two days I work. No day care. Since I only gross $91.00 a week, hardly anything is with held from my pay, other than social security. For us, my working makes sense.

I enjoyed the test. It really didn't make much of a difference in my case.

I drive 1 mile to work a day! That's it!! That is how close I live to my job. So I am not really wasting gas because if I didn't get up and go to work, I would still have to drive the kids to school which is the same distance.

Also, we all take lunches. So I am not out any expense there. I would have to eat lunch wether I was home or at work.

I do not take anything out of my check as in medical, dental, retirement, Social Security, etc. I work for a school district that pays into TRS instead of SS. I also am allotted $150 a month for whatever I choose to spend it own. If we don't put it toward insurance, then they will put it into an annuity for us. We have to set it up with whomever we choose and they send that money. If we don't choose that option, then we just lose the money. It doesn't go into your paycheck. This is just an extra perk. So I am basically getting all my income from the shcool.

I don't pay childcare because the boys are at school when I am at work. We come home at the same time. Plus they can take care of themselves if I have to go to a staff development. Richard looks after them. That is another advantage! I get home when DH does...3:45 pm and still have time to sit and rest, cook, or do whatever needs to be done.

I am one of the lucky ones I guess. I can see where it wouldn't pay for some families to have a second income. When I had Chris and Dakota at home, I didn't work because the daycare cost we would've had to pay! It wouldn't have been worth it.

I think it differs with each family's situation.

Interesting calculator! It still pays for me to work according to it and it works well for our family, but I'm sure for some people it will be an eye opener!