Who is "we"? You're apparently in Australia, for example, which is of key importance to understanding the numbers in your comment, because of both its unusually high cost of living, its tax structure, and the provisioning of social services.

If jetblackio is in California, he's getting ripped off (doubly so if he's a 1099 and/or pays any substantial amount for his health plan). If he's in Wisconsin or Canada, he's probably doing OK. If he's in a country that doesn't use a currency called "dollars" but he's incorrectly using the dollar sign anyway, that throws everything completely out of whack.

This is why I asked where he is.