Low-Wage America: Marshall Cox

By Noah Adams

Published June 11, 2003 at 12:00 AM EDT

Marshall Cox is a server at the original Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Corbin, Ky. -- and a sharp pool player.

Most evenings, 24-year-old Marshall Cox is a pool shark with ambitions to earn a two-year degree and pursue a career in drafting.

But by day, Cox works in the original Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Corbin, Ky., where KFC founder Harland Sanders began building his fast food empire. NPR's Noah Adams recently spent a day with Cox and followed his routine.

He earns $6.25 an hour, doesn't own a car and still lives with his mother, where he and his brother help out with the household expenses. He's also a pretty sharp pool player.

Noah Adams

Noah Adams, long-time co-host of NPR's All Things Considered, brings more than three decades of radio experience to his current job as a contributing correspondent for NPR's National Desk., focusing on the low-wage workforce, farm issues, and the Katrina aftermath. Now based in Ohio, he travels extensively for his reporting assignments, a position he's held since 2003.

See stories by Noah Adams

Stand up for civility

This news story is funded in large part by Connecticut Public’s Members — listeners, viewers, and readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

We hope their support inspires you to donate so that we can continue telling stories that inform, educate, and inspire you and your neighbors. As a community-supported public media service, Connecticut Public has relied on donor support for more than 50 years.

Your donation today will allow us to continue this work on your behalf. Give today at any amount and join the 50,000 members who are building a better—and more civil—Connecticut to live, work, and play.

Donate