38 Bonded Labor
The Student Debt Crisis and Decent Work
Patton O. Garriott, Sandra Bertram Grant Solis, and Kristen Jiin Park
Student loan debt is the second highest consumer-debt category in the United States reaching over $1.7 trillion (Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, 2020). The debt crisis affects 44.7 million people with more than one in four adults living with an average student loan debt of $39,351 (Hanson, 2021). Student loan debt affects short-term financial stability (e.g., meeting basic needs) and long-term financial security, such as retirement savings. Student debt impacts career and life choices; for example, 61% of people defer from starting a business and 22% cannot afford their ...
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