That's not how marginal tax rates work, though- You get taxed higher on the amount above the threshold, not on the entire amount.

If you're below the poverty line, it's possible to make less by making more by disqualifying yourself for public aid.

But if the Amazon workers are in that situation then we would need to expand this conversation anyway.

Agreed. My comment regards income tax brackets, not public aid.

That’s not how tax brackets work. It is, unfortunately, how some welfare programs work. This results in benefits “cliffs” where you can lose thousands of dollars of welfare for earning a single additional dollar. If those welfare payments are how you keep a roof over your head, it’s pretty easy to get trapped right below the ceiling.

That said, you are unlikely to be eligible for these benefits at all if you are a full-time warehouse employee. They are aimed mostly at those in genuine poverty.

That’s a common misconception in 99% of cases, save for some welfare cliffs for really low earners. Tax brackets are graduated tiers, so not everything is taxed at the same rate.

https://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/071114/can-moving-h...

This never happens in the USA because this is not how tax brackets work. When you hit the next tax bracket, you only pay the higher rate on the income over the bracket threshold. Any income under it pays the lower bracket(s) rates.

That's not at all how our tax system works. Progressive tax brackets only tax you at the new rate on the money that you've made within that tax bracket. Getting into a higher tax bracket does not result in you making less money. Ever.

That's not how tax brackets work. You never make "less" when you make more money.

Your take home is what most people consider "making" even they know their actual salary is what they "make". I made a higher salary working in a state with state income taxes. Took a pay cut to move to a state without state income taxes. My take home went up (obviously). So I "made" more in take home by "making" less.

You changed what tax rules applied to you by moving, and thus your tax situation changed.

The point remains: under normal income circumstances (i.e. not related to welfare or equity), there is no way for you to get a raise in your real income and have your take home income decrease due to your federal income tax bracket.

And in this case your take home would go up 100% of the time you got a raise - only the raise amount itself would decrease proportionally to your increased income.