i think you’re on to a core component (beyond everyone but the top 10% being pressed for disposable income). the us is structurally and culturally ordered around accepting exploitation to become the exploiter.
unless you become credentialed and make your way into the ever shrinking pmclasses your only hope to not only a semblance of financial security but also basic social respectability (personhood, really) is to suffer exploitation and privation until you can open your own shop and become the exploiter.
many jobs and even trades, basically anything not considered a “profession” encourages this “path” which of course logically cannot work for everyone in these jobs and also conditions new owners to a mindset of “i did it, why can’t they” ignoring any other factors and allowing capital interests and politicians to order governance around what become economic truisms.
kind of a transphobe is the only issue i've seen