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Job hunters who fail to calculate the difference between gross and net earnings as well as the variation between take-home pay and actual disposable income could be surprised to learn that they're working for much less than they envisioned.

A while back, I did a rough cost-benefit analysis of retirement-eligibles in an organization to determine what was the advantage of continuing to work against taking retirement and drawing an annuity. I compared the amount of their take-home pay with a monthly annuity check and accounted for the support costs related to having a job — commuting expenses, work clothes, even lunch for those who don't brown-bag.

The exercise revealed that a number of employees essentially were working for minimum wage rates. The sails in those paychecks suddenly lost a lot of wind.

The example has relevance for today's active work force because "hidden pay erosion" impacts the pocketbook. Have you recently computed your "actual" net earnings? Decide if any of these scenarios fit.

— What a working couple pays out in child care, transportation and work clothes may not justify the second person holding a job, especially if it's a low-paying position. Staying home and watching the children as a full-time parent could improve family finances.

— With today's skyrocketing gas prices, the cost of commuting, especially to jobs out of the area, can severely bleed a paycheck. Working closer to home for less money might prove a better deal.

— Those people with jobs in metro areas routinely shell out hundreds to a thousand dollars a year for parking. A few coins a day aren't exactly chump change.

Whether it's the job you currently have or one you're contemplating, do the math and decide "what's really in your wallet."

You may not regard a few dollars a day an issue, but spread the amount over a one-year period and you can see the impact. It may explain why you're financially strapped days before the next paycheck arrives.

Steve Stromp is a professional career consultant, lecturer and writer. Contact him at sstromp@sbcglobal.net.