My friend has tourette's syndrome. Technically she is disabled, she's not lived on the government's dime one day of her life. She's always worked, always in minimum wage jobs. Currently she's working as a maid, it's not likely she will ever be able to advance, she's 56 now and her body is giving out from the hard physical labor she's done all her life. Guess what, she doesn't make enough to pay for her own apartment. After 35 plus years of working she still can't afford her own apartment and utilities. Why do you believe she shouldn't get paid enough to live on?
That is because of the choices she's made in her life, and they are coming home to roost.
If she can't pay for her apartment, she needs to get a cheaper one or she needs to pick up #2 job. It's not the responsibility of the motel to make sure she has a nice apartment. She is an adult, she's been one for some time. I imagine at age 30 (and really, at age 20) she should have been looking down the road to this moment and making a PLAN that would allow her to continue to support herself.
Like maybe live in a $150/month studio apartment with utilities paid, so she could stash away $150 a month for her old age.
Or maybe see what sort of education she could obtain that would allow her to work at a higher paying job at some point.
She made some bad choices. And now she's hurting. That's the way it works. When she's 60 she'll be eligible for social security...right now she's got ten years to get through, and she'd better up her game or things will get worse before they get better.
Of course, when she SHOULD have upped her game was 30 years ago. But she didn't.