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Course topic reflection

The focus of this paper is to offer a comprehensive profile of the working poor. The

Bureau of Labor Statistics defines "working poor" as those who spend at least 27 fortnight of the

year in the labor market but whose earnings are below the federal poverty level. “In this brief, we

highlight new Census Bureau data on low-income working families and differences across racial/

ethnic groups” (Povich, p.2). As a consequence of their low levels of success, both as individuals

and as families, their earnings are below the federal poverty threshold. One of the pillars of the

American Dream is the assurance of a steady income, and the clear majority of Americans agree

that those who commit to working a year-round, full-time job should be able to adequately

support their families. Since it does not provide an accurate picture of the total number of people

who are working while being poor, the official evaluation of the working poor in the United

States is particularly problematic. Most measures of the working poor encompass those who

have held jobs for at least the last six months, but just part-time or sporadically, or who are now

jobless. There were around 7.6 million people in the United States who were considered working

poor in 2016. The bulk of working poor are also above the age of 35, suggesting that adults

rather than young people make up the bulk of those participating in the underground economy.

There is a vast chasm between excellent jobs and bad employment in the present

American labor market. The great majority of organizations will only recruit individuals with
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college degrees for executive and management roles, therefore working harder or even longer

hours will not ensure a promotion. Two of the most pressing issues facing the United States

today are stagnant wages and the rising number of people who are employed yet still struggle to

make ends meet (Ehrenreich , p.126). There has been a huge increase in the number of jobs that

are insecure and pay less, while simultaneously time as full-time employment are not

compensated well. In order to create policies that may help working families in the U.s escape

poverty, it is crucial to have a firm grasp of what it means to be poor or a member of the working

poor. When the data is broken down by race, it is evident that the percentage of Latinos in the

United States who are living below the poverty line is steadily rising “There are no secret

economies that nourish the poor; on the contrary, there are a host of special costs” (Ehrenreich ,

p.128). In 2019, the jobless rate in the USA dropped to 3.6%, the lowest level since 1969. Many

people in our society face obstacles to escaping poverty while having full-time jobs. However,

minorities are still twice as likely as whites to be in the working poor if they are black or African

American. With women being so much more inclined than men to be included in this category.

This discrepancy in chance of being one of the working poor also occurs between the genders.

Work cited

Povich, Deborah, Brandon Roberts, and Mark Mather. "Low-income working families: The

racial/ethnic divide." The Working Poor Families Project (2015).

Ehrenreich, Barbara. Nickel and dimed: On (not) getting by in America. Metropolitan Books,

2010.