MORE WORKERS FALL INTO POVERTY

15% of the U.S. population, 46.2 million Americans, lived below the poverty line in 2011 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS); 10.4 million were the “working poor,” people who either had jobs or were looking for part of the year. BLS found that the number of working poor in poverty soared during the recession. Part-time jobs are more conducive to poverty than full-time employment, notes BLS, as 14.4% of part-time workers lived in poverty, compared to only 4.4% of full-time workers. Low wages were part of the problem—66% were in poverty because of they earned so little. But 39% of the working poor were unemployed at some point during the year. Families with children under 18 years old with one member in the labor force 27 weeks or more were four times more likely to live in poverty than those without children.

Source: Food Research and Action Center, 4/22/13, Working Poor