U.S. Working Poor On The Rise, Says Report

Poverty-Level Jobs Increased By 4.7 Million Between 2002 and 2006, According To New Analysis

(AP)  The number of U.S. jobs paying a poverty-level wage increased by 4.7 million between 2002 and 2006, according to a new analysis of census data released Tuesday.

A report by The Working Poor Families Project, based on an analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, found conditions worsened for the working poor in the four years ending in 2006, as the number of low-income working families increased by 350,000. The project is funded by the Annie E. Casey, Ford, Joyce and C.S. Mott Foundations.

The report defines a low-income working family as those earning less than twice the Census definition of poverty. In 2006, the most recent year for available data, a family of four earning $41,228 or less qualified as a low-income family.

The number of jobs with pay below the poverty threshold increased to 29.4 million, or 22 percent of all jobs, in 2006 from 24.7 million, or 19 percent of all jobs, in 2002.

"The real surprising news, the alarming news, is that both the number and percentage of low-income families increased during this period," said Brandon Roberts, co-author of the report. "This was a time when we had solid and robust economic growth."

An increase in poverty "is not just a new phenomena over the last six months," he said.

Poverty-wage jobs increased in part because 2.5 million new jobs paid poverty wages; additionally 2.2 million jobs that paid greater than poverty wages in 2002 became poverty-wage jobs by 2006, as pay failed to keep up with the cost of living, Roberts said.

In two states, Mississippi and New Mexico, 40 percent of working families were low income in 2006, according to the report.

In 11 other states, at least 33 percent of working families were low income: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Louisiana, Montana, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and West Virginia.

The number of low-income families rose to nearly 9.6 million, or 28 percent of the total population, in 2006 from 9.2 million, or roughly 27 percent, in 2002, according to the report. The number of children in low-income families rose by roughly 800,000 during the same period, climbing to 21 million from 20.2 million.

During the period, the number of working families spending more than one-third of their income on housing grew to 59 percent from 52 percent.

The report sought to address what it called myths about low-income families. For instance, it found 72 percent of low-income families work, with adults in low-income working families working, on average, 2,552 hours per year in 2006, the equivalent of one and one-quarter full-time jobs.

It also found that 52 percent of low-income families are headed by married couples; 69 percent have only American-born parents; 43 percent are white and non-Hispanic and only one-quarter of low-income families receive food stamp assistance.

[incog-nito]

Vote McCain for more of the same for the next 4 years.

[deckardbr]

Maybe if the poor didn''t have to bail out the rich all the time, they''d have some money.

[dburfears]

McCain:

"If they are poor then they deserve to die if they cannot afford health care!"

"Working poor?" "We need to take care of the Working Rich!"

"See, there are Americans who will do the work of illegal aliens!"

"Maybe I can get a few to take care of the gardens at my 7 houses and do some house cleaning!"

"Cindy wants to know if they drink Bud?"

[McHineguy]

From th enews article: "The report defines a low-income working family as those earning less than TWICE the Census definition of poverty." (emphisis added)

Why not THREE times, maybe FOUR? Figures dont lie, liars figure. Lets be honest here, $41,000 is a living wage in many states. AVERAGE wages are down in some states (New Mexico?) because they have become havens for illegal aliens who often work cheap and lower the overall wage structure.

I know its fun to bash the politicians but lets not hide the truth from ourselves. We cant fix it if we cant understand it. McCain cant, Obama cant, no one can if we dont first understand. Shut off the lies and the anger that divide us and try to understand so we can unite and fix our country.

[deckardbr]

It sure doesn''''t look like that old "trickle-down theory" worked very well, does it?

Posted by sun247 at 12:27 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Wrong. It worked perfectly. Money trickled down from Nelson Rockefeller to David Rockefeller, just like it was supposed to.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by Machineguy

Still blaming the victims, the "illegal migrant workers" take jobs for which greedy employers refuse to pay a decent wage.

Let us look at the cost for a family of four.

$41K = $3416.66
- 1500.00 (rent or mortgage)
- 854.00 (federal income tax)
- 543.80 (basic food cost, thrifty schedule)
- 430.00 (average monthly car note)
- 350.00 (average gasoline costs)
- 250.00 (average home energy cost)
- 280.00 (average state income tax)
- 180.00 (average for 2 children to attend
school)
- 70.00 (auto insurance)

So even before such "luxuries" as TV, phone, life and health insurance, city and municipal taxes we are already at $4457.80, so it defies your logic that that is somehow a living wage, you must assume that you can get away with not paying these bills.

$-1041.00 per month, soon you are $-12501.60 for the year. You have a distinctly Bush/McSame Republican view that you can run a deficit forever, and it will never catch up to you.

[carlylaine]

It''s the Democrats that wanted us to bail out the rich WALL STREET guys....vote them out! All they want to do is raise taxes. AND KEEP THE POOR VERY POOR. Reagan''s trickle down theory worked. It worked very well..the libs turned it...go back to the way Reagan had it and things will straighten themselves. Otherwise, you''ll have more of the same no matter if you''re a Repub or a Dem.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by CarlyLaine

It may have worked for you, but for the vast majority of Americans it is a miserable failure.

It is the way Reagan designed it, in case you haven''t noticed, between the fake wars, (Republican generated) tax breaks for big oil (GOP) and the bailouts of the S&L, airline, auto, and now banking and insurance industries, most of whom are GOP contributors, follows exactly the model Reagabn proposed, give the money to the rich, and they would create more jobs.

Read the article again, s l o w l y, and notice that the jobs created were all poverty wage jobs, the decent wage jobs were outsourced to slave labor companies, and migrant workers and illegal aliens are now doing what used to be well paying domestic jobs, construction, roadwork, farming, manufacturing, textile, etc.

This is exactly what Reagan wanted, and it is only testament to the weakness of the Democrats that they could not effectively oppose it.

That is about to change, and not a moment too soon.

[brianbwb-2009]

"It''''s the Democrats that wanted us to bail out the rich WALL STREET guys..." Posted by CarlyLaine

Since when is Bush a Democrat? Bush came to us with the bailout BS, claiming that if we didn''t agree to his theft, the economy would collapse, as he said "within days".

The Democrats are guilty of one important flaw, stupidity, they took a proven mega-liar at his word, and once more allowed him to sacrifice more of our future based on his lies.

The Democrats didn''t want to do it, if you watched the Senate hearings, to a person they said they didn''t want to do it, but felt that inaction would be worse, rumors are that certain members were threatened that martial law would be the alternative. In addition they were goaded on international TV by GOP snake-oil salesmen Paulson (ex-CEO, Morgan Stanley, btw.) and Bernanke (Bush-GOP appointee) that they had no choice.

[slim1h2o]

I find it interesting that all the states that are cited in this article, with the exception of Idaho, are southern states. Which are historically non-union states.

Is there any correlation there?

Of course with the closings of GM plants, and future closings of other plants in the north, we''ll have many more poor people in that region, I believe.

[grandesign]

So even before such "luxuries" as TV, phone, life and health insurance, city and municipal taxes we are already at $4457.80, so it defies your logic that that is somehow a living wage, you must assume that you can get away with not paying these bills.
Posted by brianbwb at 04:56 AM : Oct 15, 2008

No, not at all. We charge the remainder to our credit cards until the either the economy goes belly up, or we file for bankruptcy. It''s part and parcel of the New Economy (circa 1998).

[grandesign]

"Cindy wants to know if they drink Bud?"
Posted by dburfears at 12:38 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Joe six-pack does.

[brianbwb-2009]

Posted by Grandesign

Wasn''t Bud sold to Stella Artois? It is now a Belgian owned beer company, who knows, it might begin to catch up to Stroh''s in quality.

Red Wings rule...

[irmcvet97]

We were sold a LIE people... that''s all that can be said. We were told that IF we allowed the Corporations to destroy the Unions and ship those jobs to the Third World, we would all be rewarded. Take a drive through ANY Working Class Neighborhood you choose, doesn''t matter where, and LOOK with your OWN eyes at the REWARDS. Family after family are now working TWO or MORE jobs just to make ends meet. Family after family have to somehow find a way to make up for the loss of Retirement and Medical Benefits they thought would be there in their old age. You don''t need reports or studies to show you what TRICKLE DOWN has done... all you need is YOUR own eyes!!

[wl7bzh]

The American dollar-It''s kinda like throwing a few more potatoes in the soup and adding a lot of water so that you can feed more people. Ya got a lot more soup but it''s not very nourishing.

[pollroller1]

There''s no jobs where I live. We used to have mfg jobs in our area but they are all gone. All of the plants are just empty buildings. Thanks Mr Bush. Great job Repubs.

[pollroller1]

Seems like most of those plants started closing around the time that Mr Bush took office.

[payasyougo]

The poverty level is a reflection of the US failure at the family and educational level. It is that simple.

If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.

The problem with using statistics to correlate the relationship between the dropping of standards in school and the increasing level of poverty in society is that those tasked with potentially recognizing such a correlation today were educated by those schools therefore don''t have the skill set to recognize the problem. Recognizing the problem is the first step to solving it.

[oleander8]

Stop giving tax breaks to companies that send decent paying jobs overseas.

[oleander8]

''The poverty level is a reflection of the US failure at the family and educational level. It is that simple.''[Posted by payasyougo]

How are parents supposed to be guiding their children when they are both working 2 jobs to keep the roof over their head and food on the table? Education? Who can afford it anymore?

[docpeter1953]

From the above article, "The number of jobs with pay below the poverty threshold increased to 29.4 million, or 22 percent of all jobs, in 2006 from 24.7 million, or 19 percent of all jobs, in 2002.

"The real surprising news, the alarming news, is that both the number and percentage of low-income families increased during this period," said Brandon Roberts, co-author of the report. "This was a time when we had solid and robust economic growth."
____________

IOW, while jobs during this time period were being created and maintained, they were poverty level jobs. The rich CEOs continued with their multi $M salaries and let their lower employees provide, what is essentially, slave labor, and without even the decency of providing healthcare.

If we take $1M away from a CEO the company can hire 2o people and pay $40K per year and still have $200K ($10K for each)left over to provide insurance and possibly a little for retirement.

GREED! It is one of the 7 deadly sins.

[pollroller1]

so, that is all the people in your town are qualified to do? was it Bush fault that you didnt train for other jobs? keep you from college?

Posted by jamesm12341 at 08:48 AM : Oct 15, 2008
------------------
Oh I see, we are not supposed to make anything here in this country. Maybe that''s why China has billions of surplus dollars and we the USA are in debt billions of dollars.

[afmca]

Oh no, that can''t be. This is Bush''s ownership society where everyone will be rich and care free. McCain promises more of the same. This society is imploding and becoming more and more separated by wealth. The old Republican argument that these rich people were just smarter and earned it has been totally crushed by the Wall Street meltdown. Now we know they were just more corrupt and more greedy and got a little help from their Republican friends to avoid detection.

[pollroller1]

Hey, a jobs a job! At least there are still some decent white guys willing to work, instead of sucking the system dry.

Posted by DaVicar1 at 08:36 AM :
--------
You must live in a different world than me. I had my dog to the vet the other day who happens to be black.
Oh by the way, My brother had his hand operated on by a black surgeon. I''m looking out my window and the garbage truck just stopped to pick up the trash. Well what do you know, the driver is black. Oh and by the way, when I was at Wall Mart the other day a young black lady was working the checkout line. But like I said, I may be living in a different world than you.

[slim1h2o]

so, that is all the people in your town are qualified to do? was it Bush fault that you didnt train for other jobs? keep you from college?


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 08:48 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Thats one of the most ignorant statements I''ve heard.

A business closes one day, and people are supposed to be re-trained for another job the next day? We all should be ready to jump to another career, on a moments notice?

Moron...

[pollroller1]

so there are other jobs besides mfg in your town? wow!! i thought you said Bush was reason there were no jobs in your town

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:05 AM : Oct 15, 2008
------------------------
Hey if you like buying all of your stuff from china, good for you. I personally would like to see things made in America. But what do I know. I''m just one of those stupid Democrats.

[babooph]

Those now joining the poor-did they come from the rich,or the old "upward bound " middle class-I WONDER ?

[slim1h2o]

yep, thats winners do.....losers sit back and blame others. which one are you?


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:09 AM : Oct 15, 2008

I''m retired tweedle dee, thats which one.

It used to be, that you worked at one job, and you could retire from that job. But thanks in large part to the republicans, and their union busting policies, you can forget all that now-a-days.

[babooph]

I am sure God will tell Bush ,2 more wars & no taxes for the rich forever is the best for the old USA now.The trickle down will be [as Rummy says ]WONDERFUL!!

[slim1h2o]

i bet if american workers built a better product for a realistic (non union) wage....jobs would not have been sent overseas....its called business......seems to me that you chose the wrong one....thus my suggestion of retraining for different one


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:13 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Unions are needed more than ever now. Why? Well because they hold companies accountable, and maintain wages.

And if you can''t see that, then you are blinded by the republican propaganda from washington''s blind leadership of bush.

[easeup-2009]

3 weeks before the election & they publish this....

hmmmmmmmmmmm...................

[slim1h2o]

We really dont need krapp like that anymore.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by DaVicar1 at 09:22 AM : Oct 15, 2008

I didn''t say all unions are good. But apparently, we still need unions, as effident as these companies that would sell out their own kind, and hire illegal immigrants.

So the premise of unions, I think, would hold these companies accountable for such hirings.

Thus, hold the earning power of legal Americans where it should be.

Everyone knows that hiring illegals dwindles our earning power, or erodes Americans pay.

Americans have been left for dead, by these greedy corperations, plain and simple.

[slim1h2o]

yea, i love the 6th grade educated union workers making 30 bucks an hour , walking picket lines and complaining.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:20 AM : Oct 15, 2008


Clearly, it is you whom has the 6th grade education.

Not to mention, your obsessive love for the down fall of the U.S. by the way of the illegal immigrant invaders.

[slim1h2o]

hopefully auto workers are training to do something else now. or will they be like pollroller and slim1h2o and just wait for ax to fall and be "surprised"


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:38 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Reading comprehension problems, there tweedledum?

I''m retired, and also I''m crossed train for a multitude of careers, if I choose to go back to work at anytime.

[slim1h2o]

6th grade education not going to hack it anymore in todays world....sorry, but there it is.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:46 AM : Oct 15, 2008


Ah yes,,you''ll be sorry when you are making $5.00 per hour. And all your illegal buddies made it all possible.

Hope you are happy there nappy....

[gdub35]

"find it interesting that all the states that are cited in this article, with the exception of Idaho, are southern states. Which are historically non-union states."

Wow what are raging idoit. Obviously you didn''t pass 3 grade geogrpahy. If you check the list again, you will find several states not located in the South. (MT, OK, TX, NM, AZ). Second you didn''t pass history class either. Half of these states were not even states to be part states to be part of the Union when the USA was refered as such.

[slim1h2o]

And one reason that GM is in trouble is, not because of the union, but because they designed and made cars and trucks that nobody wanted.

And I believe their designers were not union!

Go figure!!

[easeup-2009]

could argue unions all day...but to sum it up....its the 21st century now union workers.....the gravy train is over....6th grade education not going to hack it anymore in todays world....sorry, but there it is.

Posted by jamesm12341 at 09:46 AM : Oct 15, 2008

In Ohio, the turnpike workers make $20/hr, which translates to over $40 grand a year--more I''m sure with their overtime & holiday pay.

Do you know what they do? They take money & make CHANGE! McDonald''s is a harder job! The funny thing is, a few years ago they actually threatened to strike. That would have crippled the turnpike, because no one could possibly have filled-in and made change.

What a joke.

[slim1h2o]

Wow what are raging idoit. Obviously you didn''''t pass 3 grade geogrpahy. If you check the list again, you will find several states not located in the South. (MT, OK, TX, NM, AZ). Second you didn''''t pass history class either. Half of these states were not even states to be part states to be part of the Union when the USA was refered as such.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Posted by gdub35 at 09:52 AM : Oct 15, 2008

Raging idiot?

The union I was talking about was not the union of the U.S, but the labor unions.

Now who is the idiot? Idiot!


You must be taking lessons from james on how to be a moron,,,

[mytoosense]

If I were a small business owner who sold a product or a service, I would not be happy about this story.
Less money earned by American consumers is less money spent.

Second Point on a different subject:
The American car companies ought to do a study to see how many vehicle sales they lose when they lay off one of their auto workers.

Lets see, the worker, the worker''s spouse, their disenchanted kids, perhaps as a sign of support, the layed off workers parents and siblings and their kids.

The American auto industries current troubles may be, in part, seeds it sowed by pisssing off it''s workers years ago.

[rcleveland42]

If the big businesses would stay here and manufacture the goods we use here in the USA we would have people who could afford to raise their children. The rich just keep getting richer and the rest of the country just gets left behind. I graduated from High school with honors and went to college. I could not afford the cost of college and have decided to take a few classes a year toward my degree in teaching. I make $19,891 per year and have four children. I left their addicted to perscription pain killers father after four years of failed intervention. Are you people going to say that I do not have the right make more money than I do?

[mytoosense]

rcleveland42
Can John and Sarah count on your vote in November?
If not for economic policy reasons, for moral and religious reasons?




Go Obama.

[mytoosense]

3 weeks before the election & they publish this....

hmmmmmmmmmmm...................

Posted by easeup

I know, They should have swept these ugly figures under the rug until after the election.

After all, this story is negativly biased against the party responsible for these economic times.

[easeup-2009]

If the big businesses would stay here and manufacture the goods we use here in the USA we would have people who could afford to raise their children. The rich just keep getting richer and the rest of the country just gets left behind. I graduated from High school with honors and went to college. I could not afford the cost of college and have decided to take a few classes a year toward my degree in teaching. I make $19,891 per year and have four children. I left their addicted to perscription pain killers father after four years of failed intervention. Are you people going to say that I do not have the right make more money than I do?

Posted by rcleveland42 at 10:53 AM : Oct 15, 2008

You have 4 kids before you got a degree & married a drug addict--you are where you''re at based on YOUR decisions. Quit acting like it''s anyone else''s fault.

[easeup-2009]

I know, They should have swept these ugly figures under the rug until after the election.

After all, this story is negativly biased against the party responsible for these economic times.

Posted by mytoosense at 11:05 AM : Oct 15, 2008

I''ll bet you posted about Bush lowering the price of gas before the election.

[geneonlbk]

As the dollar weakens those close to the edge are forced into poverty because real wages have declined under Bush/Chaney.

In America we sell injustice to the rich and force it on the poor.

[geneonlbk]

If we ever do seriously embark on a renewable energy program there will be millions of jobs here at home. Of course Big Oil has to go before that can happen and therefore the current regime of RepubliCrats must be voted out of office. We need a whole new government.

[mytoosense]

And one reason that GM is in trouble is, not because of the union, but because they designed and made cars and trucks that nobody wanted.

And I believe their designers were not union!

Go figure!!




----------------------
----------------------------------------
------------------

Posted by slim1h2o at 09:52 AM : Oct 15, 2008


yea thats what they tell the 6th graders at the union meetings
Posted by jamesm12341

I have worked as a supplier to the Big Three as well as Toyota, Mercedes and Honda for the last twenty four years. I can safely confirm the point that Union Workers DO NOT design cars, they build cars and maintain the facilities and machines that build cars.

jamesm12341, As short a list as it is, stick to talking about things that you know.

[legacyabq]

"The real surprising news, the alarming news, is that both the number and percentage of low-income families increased during this period," said Brandon Roberts, co-author of the report. "This was a time when we had solid and robust economic growth."


EXACTLY- economic growth for the rich only..
How can righties whine about dems being socialists?? How can people say Obama is going to redistribute wealth??
The wealth has already been "distributed", straight up..
We all knew this would happen as soon as Bush got elcted, especially the second time..
ITS LIKE CLOCKWORK
What amazes me is that the GOP has brainwashed all the dummies into thinking they are the party for them: the working class..
***?????????
How many indications of reality do you need before you realize that the GOP is by the rich, for the rich, and always will be?
How can self-respecting working people support these bozos?

[easeup-2009]

I have worked as a supplier to the Big Three as well as Toyota, Mercedes and Honda for the last twenty four years. I can safely confirm the point that Union Workers DO NOT design cars, they build cars and maintain the facilities and machines that build cars.

jamesm12341, As short a list as it is, stick to talking about things that you know.

Posted by mytoosense at 11:21 AM : Oct 15, 2008

And you should also know that the Big 3 pay 30% more in wages & bennies than the foreign automakers.