What is a low-income working family?
A non-elderly household with at least one child and one or more working adults that subsists on an income at or below twice the official poverty line, the level at which most families are no longer eligible for federal support. About 60 percent of low-income families have at least one adult working full-time, year-round, another 10 percent regularly work at least half-time.
How many such families are there?
There are 13 million low-income families, including 26 million children. Of those, nearly 8 million families have at least one adult working full-time, year-round, including 16 million children.
Experts |
| To reach these experts on low-income working families, contact the Office of Public Affairs at (202) 261-5709 or email paffairs@ui.urban.org. |
| Gregory Acs - Welfare policy
- Children's living arrangements |
| Gina Adams - Child care and early education |
| Randy Capps - Immigrant families |
| Harry Holzer - Employment and income
- Job mobility and training |
| Olivia Golden - Children and families
- Income support programs |
| Genevieve Kenney - Child health care and health insurance
- State Children’s Health Insurance program |
| Robert Lerman - Education and employment
- Family structure and economic well-being |
| Pamela Loprest - Disabilities and employment
- Welfare reform
Safety net issues |
| Margery Austin Turner - Urban policy and neighborhood issues
- Racial and ethnic discrimination |
| Sheila Zedlewski - Income security and poverty
- Income support programs |
| Steven Zuckerman - Health care and health insurance
- Uncompensated care |
Who are they?
- Most low-income family heads are older than 30 and have at least a high school education, but are generally younger and less educated than middle-income families, having incomes between 2 and three times the federal poverty line.
- Most low-income families are headed by native-born, white adults, but are more likely than middle-income families to be nonwhite and immigrant.
- One-quarter of America's children live in low-income families with a working parent who works regularly at least part-time.
What obstacles do they face?
- Salary: Low hourly wages are the reason these working families have low incomes. The median hourly wage for the primary worker in these families is $9, less than two-thirds the hourly wage for middle-income families.
- Health: Problems with health, which can contribute to limited hours of work, are more prevalent among low-income working families.
- Child care: Caring for children consumes an average of 12 percent of yearly income for low-income families with a full-time, full-year worker.
- Housing and food: Low-income working families with at least one full-time worker receive fewer job benefits and face greater food and housing hardships than middle-income families.
- Assistance: Few low-income working families receive welfare benefits.
Overview research (pdf files)
"Low-Income Working Families: Facts and Figures"
"Who Are Low-Income Working Families?"
Is There a System Supporting Low-Income Working Families?"
In-depth research (pdf files)
Can We Improve Job Retention and Advancement among Low-Income Working Parents?"
"Working to Make Ends Meet: Understanding the Income and Expenses of America's Low-Income Families"
An Introduction of Unemployment and Unemployment Insurance"
"A Profile of Low-Income Working Immigrant Families"
Forthcoming research
"Toward a New Child Care Policy"
"Housing Assistance as a Support for Work"
