Low-wage Work

Over half of all low-income children in the United States have a parent who works full time, year-round. But they work in low-wage jobs that typically offer few benefits (such as health insurance, paid sick leave, and retirement plans), little stability, and few opportunities for advancement.

Shifts in the economy have made it virtually impossible for workers without a college degree to command a living wage. “Work support” benefits—for example, earned income tax credits and child care subsidies—can help families close the gap between low earnings and basic expenses.

Research shows that a single parent with two children typically needs to earn $16.50 an hour full-time—or about $34,000 a year—to provide for the family’s basic needs. Yet the highest state minimum wage is $8 an hour, and the federal minimum wage is only $6.55, even with the recent increase.

Publications

• Ten Important Questions About Child Poverty and Family Economic Hardship
  Brochure, June 2009
• Making Work Supports Work
  Project Description
  Fact Sheet, March 2009
• Paid Leave in the States
  A Critical Support for Low-wage Workers and Their Families
  Brief, March 2009
• Budgeting for Basic Needs
  A Struggle for Working Families
  Brief, March 2009
• The Challenge of Child Care
  More Help Needed for Houston's Families
  Fact Sheet, November 2008
• Low-Income Children in the United States
  National and State Trend Data, 1997-2007
  Report, November 2008