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 $8.55 an hour, and the federal minimum wage is only $7.25, even with the recent increase.

Publications

• The Costs of Cutting Health Care
  An Analysis of Recent Changes to New Jersey FamilyCare
  Report, November 2011
• Making Work Pay in Montana
  Brief, June 2011
• When Work Supports Don’t Support Work
  A Case for Parental Health Coverage in Mississippi
  Brief, May 2011
• Healthy Kids and Strong Working Families
  Improving Economic Security for North Dakota Families with Children
  Brief, April 2011
• Basic Facts About Food Insecurity Among Children in the United States, 2008
  Fact Sheet, August 2010
• Who Are America’s Poor Children?
  Examining Food Insecurity Among Children in the United States
  Report, August 2010