A Profile of the Working Poor

A new study from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) finds that in 2008, approximately 8.9 million adults were classified as “working poor,” an increase of 1.4 million since 2007. BLS defines the working poor as individuals who have spent at least 27 weeks in the labor force but whose incomes remain below the official federal poverty level. The report, A Profile of the Working Poor, finds that in 2008, 3.9 percent of full-time workers and 13.7 percent of part-time workers were among the working poor. The report also provides data on the working poor by gender, race, educational attainment, occupation type and family characteristics. http://stats.bls.gov/cps/cpswp2008.pdf