Millions of low-wage workers in the US are struggling to survive

Ambre_chicken_nuggets_-web.jpg

A new project from Oxfam America and the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) reveals shocking numbers of workers stuck in low-wage jobs with scant benefits.

Hard work should pay off. But for millions of workers, it hardly pays the bills. Over the past 40 years, the reality of low-wage work in America has shifted dramatically. Today, more people than ever are working in jobs that pay too little and offer too few benefits. In fact, our research reveals that nearly half the workforce is stuck in jobs that pay under $15 an hour; one in four low-wage workers has not a single day of earned sick time.

Once, people knew that hard work could pay off: they could support a family, save for retirement, educate their children, or even own a home. That is no longer true.

People doing low-wage jobs do vital work that keeps the economy humming: they care for the young and elderly, prepare food, clean offices, and help customers. These jobs are essential, but the economy has stopped adequately compensating the workers who do them.. Wages are stagnating and demands on workers are increasing. And this trend is only growing worse, as the jobs of the future are concentrated in sectors with low wages and threadbare benefits.

This situation is not right—nor is it inevitable. It is the consequence of our policy choices over many years. Oxfam and EPI are proposing a set of policy changes which will ensure that hard work is rewarded, and that the economy functions for everyone. Together, we have created an interactive web site with a series of maps of that illustrate concentrations of working poor in the states; and a new report that explores four essential policy shifts:

The state of working America is hurting. What’s more, the people doing these low-wage jobs are disproportionately people of color and women. Again, this trend is increasing, as people find themselves trapped by low wages and threadbare benefits. Here are the facts: