A Profile of the Working

Poor, 1997

U.S. Department of Labor

Bureau of Labor Statistics

August 1999

Report 936

In 1997, 35.6 million persons, 13.3 percent of the population, lived at or below the official poverty level. Although the

Nation’s poor were primarily children and adults who were

not in the labor force, 21.0 percent, or 7.5 million persons

were classified as “working poor.” This level was about the

same as in 1996. The working poor, as defined for this analysis, are individuals who spent at least 27 weeks in the labor

force (working or looking for work), but whose income fell

below the official poverty threshold. The poverty rate—the

ratio of the working poor to all persons in the labor force for

at least 27 weeks—was 5.7 percent, little changed from 1996.

(See table A.)

A majority of the working poor (58.1 percent) usually

worked full time (35 hours or more a week), although fulltime work substantially lowers a person’s probability of being poor. Among persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or

more, the poverty rate for those usually employed full time

was 4.0 percent compared with 11.9 percent for usual parttime workers. Only 6.8 percent of the working poor actively

searched for a job for more than 6 months in 1997 but did not

find work. (See table 1.)

This report presents data on the relationships between labor force activity and poverty in 1997 for individual workers

and their families. The data were collected in the March 1998

supplement to the Current Population Survey, a nationwide

monthly survey of about 50,000 households conducted by

the Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

For a detailed description of the source of the data and an

explanation of the concepts and definitions used in this report, see the Technical Note.

Although employment status is a characteristic of an individual, poverty status is defined in terms of a family unit.

Thus, earnings from someone’s employment are only one factor in that person’s poverty status; the earnings of others in

the family and the presence of dependents are also important.

For example, working wives were less likely than working

husbands to be poor (in aggregate) because working wives

were more likely to be in families with a second earner. On

average in 1997, about 77 percent of married men worked

for 27 weeks or more compared with approximately 60 percent of married women. At the same earnings levels, women

who headed families are more likely to be poor than other

women, because of either limited earnings from others in the

family, or because the presence of children raises the amount

of income needed to live outside poverty.

Demographic characteristics

In 1997, the poverty rate continued to be higher for working

women than men—6.7 versus 4.9 percent. Moreover, the proportion of working men living in poverty has edged down by

0.7 percentage point since 1995, while that for women has

shown little change. (See table 2.)

Although nearly three-fourths of the working poor were

white workers, black and Hispanic workers continued to experience poverty rates that were more than twice the rates of

whites (11.5 and 12.5 percent versus 4.9 percent, respectively).

Black working women had a poverty rate of 14.6 percent—

almost twice the rate of black working men (7.9 percent).

The differences in the rates by sex were much smaller among

whites and Hispanics. The earnings differential between black

women and men is small relative to whites, but black women

are far more likely than white women to head families alone.

Younger workers were most vulnerable to being poor. Teenagers (16- to 19-year-olds) and persons age 20 to 24 had poverty rates about twice the overall rate. Among blacks and Hispanic workers, the poverty rates for teenagers were 23.2 and

20.1 percent, respectively.

Table A. Poverty status of persons and primary families in the

labor force for 27 weeks or more, 1994-97

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic 1994 1995 1996 1997

Total persons1 ............. 124,303 126,020 128,320 130,047

 In poverty .................. 7,660 7,484 7,421 7,453

 Poverty rate .............. 6.2 5.9 5.8 5.7

Unrelated individuals .. 23,622 24,207 25,539 26,158

 In poverty .................. 2,322 2,312 2,423 2,534

 Poverty rate .............. 9.8 9.5 9.5 9.7

Primary families2

......... 56,789 57,262 58,087 58,815

 In poverty .................. 4,111 4,008 4,084 4,068

 Poverty rate .............. 7.2 7.0 7.0 6.9

 1 Includes persons in families, not shown separately.

 2 Primary families with at least one member in the labor force for

more than half of the year.

Gloria P. Goings, an economist in the Division of Labor Force Statistics,

Bureau of Labor Statistics, prepared this report.
2

Educational attainment

In general, the risk of living in poverty is lower for workers

with more education. Of persons in the labor force for at least

half of 1997, those with less than a high school education had

a much higher poverty rate (15.8 percent) than high school

graduates (6.5 percent). Workers with an associate degree or

4-year college degree reported the lowest poverty rates, 3.1

and 1.5 percent, respectively. (See table 3.)

Although higher education lowers poverty rates among both

blacks and whites, rates were about two times higher for black

workers than for white workers at almost all educational levels. Among black men and women, there were marked disparities at most levels of education. The poverty rate for black

women workers with less than a high school education was

30.0 percent compared to 19.3 percent for black men. Among

high school graduates, the poverty rate of black women (17.6

percent) was more than twice that of black men (7.8 percent).

Occupation

During 1997, service and farm workers had the highest poverty rates, 12.1 and 16.0 percent, respectively. Persons employed in managerial and professional specialty occupations

had the lowest probability of being poor (1.8 percent). (See

table 4.)

Household service workers (that is, housekeepers, childcare workers, and cooks), almost all of whom were women,

had a poverty rate of 22.3 percent. Protective service providers, such as firefighters, police officers, and guards, reported

a poverty rate of only 3.1 percent. The poverty rate among

service providers other than private household or protective—

which includes occupations such as bartenders, waiters and

waitresses, dental assistants, janitors, and hairdressers—was

13.0 percent.

For persons employed in executive, administrative, and

managerial occupations, managers of properties and real estate, and food serving and lodging establishments had the highest poverty rates (5.3 and 4.2 percent, respectively). Although

2.5 percentage points less than in 1996, pre-kindergarten and

kindergarten teachers still had a relatively high poverty rate

(5.4 percent) among professional specialty occupations.

Among the other major occupational groups, sales workers and handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers

also had relatively high poverty rates.

Family structure

In 1997, nearly 4.1 million families lived below the poverty

level despite having at least one member in the labor market

for 27 weeks or more. Nearly half of these were families maintained by women. The poverty rate for families—the ratio of

poor families with workers to all families with workers—was

6.9 percent in 1997, little changed from 1996. (See tables 5

and 6.)

The poverty rate for families with just one member in the

labor force was over seven times higher than that of families

with two or more members in the workforce (14.4 versus 1.9

percent). Families maintained by women with only one member in the labor force were nearly two times more likely to be

poor than were such families maintained by men (25.8 versus 13.6 percent). Married-couple families with one member

in the labor force had lower poverty rates than families maintained by either women or men. This was true regardless of

which member of the married-couple family was in the labor

force.

Working families with children, regardless of type of family, had higher poverty rates than families without children.

The difference was greatest among families maintained by

women. Among these families, 27.0 percent of those with

children were poor compared to 4.9 percent of those without

children.

Unrelated individuals

In 1997, 2.5 million unrelated individuals who were in the

labor force for more than half the year lived below the poverty level. Unrelated individuals are those persons who live

by themselves or with others not related to them. Their poverty rate was 9.7 percent in 1997, relatively unchanged from

1996. Among unrelated individuals, teenagers were the most

vulnerable to being poor. Nearly half of the working teenagers living on their own or with others not related to them

lived below the poverty level. (See table 7.)

Of the 2.5 million unrelated workers who lived below the

poverty level, 63.6 percent lived with others. These individuals reported a poverty rate two times higher than that of individuals who lived alone. Many unrelated individuals in poverty may live with others out of necessity. Conversely, many

of those who live alone do so because they have sufficient

incomes to support themselves. However, each person’s resources determine unrelated individuals’ poverty status. The

pooling of resources and sharing of expenses may allow some

individuals in this category, who are technically classified as

poor, to live above the poverty level.

Labor market problems

The primary labor market problems associated with workers

whose incomes fall below the poverty threshold include unemployment, low earnings, and involuntary part-time employment, that is, wanting full-time work but having to settle for

part-time work. (See definitions in the Technical Note.)

Among those who participated in the labor force for more

than half the year in 1997 and usually worked in full-time

wage and salary positions, 3.7 million, or 3.7 percent, lived

in poverty. (See table 8.) The following analysis of labor

market problems is restricted to these full-time wage and salary workers.
3

Low earnings continued to be the most common problem;

about 7 in 10 poor workers were subject to low earnings alone,

or in combination with other labor market problems. Over 35

percent of the working poor experienced unemployment, either alone or in combination with other problems. Only 6.2

percent of the working poor experienced all three problems—

low earnings, unemployment, and some involuntary part-time

work.

Some 502,000 of these working poor, or 13.6 percent, did

not experience any of the three labor market problems in 1997.

Their poverty status may be associated with other factors, including short-term employment, some weeks of voluntary parttime work, or a family structure that increases the risk of poverty.
4

Source of data

The primary source of data in this report is the work experience and income supplement (called the Annual Demographic

Survey) to the March 1998 Current Population Survey (CPS).

The CPS is a monthly survey of about 50,000 households

conducted by the Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of

Labor Statistics to collect demographic, social, and economic

information about persons 16 years of age and over. The work

experience and income information collected in the March

supplement refers to activity in the entire prior calendar year.

Because the estimates are based on a sample, they may

differ from the figures that would have been obtained from a

complete census using the same questionnaire and procedures.

Sampling variability may be relatively large in cases where

the numbers are small. Thus, small estimates, or small differences between estimates, should be interpreted with caution.

For a detailed explanation of the March supplement to the

Current Population Survey, its sampling variability, and more

complete definitions than those provided below, see Poverty

in the United States: 1997, Current Population Reports, Series P-60, No. 201 (Bureau of the Census, September 1998).

This publication also is available on the Bureau of the Census web site (http://www.census.gov).

Information in this report will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202)

606-7828; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339. This material is in the public domain and, with appropriate credit,

may be reproduced without permission.

For more information on the data provided in this report,

write to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Division of Labor

Force Statistics, Room 4675, 2 Massachusetts Avenue, NE.,

Washington, DC 20212, E-mail: cpsinfo@bls.gov or telephone (202) 606-6378.

Concepts and definitions

Poverty classification. Poverty statistics presented in this report are based on definitions developed by the Social Security Administration in 1964 and revised by Federal interagency

committees in 1969 and 1981. These definitions were originally based on the Department of Agriculture’s Economy Food

Plan and reflected the different consumption requirements of

families based on factors such as family size and the number

of children under 18 years of age.

The actual poverty thresholds vary in accordance with the

makeup of the family. In 1997, the average poverty threshold

for a family of four was $16,400; for a family of nine or more

persons, the threshold was $32,566; and for an unrelated individual aged 65 and over, it was $7,698. The poverty thresholds are updated each year to reflect changes in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). The

thresholds do not vary geographically. For more information,

see Poverty in the United States: 1997, cited above.

Low earnings. The low earnings level, as first developed in

1987, represented the average of the real value of the minimum wage between 1967 and 1987 for a 40-hour week. The

base year of 1967 was chosen because that was the first year

in which minimum-wage legislation covered essentially the

same broad group of workers who are currently covered. The

low earnings level has subsequently been adjusted each year

using the CPI-U so that the measure maintains the same real

value it held in 1987. In 1997, the low earnings threshold was

$236.23 per week. For a more complete definition, see Bruce

W. Klein and Philip L. Rones, “A Profile of the Working

Poor,” Monthly Labor Review, October 1989, pp. 3-13.

Income. Data on income are limited to money income received in the calendar year preceding the March survey date

before personal income taxes and payroll deductions. It does

not include the value of noncash benefits such as food stamps,

medicare, medicaid, public housing, and employer-provided

benefits. For a complete definition of the income concept,

see Poverty in the United States:1997, cited above.

In the labor force. Persons in the labor force are those who

worked or looked for work sometime during the calendar year

preceding the March survey date. The number of weeks in

the labor force is accumulated over the entire year. The focus

in this report is on persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or

more.

Involuntary part-time workers. These are persons who, in at

least 1 week of the year, worked fewer than 35 hours because

of slack work or business conditions, or because they could

not find full-time work. The number of weeks of involuntary

part-time work is accumulated over the year.

Occupation. Refers to the occupation in which a person

worked the most weeks during the calendar year.

Unemployed. Unemployed persons are those who looked for

work while not employed or those who were on layoff from a

job and expecting recall. The number of weeks unemployed

is accumulated over the entire year.

Family. A family is defined as a group of two or more persons residing together who are related by birth, marriage, or

adoption. Persons in related subfamilies—married couples,

or parent-child groups sharing the living quarters of another

family member—are included as members of that family and

are not distinct family units. The count of families used in

this report does not include unrelated subfamilies, such as

lodgers, guests, or resident employees living in a household

Technical Note
5

but not related to the householder (the person in whose name

the housing unit is owned or rented). Families are classified

either as married-couple families or as those maintained by

men or women without spouses present. Family status is determined at the time of the March interview and thus may be

different from that of the previous year.

Unrelated individuals. These are persons who are not living

with any relatives. Such individuals may be living alone, reside in a non-related family household, or live in group quarters with other unrelated individuals.

Related children. Data on related children refer to own children (including sons, daughters, and step or adopted children)

of the husband, wife, or person maintaining the family and all

other children related to the householder by blood, marriage,

or adoption.

Race. White, black, and other are terms used to describe the

race of workers. Included in the “other” group are American

Indians, Alaskan Natives, and Asians and Pacific Islanders;

because of their relatively small sample size, data for this

group are not separately tabulated or published.

Hispanic origin. This term refers to persons who identify

themselves in the CPS enumeration process as Mexican,

Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or of some

other Hispanic origin or descent. Persons of Hispanic origin

may be of any race; thus, they also are included in both the

white and black population groups.
6

Table 1. Persons in the labor force: Poverty status and work experience by weeks in the labor force, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Poverty status and work experience Total in the labor force

27 weeks or more in the labor force

Total 50 to 52 weeks

TOTAL

Total in labor force ................................................................................ 145,323 130,047 115,757

 Did not work during the year ............................................................... 2,129 903 740

 Worked during the year ...................................................................... 143,193 129,144 115,017

 Usual full-time workers ..................................................................... 113,128 107,169 99,066

 Usual part-time workers .................................................................... 30,066 21,975 15,951

 Involuntary part-time workers ......................................................... 4,927 3,926 3,064

 Voluntary part-time workers ............................................................ 25,139 18,049 12,887

At or above poverty level

Total in labor force ................................................................................ 134,905 122,594 110,083

 Did not work during the year ............................................................... 1,135 394 315

 Worked during the year ...................................................................... 133,771 122,200 109,768

 Usual full-time workers ..................................................................... 107,738 102,842 95,670

 Usual part-time workers .................................................................... 26,033 19,358 14,098

 Involuntary part-time workers ......................................................... 3,654 2,984 2,332

 Voluntary part-time workers ............................................................ 22,379 16,374 11,765

Below poverty level

Total in labor force ................................................................................ 10,417 7,453 5,675

 Did not work during the year ............................................................... 994 509 425

 Worked during the year ...................................................................... 9,423 6,944 5,249

 Usual full-time workers ..................................................................... 5,390 4,327 3,396

 Usual part-time workers .................................................................... 4,033 2,618 1,853

 Involuntary part-time workers ......................................................... 1,273 942 732

 Voluntary part-time workers ............................................................ 2,760 1,675 1,121

Poverty rate1

Total in labor force ................................................................................ 7.2 5.7 4.9

 Did not work during the year ............................................................... 46.7 56.4 57.5

 Worked during the year ...................................................................... 6.6 5.4 4.6

 Usual full-time workers ..................................................................... 4.8 4.0 3.4

 Usual part-time workers .................................................................... 13.4 11.9 11.6

 Involuntary part-time workers ......................................................... 25.8 24.0 23.9

 Voluntary part-time workers ............................................................ 11.0 9.3 8.7

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor

force.

 NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over.
7

Table 2. Persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more: Poverty status by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Age and sex Total White Black Hispanic

origin

Below poverty level Poverty rate1

Total White Black Hispanic

origin Total White Black Hispanicorigin

 Total, 16 years and older .................. 130,047 109,198 14,848 12,901 7,453 5,381 1,709 1,609 5.7 4.9 11.5 12.5

16 to 19 years ....................................... 4,855 4,186 532 532 566 422 124 107 11.6 10.1 23.2 20.1

20 to 24 years ....................................... 12,152 10,033 1,623 1,723 1,394 967 372 232 11.5 9.6 22.9 13.5

25 to 34 years ....................................... 31,812 25,916 4,189 4,096 2,150 1,532 507 535 6.8 5.9 12.1 13.1

35 to 44 years ....................................... 36,420 30,385 4,248 3,482 1,874 1,303 462 473 5.1 4.3 10.9 13.6

45 to 54 years ....................................... 27,679 23,697 2,784 2,001 894 696 155 180 3.2 2.9 5.6 9.0

55 to 64 years ....................................... 13,296 11,569 1,194 885 474 381 74 76 3.6 3.3 6.2 8.6

65 years and older ................................ 3,834 3,412 278 183 102 81 16 6 2.7 2.4 5.7 3.5

 Men, 16 years and older ................... 70,310 60,108 6,887 7,835 3,468 2,697 547 970 4.9 4.5 7.9 12.4

16 to 19 years ....................................... 2,397 2,107 220 303 254 201 46 58 10.6 9.5 20.7 19.1

20 to 24 years ....................................... 6,465 5,428 763 1,110 603 449 133 148 9.3 8.3 17.4 13.4

25 to 34 years ....................................... 17,536 14,561 1,993 2,628 1,005 781 144 345 5.7 5.4 7.2 13.1

35 to 44 years ....................................... 19,722 16,790 1,952 2,042 830 625 129 266 4.2 3.7 6.6 13.0

45 to 54 years ....................................... 14,764 12,869 1,281 1,127 476 400 54 103 3.2 3.1 4.2 9.1

55 to 64 years ....................................... 7,269 6,415 549 514 239 196 30 44 3.3 3.1 5.5 8.6

65 years and older ................................ 2,156 1,939 129 111 60 44 11 5 2.8 2.3 8.5 4.9

 Women, 16 years and older ............. 59,738 49,090 7,961 5,066 3,985 2,684 1,162 639 6.7 5.5 14.6 12.6

16 to 19 years ....................................... 2,458 2,079 312 229 312 221 78 49 12.7 10.6 25.0 21.3

20 to 24 years ....................................... 5,687 4,605 860 613 791 518 239 84 13.9 11.2 27.8 13.6

25 to 34 years ....................................... 14,276 11,355 2,196 1,467 1,144 750 363 190 8.0 6.6 16.5 12.9

35 to 44 years ....................................... 16,698 13,595 2,296 1,441 1,043 678 333 207 6.2 5.0 14.5 14.3

45 to 54 years ....................................... 12,915 10,828 1,503 873 418 295 101 77 3.2 2.7 6.7 8.8

55 to 64 years ....................................... 6,027 5,155 645 371 235 185 44 32 3.9 3.6 6.8 8.6

65 years and older ................................ 1,677 1,474 149 72 42 37 5 1 2.5 2.5 3.2 2 ( )

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor

force for 27 weeks or more. 2 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

 NOTE: Detail for race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals

because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics

are included in both the white and black population groups. 
8

Table 3. Persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more: Poverty status by educational attainment, race, and sex, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Educational attainment and race Total Men Women

Below poverty level Poverty rate1

Total Men Women Total Men Women

 Total, 16 years and older ...................................................... 130,047 70,310 59,738 7,453 3,468 3,985 5.7 4.9 6.7

Less than a high school diploma .............................................. 16,351 10,145 6,206 2,587 1,461 1,125 15.8 14.4 18.1

 Less than 1 year of high school .............................................. 4,631 3,093 1,537 870 583 287 18.8 18.9 18.7

 1-3 years of high school ......................................................... 10,069 6,029 4,040 1,550 779 771 15.4 12.9 19.1

 4 years of high school, no diploma ......................................... 1,652 1,023 629 167 99 67 10.1 9.7 10.7

High school graduates, no college ........................................... 42,629 22,891 19,738 2,755 1,170 1,585 6.5 5.1 8.0

Some college, no degree .......................................................... 25,922 13,326 12,596 1,258 458 800 4.9 3.4 6.3

Associate degree ...................................................................... 10,861 5,227 5,634 337 122 215 3.1 2.3 3.8

College graduates .................................................................... 34,285 18,720 15,564 517 257 261 1.5 1.4 1.7

 White, 16 years and older ..................................................... 109,198 60,108 49,090 5,381 2,697 2,684 4.9 4.5 5.5

Less than a high school diploma .............................................. 13,279 8,506 4,773 1,894 1,147 747 14.3 13.5 15.7

 Less than 1 year of high school .............................................. 3,980 2,731 1,249 772 521 251 19.4 19.1 20.1

 1-3 years of high school ......................................................... 8,077 4,976 3,101 1,026 570 457 12.7 11.4 14.7

 4 years of high school, no diploma ......................................... 1,222 798 423 96 56 40 7.9 7.0 9.4

High school graduates, no college ........................................... 35,572 19,359 16,213 1,913 887 1,026 5.4 4.6 6.3

Some college, no degree .......................................................... 21,490 11,300 10,190 910 370 540 4.2 3.3 5.3

Associate degree ...................................................................... 9,341 4,601 4,740 265 96 169 2.8 2.1 3.6

College graduates .................................................................... 29,517 16,342 13,175 399 197 202 1.4 1.2 1.5

 Black, 16 years and older ..................................................... 14,848 6,887 7,961 1,709 547 1,162 11.5 7.9 14.6

Less than a high school diploma .............................................. 2,367 1,265 1,102 575 244 331 24.3 19.3 30.0

 Less than 1 year of high school .............................................. 394 230 164 61 32 29 15.5 13.9 17.7

 1-3 years of high school ......................................................... 1,657 867 790 458 176 282 27.6 20.3 35.6

 4 years of high school, no diploma ......................................... 315 168 148 56 36 20 17.8 21.3 13.8

High school graduates, no college ........................................... 5,568 2,694 2,874 716 210 505 12.9 7.8 17.6

Some college, no degree .......................................................... 3,432 1,498 1,934 298 60 238 8.7 4.0 12.3

Associate degree ...................................................................... 1,069 394 675 61 16 45 5.7 4.0 6.7

College graduates .................................................................... 2,412 1,035 1,377 60 17 43 2.5 1.6 3.1

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor force for 27 weeks or more.
9

Table 4. Persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more who worked during the year: Poverty status by occupation of the longest job

held, race, and sex, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Occupation and race Total Men Women

Below poverty level Poverty rate1

Total Men Women Total Men Women

 Total, 16 years and older2 .................................................... 129,144 69,846 59,298 6,944 3,239 3,705 5.4 4.6 6.2

Managerial and professional specialty ..................................... 37,767 19,253 18,514 691 312 379 1.8 1.6 2.0

 Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................. 18,526 10,139 8,387 323 176 147 1.7 1.7 1.8

 Professional specialty ............................................................. 19,241 9,114 10,127 368 136 232 1.9 1.5 2.3

Technical, sales, and administrative support ............................ 38,133 13,631 24,502 1,663 402 1,261 4.4 2.9 5.1

 Technicians and related support ............................................ 4,363 1,943 2,420 66 30 36 1.5 1.6 1.5

 Sales occupations .................................................................. 15,408 7,863 7,545 994 281 713 6.5 3.6 9.5

 Administrative support, including clerical ................................ 18,362 3,825 14,537 603 91 512 3.3 2.4 3.5

Service occupations ................................................................. 17,209 7,186 10,023 2,084 663 1,421 12.1 9.2 14.2

 Private household ................................................................... 763 33 730 170 7 163 22.3 3 ( ) 22.4

 Protective service ................................................................... 2,286 1,911 374 70 47 23 3.1 2.5 6.2

 Service, except private household and protective .................. 14,161 5,242 8,919 1,844 609 1,235 13.0 11.6 13.8

Precision production, craft, and repair ...................................... 14,612 13,396 1,216 676 596 81 4.6 4.4 6.6

Operators, fabricators, and laborers ......................................... 18,177 13,719 4,458 1,335 855 480 7.3 6.2 10.8

 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors .................... 7,979 4,963 3,016 544 243 302 6.8 4.9 10.0

 Transportation and material moving occupations ................... 5,415 4,883 532 337 277 60 6.2 5.7 11.3

 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ............ 4,783 3,872 910 454 336 118 9.5 8.7 13.0

Farming, forestry, and fishing ................................................... 3,089 2,539 550 495 412 82 16.0 16.2 15.0

 White, 16 years and older2 ................................................. 108,705 59,814 48,890 5,154 2,557 2,597 4.7 4.3 5.3

Managerial and professional specialty ..................................... 33,068 17,105 15,963 556 259 298 1.7 1.5 1.9

 Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................. 16,543 9,236 7,307 284 159 124 1.7 1.7 1.7

 Professional specialty ............................................................. 16,525 7,869 8,656 273 99 173 1.6 1.3 2.0

Technical, sales, and administrative support ............................ 32,014 11,641 20,373 1,151 290 860 3.6 2.5 4.2

 Technicians and related support ............................................ 3,669 1,655 2,013 55 27 28 1.5 1.6 1.4

 Sales occupations .................................................................. 13,327 6,950 6,377 709 194 515 5.3 2.8 8.1

 Administrative support, including clerical ................................ 15,019 3,036 11,983 387 69 318 2.6 2.3 2.7

Service occupations ................................................................. 13,378 5,660 7,718 1,464 469 996 10.9 8.3 12.9

 Private household ................................................................... 614 26 589 132 7 125 21.5 3 ( ) 21.3

 Protective service ................................................................... 1,779 1,552 226 47 35 12 2.6 2.3 5.1

 Service, except private household and protective .................. 10,984 4,082 6,903 1,286 427 859 11.7 10.5 12.4

Precision production, craft, and repair ...................................... 12,891 11,990 902 572 521 51 4.4 4.3 5.6

Operators, fabricators, and laborers ......................................... 14,370 10,964 3,406 962 645 317 6.7 5.9 9.3

 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors .................... 6,232 3,993 2,239 380 183 196 6.1 4.6 8.8

 Transportation and material moving occupations ................... 4,367 3,950 417 242 203 39 5.5 5.1 9.3

 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ............ 3,771 3,021 750 340 258 82 9.0 8.6 10.9

Farming, forestry, and fishing ................................................... 2,866 2,360 506 449 373 76 15.7 15.8 15.0

 Black, 16 years and older2 ................................................. 14,489 6,750 7,739 1,462 481 982 10.1 7.1 12.7

Managerial and professional specialty ..................................... 2,835 1,105 1,730 101 33 68 3.6 3.0 3.9

 Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................. 1,183 481 703 19 6 13 1.6 1.3 1.9

 Professional specialty ............................................................. 1,652 624 1,028 82 27 55 4.9 4.3 5.3

Technical, sales, and administrative support ............................ 4,354 1,250 3,104 424 64 360 9.7 5.1 11.6

 Technicians and related support ............................................ 446 162 283 3 – 3 0.6 – 0.9

 Sales occupations .................................................................. 1,365 531 834 230 51 179 16.9 9.7 21.4

 Administrative support, including clerical ................................ 2,543 557 1,986 191 13 178 7.5 2.3 9.0

Service occupations ................................................................. 2,942 1,082 1,859 510 135 375 17.3 12.5 20.1

 Private household ................................................................... 120 4 116 34 – 34 28.5 – 29.5

 Protective service ................................................................... 432 297 135 23 11 12 5.3 3.8 8.5

 Service, except private household and protective .................. 2,390 781 1,608 453 124 329 19.0 15.9 20.5

Precision production, craft, and repair ...................................... 1,178 979 199 75 52 23 6.4 5.3 11.4

Operators, fabricators, and laborers ......................................... 3,038 2,222 816 327 177 150 10.8 8.0 18.4

 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors .................... 1,310 727 583 146 50 96 11.2 6.9 16.5

 Transportation and material moving occupations ................... 877 774 103 86 64 21 9.8 8.3 20.7

 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ............ 851 721 130 95 62 33 11.2 8.6 25.4

Farming, forestry, and fishing ................................................... 113 95 19 26 19 6 22.6 20.4 3 ( )

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor force

for 27 weeks or more who worked during the year. 2 Includes a small number of persons whose last job was in the Armed

Forces. 3 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

 NOTE: Dash represents or rounds to zero.
10

Table 5. Persons in families and unrelated individuals: Poverty status and work experience, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Poverty status and work

experience

Total

persons

In married-couple families In families maintained by

women In families maintained by men Unrelated

individuals Husbands Wives

Related

children

under 18

Other

relatives

Householder

Related

children

under 18

Other

relatives

Householder

Related

children

under 18

Other

relatives

TOTAL

All persons1 .............................. 204,551 53,700 54,256 5,171 16,827 12,639 1,911 9,573 3,880 457 3,876 42,261

With labor force activity ............ 145,323 43,010 36,001 2,509 12,756 9,188 787 6,531 3,177 174 2,712 28,477

 1 to 26 weeks ......................... 15,275 1,617 3,775 1,484 2,889 983 485 1,094 177 112 341 2,319

 27 weeks or more ................... 130,047 41,393 32,226 1,025 9,868 8,206 303 5,437 2,999 62 2,371 26,158

With no labor force activity ....... 59,228 10,689 18,255 2,662 4,071 3,451 1,123 3,042 704 283 1,164 13,784

At or above poverty level

All persons1 .............................. 181,822 50,908 51,435 4,855 16,059 8,644 1,249 8,003 3,380 386 3,562 33,342

With labor force activity ............ 134,905 41,299 35,079 2,438 12,431 6,798 598 5,832 2,846 142 2,572 24,870

 1 to 26 weeks ......................... 12,311 1,414 3,465 1,442 2,745 305 355 834 114 91 301 1,245

 27 weeks or more ................... 122,594 39,885 31,614 997 9,685 6,493 243 4,998 2,732 51 2,271 23,625

With no labor force activity ....... 46,917 9,608 16,356 2,416 3,628 1,846 651 2,171 534 244 990 8,472

Below poverty level

All persons1 .............................. 22,728 2,792 2,820 316 769 3,995 662 1,570 501 71 313 8,919

With labor force activity ............ 10,417 1,711 922 71 326 2,391 190 699 331 32 140 3,607

 1 to 26 weeks ......................... 2,964 203 310 43 143 678 130 260 64 21 40 1,074

 27 weeks or more ................... 7,453 1,508 612 28 182 1,713 60 439 267 11 100 2,534

With no labor force activity ....... 12,311 1,081 1,898 245 443 1,605 473 871 170 39 174 5,312

Poverty rate2

All persons1 .............................. 11.1 5.2 5.2 6.1 4.6 31.6 34.7 16.4 12.9 15.5 8.1 21.1

With labor force activity ............ 7.2 4.0 2.6 2.8 2.6 26.0 24.1 10.7 10.4 18.2 5.1 12.7

 1 to 26 weeks ......................... 19.4 12.5 8.2 2.9 5.0 69.0 26.8 23.7 35.9 18.8 11.7 46.3

 27 weeks or more ................... 5.7 3.6 1.9 2.7 1.8 20.9 19.8 8.1 8.9 3 ( ) 4.2 9.7

With no labor force activity ....... 20.8 10.1 10.4 9.2 10.9 46.5 42.1 28.6 24.1 13.9 14.9 38.5

1 Data on families include persons in primary families and unrelated

subfamilies. 2 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total.

3 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

 NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over.
11

Table 6. Primary families: Poverty status, presence of related children, and work experience of family members

in the labor force for 27 weeks or more, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic Total families

At or above

poverty level

Below poverty

level Poverty rate1

 Total primary families ....................................................... 58,815 54,747 4,068 6.9

With related children under 18 .................................................. 34,140 30,610 3,531 10.3

Without children ........................................................................ 24,674 24,137 537 2.2

With one member in the labor force ......................................... 23,637 20,234 3,402 14.4

With two or more members in the labor force ........................... 35,178 34,512 666 1.9

 With two members .................................................................. 29,452 28,843 609 2.1

 With three or more members .................................................. 5,726 5,669 57 1.0

Married-couple families:

With related children under 18 .............................................. 25,536 24,086 1,450 5.7

Without children .................................................................... 20,155 19,810 345 1.7

With one member in the labor force ..................................... 14,585 13,256 1,330 9.1

 Husband ............................................................................. 11,004 9,934 1,070 9.7

 Wife .................................................................................... 2,918 2,697 221 7.6

 Relative ............................................................................... 663 624 39 5.9

With two or more members in the labor force ....................... 31,105 30,641 464 1.5

 With two members .............................................................. 26,142 25,709 432 1.7

 With three or more members .............................................. 4,964 4,931 32 0.7

Families maintained by women:

With related children under 18 .............................................. 6,655 4,856 1,800 27.0

Without children .................................................................... 3,030 2,883 147 4.9

With one member in the labor force ..................................... 6,904 5,123 1,781 25.8

 Householder ....................................................................... 5,667 4,103 1,565 27.6

 Relative ............................................................................... 1,237 1,021 216 17.5

With two or more members in the labor force ....................... 2,782 2,615 166 6.0

Families maintained by men:

With related children under 18 .............................................. 1,949 1,668 281 14.4

Without children .................................................................... 1,489 1,444 45 3.0

With one member in the labor force ..................................... 2,147 1,856 292 13.6

 Householder ....................................................................... 1,826 1,581 245 13.4

 Relative ............................................................................... 321 274 47 14.6

With two or more members in the labor force ....................... 1,291 1,256 35 2.7

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in

the labor force for 27 weeks or more.

 NOTE: Data relate to primary families with at least one member

in the labor force for 27 weeks or more.
12

Table 7. Unrelated individuals in the labor force for 27 weeks or more: Poverty status by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and

living arrangement, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic Total At or above poverty level Below poverty level Poverty rate1

Age and sex

 Total unrelated individuals ........................... 26,158 23,625 2,534 9.7

16 to 19 years ....................................................... 561 286 275 49.1

20 to 24 years ....................................................... 3,457 2,780 677 19.6

25 to 64 years ....................................................... 21,053 19,537 1,516 7.2

65 years and older ................................................ 1,087 1,022 65 6.0

Men ....................................................................... 14,519 13,285 1,234 8.5

Women ................................................................. 11,639 10,340 1,299 11.2

Race and Hispanic origin

White .................................................................... 21,893 19,884 2,009 9.2

 Men .................................................................... 12,113 11,184 929 7.7

 Women .............................................................. 9,780 8,700 1,079 11.0

Black ..................................................................... 3,292 2,877 416 12.6

 Men .................................................................... 1,849 1,609 239 13.0

 Women .............................................................. 1,444 1,268 176 12.2

Hispanic origin ...................................................... 2,031 1,696 335 16.5

 Men .................................................................... 1,349 1,157 192 14.2

 Women .............................................................. 682 539 143 21.0

Living arrangement

Living alone .......................................................... 14,014 13,091 923 6.6

Living with others .................................................. 12,144 10,534 1,611 13.3

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor

force for 27 weeks or more.

 NOTE: Detail for race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals

because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics

are included in both the white and black population groups. 

Table 8. Persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more: Poverty status and labor market problems of full-time wage and

salary workers, 1997

(Numbers in thousands)

Poverty status and labor market problems Total At or above

poverty level

Below poverty

level Poverty rate1

 Total, full-time wage and salary workers ......................................................................... 100,313 96,617 3,696 3.7

No unemployment, involuntary part-time employment, or low earnings2 ............................. 80,453 79,950 502 0.6

Unemployment only .............................................................................................................. 5,626 5,246 380 6.8

Involuntary part-time employment only ................................................................................. 2,317 2,260 58 2.5

Low earnings only ................................................................................................................. 7,933 6,295 1,638 20.7

Unemployment and involuntary part-time employment ........................................................ 1,020 936 84 8.2

Unemployment and low earnings ......................................................................................... 1,624 994 630 38.8

Involuntary part-time employment and low earnings ............................................................ 764 589 176 23.0

Unemployment, involuntary part-time employment, and low earnings ................................. 576 348 228 39.6

1 Number below the poverty level as a percent of the total in the labor

force for 27 weeks or more.

2 The low earnings threshold in 1997 was $236.23 per week.

 NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over.