working poor
Paycheck-to-paycheck laborers
The working poor are people who hold jobs but still earn too little to escape poverty.
Despite regular employment, their wages don't cover basic needs like housing, food, and healthcare.
The term highlights how employment alone doesn't guarantee financial security: Many of the working poor hold multiple jobs just to make ends meet.
The phrase often appears in discussions of minimum wage and income inequality.
Lowest lawful hourly rate
- hourly wagePay calculated per hour
- shift workLabor in timed blocks
- wage laborWork exchanged for payment
- overtimeWork beyond scheduled hours
second job · gig work · part-time · underemployment · job insecurity · manual labor · service sector · retail work
Manual labor workforce
- low-incomeEarning below average wages
- poverty lineIncome cutoff marking need
- income inequalityDisparity in earnings distribution
- economic disparityUneven distribution of resources
wage gap · social mobility · class divide · underclass · marginalized · socioeconomic status · have-nots · wealth gap
Subsidized grocery purchasing vouchers
- SNAPFederal nutrition assistance
- MedicaidPublic health coverage for poor
- welfareComfort and prosperity
- subsidized housingIncome-based rental assistance
Section 8 · WIC · free lunch program · utility assistance · TANF · childcare subsidy · sliding scale · income-based
Tension from monetary difficulties
- debtMoney owed another
- evictionForced departure from rental
- healthcare costsFees for medical services
- childcare costsExpenses for supervising young ones
transportation costs · overdraft fees · late fees · bankruptcy · foreclosure · medical debt · student debt · predatory lending
No savings between wages
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- scraping byBarely having enough
- stretching dollarsMaximizing purchasing power
- food insecurityUncertain access to adequate meals
rent burden · utility shutoff · skipping meals · rationing · basic needs · subsistence · making ends meet · budgeting
minimum wage
Lowest lawful hourly rate
- hourly wagePay calculated per hour
- shift workLabor in timed blocks
- wage laborWork exchanged for payment
overtime · second job · gig work · part-time · underemployment · job insecurity · manual labor · service sector · retail work · fast food
blue-collar
Manual labor workforce
- low-incomeEarning below average wages
- poverty lineIncome cutoff marking need
- income inequalityDisparity in earnings distribution
economic disparity · wage gap · social mobility · class divide · underclass · marginalized · socioeconomic status · have-nots · wealth gap · downward mobility
food stamps
Subsidized grocery purchasing vouchers
- SNAPFederal nutrition assistance
- MedicaidPublic health coverage for poor
- welfareComfort and prosperity
subsidized housing · Section 8 · WIC · free lunch program · utility assistance · TANF · childcare subsidy · sliding scale · income-based · means-tested
financial stress
Tension from monetary difficulties
- debtMoney owed another
- evictionForced departure from rental
- healthcare costsFees for medical services
childcare costs · transportation costs · overdraft fees · late fees · bankruptcy · foreclosure · medical debt · student debt · predatory lending · uninsured
paycheck to paycheck
No savings between wages
- hand-to-mouthConsuming resources immediately
- scraping byBarely having enough
- stretching dollarsMaximizing purchasing power
food insecurity · rent burden · utility shutoff · skipping meals · rationing · basic needs · subsistence · making ends meet · budgeting · coupon clipping
- povertypoverty line, poverty rate, impoverished, generational poverty, poverty trap
- blue collarhard hat, blue collar, blue-collar jobs, factory work, manual labor
- hard timeshardship, struggle, struggling, unemployment, tough times
- wealth statusrich, wealthy, affluent, middle-class, upper class
- Disadvantageddisadvantaged, underprivileged, vulnerable, marginalized, needy
- labor fictionlabor strikes, labor movement, labor, coal miners, factory life
working poorwealthy
Having abundant financial resources
affluent · rich · upper class · well-off · the one percent
working poorleisure class
Wealthy non-workers
landed gentry · trust fund kids · independently wealthy · old money
poor, worker, working, works, workers, worked, rework, overworked, workforce