KATHERINE NEWMAN Department of Sociology Princeton University Princeton NJ 08544 609-258-8723 knewman@princeton.edu |
WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE WORKING, BUT POOR IN THE U.S. AND OTHER COUNTRIES?
Millions of Americans work full time and year ‘round but earn so little that they are still living below the poverty line. Even more families are “near poor,” with incomes that put them above the magic line, but make them vulnerable to financial disaster. In No Shame in My Game and Chutes and Ladders, I find that the working poor share values and goals with many middle class Americans: they want their children to succeed where they have faltered; they want to live in safe, secure neighborhoods; they look to the work world as a place in which to find meaning, even in menial jobs. Yet the commonalities with the middle class end at the point where we consider the barriers they face. In periods of high growth, labor market opportunities open up and make it possible for the working poor to become upwardly mobile. But in bad times, the resistance of employers, the consequences of erratic ties to the labor market generated by family demands, and the difficulty of piling up more educational credentials come home to roost. CURRICULUM VITA (pdf) SELECTED PUBLICATIONS: 
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