Chapter IV

THE WORKING POOR IN THE HALAKHAH (We are poor and we have worked all day, we’re hungry and we have nothing! Baba Metzia 83a) Richard S. Rheins

bs every day we interact with men and women who are struggling to survive while working at low wage jobs. They are workers in restaurants, discount houses, and grocery stores. They clean homes, keep suburban yards tidy, and do the custodial work at our places of business. Some work on farms during harvest and others shift from one construction crew to another as simple laborers. They are the working poor. The working poor are distinct from those impoverished by unemployment, whom I will refer to as the“destitute poor.” The destitute poor are unemployed and, oftentimes, unemployable. They are pitiful cases who must rely almost exclusively on handouts and government subsistence in order to survive.’

In contrast, the working poor are trying to make it on their own, even if they have no option other than by taking low-paying jobs. A family led by two adults who are working poor may just manage to survive financially if they pool their resources, keep to a strict budget, have only a few children, and are lucky enough to avoid expensive accidents and home repairs. Unfortunately, that formula for “just managing to get by” is too hard for many to uphold. All too often, bad decisions and setbacks beyond their control conspire to pin the working poor in poverty. Making things worse, many of the working poor are single parents without the financial or emotional support of another adult. Health problems and unforeseen expenses that can plague any family become overwhelming burdens that push the working poor to the breaking point.