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Working Full-Time But Still Poor: The 55 Million American Households We Need To Talk About
There's a massive group of Americans we don’t talk enough about; people who work full-time, pay their taxes, and still can't afford basic necessities. They earn too much to qualify for government assistance but too little to actually survive. They're called ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. And they represent 38 million households (29% of America). Combined with those below the federal poverty line, that's 55 million households, or 42% of the entire country, struggling to make ends meet.
I (Jolene) learned about ALICE through a friend who works for United Way, and honestly, it changed how I think about poverty in America. As a conservative, I've always believed in personal responsibility and hard work. But ALICE represents people who are doing everything right - working full-time jobs, showing up every day, contributing to society, and yet they still can't make ends meet. That's not a character failure. That's a system failure.
Nicole's perspective as a liberal aligns with mine on this more than you'd expect. She sees ALICE as proof that the social safety net has massive gaps. You can work full-time and still not afford childcare, housing, transportation, and healthcare. The federal poverty line is outdated and doesn't reflect the actual cost of living, which is exactly why United for ALICE created the Household Survival Budget. This is a metric that reflects the real minimum costs of necessities like housing, childcare, food, transportation, healthcare, and technology, plus taxes, adjusted for every county in the United States.
You can get involved with United for ALICE through their website at unitedforalice.org or through United Way in your state. You can donate, volunteer, or advocate for policies that support working families. You can also just start talking about this issue, because the first step to solving a problem is acknowledging it exists.
RESOURCES MENTIONED:
United for ALICE:
https://www.unitedforalice.org/ United Way: https://www.unitedway.org/ United Way National Overview (Interactive Map): https://unitedforalice.org/national-overview#4.5/36.316/-95.842
Books: Abundance by Ezra Klein: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Abundance/Ezra-Klein/9781668023488
Good for the Soul:
Ezra Klein & Spencer Cox: https://youtu.be/WJB87niNCk0?si=o7alUusFQMsS1I-6
Social Media/Inspiration:
James Talarico (Instagram):
https://www.instagram.com/jamestalarico/?hl=en
Plumes Officiel (Instagram):
https://www.instagram.com/plumesofficiel/
Business Resources:
Mark Cuban MasterClass - Win Big in Business: https://www.masterclass.com/classes/win-big-in-business/chapters/win-big-in-business Mark
Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company:
https://www.costplusdrugs.com/
LINKS:
On Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wevegottotalk/
On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WeveGotToTalk
How to find Nicole https://nicolefonarow.com/
How to find Jolene https://dibledough.com/
View all episodes
By Nicole Fonarow and Jolene ConwayThere's a massive group of Americans we don’t talk enough about; people who work full-time, pay their taxes, and still can't afford basic necessities. They earn too much to qualify for government assistance but too little to actually survive. They're called ALICE: Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. And they represent 38 million households (29% of America). Combined with those below the federal poverty line, that's 55 million households, or 42% of the entire country, struggling to make ends meet.
I (Jolene) learned about ALICE through a friend who works for United Way, and honestly, it changed how I think about poverty in America. As a conservative, I've always believed in personal responsibility and hard work. But ALICE represents people who are doing everything right - working full-time jobs, showing up every day, contributing to society, and yet they still can't make ends meet. That's not a character failure. That's a system failure.
Nicole's perspective as a liberal aligns with mine on this more than you'd expect. She sees ALICE as proof that the social safety net has massive gaps. You can work full-time and still not afford childcare, housing, transportation, and healthcare. The federal poverty line is outdated and doesn't reflect the actual cost of living, which is exactly why United for ALICE created the Household Survival Budget. This is a metric that reflects the real minimum costs of necessities like housing, childcare, food, transportation, healthcare, and technology, plus taxes, adjusted for every county in the United States.
You can get involved with United for ALICE through their website at unitedforalice.org or through United Way in your state. You can donate, volunteer, or advocate for policies that support working families. You can also just start talking about this issue, because the first step to solving a problem is acknowledging it exists.
RESOURCES MENTIONED:
United for ALICE:
https://www.unitedforalice.org/ United Way: https://www.unitedway.org/ United Way National Overview (Interactive Map): https://unitedforalice.org/national-overview#4.5/36.316/-95.842
Books: Abundance by Ezra Klein: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Abundance/Ezra-Klein/9781668023488
Good for the Soul:
Ezra Klein & Spencer Cox: https://youtu.be/WJB87niNCk0?si=o7alUusFQMsS1I-6
Social Media/Inspiration:
James Talarico (Instagram):
https://www.instagram.com/jamestalarico/?hl=en
Plumes Officiel (Instagram):
https://www.instagram.com/plumesofficiel/
Business Resources:
Mark Cuban MasterClass - Win Big in Business: https://www.masterclass.com/classes/win-big-in-business/chapters/win-big-in-business Mark
Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company:
https://www.costplusdrugs.com/
LINKS:
On Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wevegottotalk/
On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@WeveGotToTalk
How to find Nicole https://nicolefonarow.com/
How to find Jolene https://dibledough.com/