Working age people now make up the majority in U.S. households that rely on food stamps in contrast to a few years ago, when children and the elderly were the main recipients, the AP reports.
In part, this change is due to demographics. But a slow economic recovery with high unemployment, stagnant wages and an increasing gulf between low-wage and high-skill jobs also plays a big role. It suggests that government spending on the $80 billion-a-year food stamp program – twice what it cost five years ago – may not subside significantly anytime soon.
Economic data show workers’ wages and salaries growing at the lowest rate relative to corporate profits in U.S. history, and these findings coincide with this trend.
“A low-wage job supplemented with food stamps is becoming more common for the working poor,” said Timothy Smeeding, an economics professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who specializes in income inequality, the AP reported. “Many of the U.S. jobs now being created are low- or minimum-wage – part-time or in areas such as retail or fast food – which means food stamp use will stay high for some time, even after unemployment improves.”
