Shortchanged: Underemployment in New York City
The problem of underemployment takes a toll on workers and their families. Underemployment, like low wages, weakens the protection from economic challenges frequently associated with employment. The strikingly high rates of underemployment and its associations with severe material hardships across the city suggest that simply moving more disadvantaged New Yorkers into the labor market will not be enough. Jobs with adequate wages and available hours are needed to sufficiently buttress workers against the experience of economic hardship.
Findings
Approximately 45 percent of working New Yorkers under the age of 65 are underemployed (over 1.6 million people)
63 percent of workers living in poverty are underemployed
Underemployment is less common among New Yorkers with college degrees, those with higher wages, and those living in Manhattan
Compared to fully-employed New Yorkers, the underemployed are 14 percentage points more likely (33 percent versus 19 percent) to face a material hardship
Many workers reporting underemployment report currently working a full-time job
A substantial percentage of underemployed workers also work low-wage jobs and they are the most likely to face severe material hardship
The experiences of hardship of the underemployed are closer to those of the unemployed than the fully employed.
The Poverty Tracker is a longitudinal study of the dynamics of poverty and disadvantage in New York City. It is a joint project of Robin Hood and Columbia University.