Despite being a developed country, the US has been faced with poverty challenges more adversely when compared with other developed states. The US Census Bureau uses the poverty threshold which involves determining the minimum total annual cash income necessary to sustain a family irrespective of its size. 2014 statistics indicate that 47 million people which are equivalent to 15% of the total US population lived in poverty. Interestingly, different cultures and ethnic groups score differently in poverty rates with the blacks and Hispanics scoring above the average of the national poverty rates. Literature indicates that in 2010, poverty levels between the blacks and Hispanics were at 27.4% and 26.6%respectively while the non-Hispanic whites and Asians were at 9.9% and 12.1% respectively (Iceland, 2012). There is also a big gap between poverty rates between the rural areas and the urban cities. Below is a discussion of various contributing factors as well as the efforts in place to reduce and eradicate poverty in the US.
Causes of poverty
From the history, poverty has been a problem in the US ever since the beginning of its history and the rate has been changing over the years with 2010 with the highest rate of 15.1% (Reef, 2011). One factor that contributes to poverty among the US population is the lack of adequate education among the poor people. Research indicates that majority of the rural and poor people do not join college or university education (Iceland, 2012), and hence, they end up in jobs that provided minimum salaries with no benefits. For example, in 2008, the average salary for a high school diploma individual was rough $28,000 which is slightly above the poverty line to sustain a family of four members (Iceland, 2012). It is also unfortunate that due to lack of education the individual will be employed as unskilled laborers who carry out complicated tasks at a relatively low salary. The cost of education has also progressively increased in the recent past reducing the chances of economically challenged individuals from accessing professional knowledge and skills.
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Low income is another contributing factor to poverty development (Reef, 2011). The low salaries limit the individual's ability fully to satisfy their basic needs such as proper housing and accessing nutritious foods hence falling into the poor category. The medium household income is also relatively low which illustrations financial difficulty for US population. Over the past few years, there have been an insignificant increment in the real medium household income which makes it hard for individuals to meet their basic needs adequately due to low wages and increased the cost of living. For example, the Census Bureau indicated that in 2013, there was an increment of the real medium household income from $51,759 in 2012 to $51,939 in 2013; this is a difference of $180 (Danziger & Cancian, 2015).From the statistics it is clear that real medium household income is still a contributing factor to the development of new poverty rates due to increased live standards and low wages, making it difficult for some people to live beyond the poverty line.
Unemployment is also a core contributing factor to poverty levels in the US (Iceland, 2012). Despite being education, some individuals still lack a job which is an indication that they do not have a reliable source of income. In this case, the individual is not in a position to lead a comfortable life due to financial strains hence labeled as poor. Additionally, the poor economy in the US has also contributed to increased poverty rates because the period after the recession, most of the companies suffered from economic instabilities. The economic uncertainties experienced by businesses forced the companies to cut their cost of operations to operate within their income; this cost cutting strategy involved firing some employees in businesses and also transferring their businesses to other countries. Shipping of factories overseas has led to reduced employment opportunities for the US population which in turn leads to increased unemployment rates leading to poverty. Rising unemployment rates have also lead to increased crime rates in the US.
Additionally, inadequate affordable housing has resulted in greater financial problems among the US population increasing the number of individuals labeled as poor (Danziger & Cancian, 2009). The actual difference between an individual's wage and cost of housing has resulted in difficulty while adequately meeting decent housing needs of a particular population with low wages. For example, in West Virginia one has to earn $8.78 per hour on a full-time basis to acquire the cheapest two bedroom apartment in the country. Clearly, the cost of securing a decent home is relatively high in that the low-income earns will not be in a position to meet their daily needs if they live in a modest home.
Lastly, drug and substance abused have been highly associated with increased poverty rates (Reef, 2011). For drugs and substance abusers it implies that the individuals cannot live without the drugs which with time drain the financial stability of a family. Some drugs are expensive such as heroin and cocaine, and the drug addicts have to spend quality money to acquire the drug. For example with $100 one can only buy a gram of cocaine and in seven days it will amount to $700. On the other hand, while some drugs such as alcohol is affordable, addiction can lead to unemployment, low wages and health problems which will directly interfere with the individual's financial position resulting in a poverty state.
Resources and attention allocated to poverty rates
The US government has set up numerous policies in an attempt to reduce the growing rates of poverty among its population. Firstly, the government developed a food stamp program which provides adequate nutrients to the poor (Danziger & Cancian, 2015). Over the recent past, the number of participants in the food stamp program has progressively increased. Literature indicates that absence of food stamp program would lead to an increment in poverty level, and it will be at 17.10% which is equal to eight million people. The government has managed to reduce the growth of poverty levels result from families' inability to access food, hence, partially solving the poverty problem.
Secondly, the government introduced the unemployment benefits to the registered unemployed individuals. In an attempt to reduce poverty, the US government established an unemployment benefits program which provides financial benefits to individuals who have lost a job without their due concert and are in the process of seeking for a new one (Reef, 2011). In this case, the benefit replaces the wages, and the benefiting person can live comfortably without exhausting their finances which can lead to poverty.
Thirdly, the Us government has also put in place the Earned income tax credits which involve refunding tax credit for individuals with low to moderate wages as well as persons with children(Danziger & Cancian, 2009). The degree of benefit greatly relies on the person's income and some children. For example in 2013, working individuals earning below$37,870 to $51,567 annually and depending on the number of children dependent on them were benefited from the program.
Lastly is the security benefit program which involves financial benefits provided to the old American people who have retired, physically challenged persons, and dependents of beneficiaries (Iceland, 2012). The government provides wages to the retired individuals to ensure that they do not suffer from poverty due to reduced productivity levels. Also at the event where a working person passes on, the dependents will be paid to avoid financial problems resulting from the death of a breadwinner. Lastly, the disable working community is also taken care of in the program.
Recommendations
The Us government have been successful while using the above strategies to reduce as well as eliminating poverty levels in the country but still other methods can be used to deal with poverty. Firstly, is raising the minimum wages. With the rise of minimum wages, there will be a significant increment in the salaries which will provide the working individuals with extra income to spend increasing their ability to meet their basic needs efficiently(Reef, 2011).
Secondly, the government should invest in early childhood care and education to ensure that they are affordable and of the right quality (Danziger & Cancian, 2015). Giving children a head start is a good way to bring an end to poverty as they will be able to advance their knowledge and skills. For that reason, they qualify for professional jobs which are relatively high regarding salaries when compared to unskilled labor.
Conclusively, the government should create more job opportunities for both skilled and unskilled labor (Danziger & Cancian, 2015). Availability of both skilled and unskilled jobs will provide people with working opportunities where they can earn their living and improve their living standards. In this case, both the qualified and unqualified people will acquire some finances that can be used to obtain adequate basic need, hence, eliminating poverty.
References
Danziger, S., & Cancian, M. (2009). Changing poverty, changing policies. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
Danziger, S., & Cancian, M. (2015). Economics of Poverty: History, Measurement, and Policy. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
Iceland, J. (2012). Poverty in America: A Handbook. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Reef, C. (2011). Poverty in America. New York: Facts on File.
