The largest U.S. hunger-relief charity, Feeding America, says two out of five client households “have at least one member that has worked full-time but still utilize charitable food programs to make ends meet.” The charity and Oxfam America, an antipoverty group, described the circumstances of working households in a report, “From Paycheck to Food Pantry: Hunger in Working America.” Feeding America describes itself as a network of 200 member food banks throughout the country.
“Many working clients face challenges in affording adequate food to feed themselves and their families, including low incomes, under-employment, and competing household expenses, such as housing, medical care, and educational expenses,” says the report. Half of the households also participated in the food stamp program. Three-fourths of the working households said they had to choose between paying for food or utilities as well as deciding food or transportation at some point in the past year. Oxfam quoted a food bank official in Oklahoma as saying, ‘So many families on minimum-wage jobs can’t cut it.”