ABSTRACT
Who were the poor in the 1960s, and how did they come to be impoverished? A factory closure, illness, lack of transportation, lack of childcare, and other non-behavioral explanations led to poverty. Almost two-thirds of the non-elderly poor worked in the 1960s. Of those who did not work (30%), nearly one-third were ill or disabled. Women, children and those seeking education made up the majority of the rest of the non-working poor. All told, less than 3% of the potential labor pool could have freely chosen not to work.
