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Working Class Definition
The working class consists of people who mainly perform manual labor and other jobs requiring minimal or no education. They can be unskilled or specific skilled workers working in a routine, performing blue-collar or pink-collar jobs.
Examples include construction workers, factory workers, miners, and domestic workers. They usually receive wages. Social welfare programs like medical care and work injury compensation are designed to support them at various phases of life and overcome financial insecurities.
Table of contents
- The working class reflects a population with most people providing manual labor. Most of them are unskilled laborers engaged in work requiring a minimal skill set.
- It comprises workers with minimal or no educational qualifications performing blue-collar or pink-collar jobs. Examples of working-class jobs include the jobs of construction workers, factory workers, miners, and domestic workers.
- It is also known as the laboring class and proletariat. The proletariat is the socioeconomic class of wage earners or the laboring class in a capitalist society. Hence laboring class and proletariat are the working class synonyms.
- The middle class is different from it. The middle class consists of professional workers, including lawyers, doctors, teachers, and business people.
Working Class Explained
The working class is an example of a social class. It indicates a social class based on the job of the people. It majorly consists of workers or laborers providing physical work. They don't own the means of production or have a significant say in the management decision-making process. They have little or no power in their workplace and cannot control the pace or content of their work. Due to poverty and financial instability, they work under someone else and make their livelihood.
They are also known as the laboring class, pointing to a group of people who sell their labor power and skill in exchange for living wages. These form an important element in the production process creating goods and services that ultimately flow to the consumers. They also follow the political parties and organizations that serve their ideologies and interests. Furthermore, the laboring class also comprises people who rarely or do not work and are referred to as lumpenproletariat.
According to Karl Marx, they are also known as the proletariat. In a capitalist society, the proletariat is a member of the laboring class or social class of wage earners. The opposite is the people who control the means of production; they are known as the bourgeoisie.
The working class history emergence is associated with the financial problems faced by the aristocracy in the late medieval period. As a result, many people who relied on making a living by working for the aristocracy lost their jobs. There was also a substantial increase in the population; in some places, slavery and other forms of forced labor were also prevalent. Together, these developments and changes produced a sizable group of landless individuals who became part of the proletariat and started working in factories.
Examples
Let us look at some working class examples to understand the concept better:
Example #1
In August 2022, a UK government-led survey report suggested that financial services firms should set "stretching targets" for appointing people from a working-class background to senior positions. The finance industry is already working to appoint more women, black and ethnic minorities, to boards and into positions such as chief executives and chairs. Still, working class people have received less attention. The report also mentioned that excluding people from such backgrounds affects employee retention and productivity.
Example #2
Generally, the laboring class in America does not own significant assets like real estate, stocks, and other investments, unlike the upper middle class and wealthy. Therefore, events like inflation can worsen their living. The increased prices cause price inflation. Rents have been rising steadily at an increasing rate since 1986.
A report released by the U.S. Government Accountability Office claims that for every $100 increase in median rent, the rate of homelessness rises by about 9%. Escalating costs can leave them vulnerable to a rise in prices of housing, food, fuel, automobiles, trucks, and various other necessities. Inequalities will grow due to inflation, which will widen the country's wealth gap.
Example #3
In the USA, specifically in the state of Washington DC, most laboring class people are employed in the service sector. A smaller share of them works in the construction, manufacturing, and mining industries. Furthermore, since people working in industries are paid higher, they hold more power than other sector workers, which is one reason why industrial sector jobs are more likely to be unionized. Higher unionization rates strengthen workers to negotiate collectively for their wages.
Working Class vs Middle Class
The difference between the working class and the middle class is discussed below:
| Basis | Working Class | Middle Class |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | It includes individuals with minimal or no college education. | It includes people who have college degrees and are engaged in professional work. |
| Type of Jobs | Most perform manual, unskilled, semi-skilled, or certain limited skilled jobs. The example includes factory workers and construction workers. | They usually perform skilled jobs such as lawyers, doctors, and teachers. |
| Control and Power | They lack control and power. | They are in charge of their lives, including how many hours they work each week. |
| Income | Earns less compared to the middle class. | Earns more compared to the laboring class. |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
They are also known as the laboring class or proletariat. In other words, they are a social class composed of people engaged in manual labor or physical work. They generally get their income in the form of hourly wages. Examples include factory workers, miners, construction workers, and domestic workers.
The UK's laboring class mainly includes agricultural workers, miners, and factory workers. The other two main classes are the upper-class containing people with inherited wealth, and the middle class, containing people like industrialists and professionals.
In the United States, workers without a college degree are categorized as part of the laboring class. Laboring class people typically hold clerical, retail sales, and low-skill manual labor jobs. In essence, they fall between the poor and middle class.
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