In 1990, 50.2 percent of all adults between the ages of 18 and 64 with incomes below the official poverty level did not work; 39.8 percent of poor men did not work; and 56.9 percent of poor women did not work.
By 2012, the percentage of poor people who did not work had grown substantially. In 2012, 59.7 percent of all poor adults between the ages of 18 and 64 did not work. Among poor men in 2012, 56.7 percent did not work, a 16.9 percentage point increase. For women in 2012, 62.0 percent did not work, a 5.1 percentage point increase.
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