Working class

The working class is a social class found mainly in industrialised capitalist societies or in urban centres. While some writers dispute the existence of a working class, many sociologists, historians and political theorists make use of the concept in their academic writing.

Related Topics:
Social class - Industrialised - Capitalist - Sociologist - Historian - Political theorists - Academic

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The main defining characteristic of the working class is its dependence on wage-labor (or salaried employment) as the main or only source of income, because of lack of capital assets or land that could provide an alternative source of livelihood.

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The average amount of capital assets required to free people permanently from the nececessity to work for a living, and live independently, differs from country to country. In the USA, typically one requires about $1 million in order to never have to work again.

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In wealthier countries, the working class may also own mortgages or stocks, but usually such assets are not large enough to free them permanently from the necessity to work for a living.

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Due to the central role of the concept of the working class in Marxist, Anarchist and Socialist thought, there is a great deal of political interest in the precise definition of who the working class is. Key points of commonality amongst various ideas include the idea that there is one working class, even though it may be internally divided. The idea of one single working class should be contrasted with 18th century conceptions of many labouring classes.

Related Topics:
Marxist - Anarchist - Socialist - Labouring classes

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