American Jews are mainly members of the middle class in both income and status, it was reported in the 1955 edition of the American Jewish Year Book, published by the American Jewish Committee.
Analyzing a survey in 14 representative American cities, an article in the Year Book by Nathan Glazer noted that Jews, more than non-Jews, are engaged in middle class occupations rather than manual labor. The proportion of Jews in non-manual occupations range from 75 to 96 percent as compared with the 38 percent of Americans as a whole who are engaged in such work, the survey stated. In the non-manual classification are included professions, management and ownership clerical and sales jobs.
The report found that 15 percent of the Jews are professionals, compared to eight percent in the population at large, while one out of every six Jews has completed college as compared to one in 20 for non-Jews. Jewish incomes tend to be somewhat higher than the general average, the survey established. It revealed that in 1951 twelve percent of the Jewish households in New York City reported annual incomes over $10,000. In the non-Jewish population, only five percent were in this bracket.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
