What statistical definition of the working classes

The working classes constitute a notion that is now firmly established in French sociology. In recent years, there has been a renewed interest in statistical analyses of their internal diversity. This contribution continues this trend by proposing a series of statistical classifications of working-class households, constructed at the level of socioprofessional groups and then of socioprofessional categories (which are more detailed). These classifications are based on an analysis of the various forms of the resources (economic, but also educational, professional, or linked to origins) owned by households. Depending on the perspective considered, the situation of employee couples (clerical, sales, and services employees), and to a lesser extent self-employed couples, appears ambiguous, since they can either be included in the middle classes or constitute the upper fraction of the working classes. The median fraction is divided into two poles of couples that are composed solely of employees and blue-collar workers: one is predominantly rural and is characterized by the presence of agricultural, industrial, and public occupations; the other is more urban and is linked to the milieus of craft, trade, and personal services. Transversely, the professional situation of a potential partner (and especially of women) appears decisive for the social position of working-class households. As a consequence, the lowest fraction of the working classes is mainly composed of employees, workers, and inactive people without a partner.