Part-Time Workers Have Less Access to Employer-Based Coverage Than Full-Time Workers

KFF September 19, 2025
Aubrey Winger, Matthew Rae, Gary Claxton

News Release

Key Characteristics of the Part-Time Workforce

Overview

Employer-sponsored health insurance (ESI) is the primary source of health coverage for working non-elderly adults, but adults working part time (fewer than 35 hours per week) have less access to these benefits than their full-time counterparts. Among non-elderly adults employed by public or private employers (excluding the self-employed), 18.5 million, or 14% of adult workers, work part time. This report examines the characteristics of part-time workers and their access to employer-sponsored health benefits.

Part-time workers—particularly those living in households without a full-time worker—are less likely to be offered health coverage and less likely to be enrolled in an employer plan, either through their own employer or as a dependent on...

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