Research Suggests , the Pandemic has Accelerated , the Decline of the br American Middle Class.br According to 'U.S. News & World Report,' Pew Research br Center data suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted br lower- and middle-income households the hardest.br Meanwhile, another Pew report br shows that America's middle class br has shrunk in the past 50 years. .br The Pew reports suggest that the economic br fallout of the pandemic has only accelerated, the decline of the U.S. middle class.br In 1971, , 61 of U.S. households , were considered middle class.br By 2021, that number plummeted 50. .br At the same time, the percentage of Americans in the upper-income level rose from 14 to 21.br Over the same period, , those in the lower-income bracket , rose from 25 to 29. .br Household incomes have risen considerably br since 1970, but those of middle-class br households have not climbed nearly as much br as those of upper-income households, Rakesh Kochbar and Stella Sechopoulos, Pew Research br Center report authors, via 'U.S. News and World Report'.br The middle class, once the economic stratum of a clear majority of American adults, has steadily contracted in the past five decades, Rakesh Kochbar and Stella Sechopoulos, Pew Research br Center report authors, via 'U.S. News and World Report'.br According to Pew's COVID-19 study, 15 of adults experienced some form of unemployment in 2020.br Comparatively, 28.2 of lower-income adults experienced unemployment, while only 7.8 of upper-income workers suffered the same fate. .