Poverty in Germany

Poverty in Germany refers to people living in relative poverty in Germany .

During the last decades the number of people living in poverty has increased. Children are more likely to be poor than adults. There has been a growth in the number of poor children. In 1965 only one in 75 children lived on welfare, in 2007 one in 6 did. ^[1]

Poverty rates differ by states. While in 2005 in the United States, only 6.6% of children and 3.9% of all citizens were impoverished, in Berlin. 15.2% of the inhabitants and 30.7% of the children received welfare payments. ^[2]

The German Kinderhilfswerk , an organization caring for children in need, has asked the government to do something about the poverty problem.

As of 2015, poverty in Germany is at its highest since German reunification in 1990 . Some 12.5 million Germans are now classified as poor. ^[3]

Bundesland (state)	Children on the Wealth Rolls (percent of all children, in 2005)	Persons on the Wealth Rolls (percent of all persons, in 2005)
Bavaria	6.6%	3.9%
Baden-Württemberg	7.2%	4.1%
Rhineland-Palatinate	9.9%	5.5%
Hesse	12.0%	6.5%
Lower Saxony	13.5%	7.6%
North Rhine-Westphalia	14.0%	8.1%
Saarland	14.0%	7.4%
Schleswig-Holstein	14.4%	8.2%
Hamburg	20.8%	10.6%
Thuringia	20.8%	10.4%
Brandenburg	21.5%	12.0%
Saxony	22.8%	11.8%
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern	27.8%	14.9%
Saxony-Anhalt	27.9%	14.2%
Bremen	28.1%	13.8%
Berlin	30.7%	15.2%
[4] , [5]

Poverty in the postwar period

During the postwar period, many years of rising affluence in West Germans continued to live in poverty. In 1972, a study by the SPES estimated that between 1.5 million people (more than 2% of the population) were living below the state’s poverty line. In 1975, a report on poverty published by a politician called Heiner Geissler estimated that 5.8 million people lived below the public assistance levels. As the opening sentence of the report

„Poverty, a long theme since thought dead, is an oppressive reality for millions of people.“

The report also estimates that workers and employees are more likely than others to be poor. ^[6]

A study by Frank Klanberg of SPES found that if the poverty line is redefined to include an allowance for housing costs based on a minimum of the minimum in 1969 would have risen from 1% to 3% and these below 150% of the minimum from 10% to 16%. ^[6]

According to another study, 2% of households in West Germany lived in severe poverty (defined as 40% of average living standards), over 7% were in moderate poverty and 16% lived in „mild“ poverty (defined as 60% of average living standards). A study carried out by the EC Poverty Program derived from a figure for 1973 of 6.6%, using a poverty line of 50% of disposable income. ^[7]

Nevertheless, findings by SPES and DIW suggest that low-income countries are relatively better off than in most other Western countries, with the share of the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom. United States. ^[6]

Consequences of poverty

Poor people in Germany are less likely to be healthy than well-off people. This correlates with statistics of smoking, being overweight, and exercising less. Consequently, they have a higher risk of experiencing lung cancer, hypertension, heart attacks, diabetes, and a number of other illnesses. ^[8] Those who are more likely to smoke, more likely to be hospitalized, and more likely to die early than the ones who work. ^[9] Moreover, poverty has been shown to have a negative impact on marital satisfaction. Poor couples are more likely to argue, while being less supportive for each other and their children. ^[10]

Poor children face limited educational opportunities. According to an AWO-Study only 9% of the students visiting the Gymnasium are poor. ^[11] Children are likely to experience adversities beyond money. They are more likely to be raised by a teenage parent. They are more likely to have multiple young siblings, are more likely to be raised in crime-ridden neighborhoods and more likely to live in substandard apartments which are often overcrowded. Their parents are likely to be less educated and they are more likely to have emotional problems. ^[12]

Children growing up are more likely to get involved in accidents than their non-poor peers. ^[13] They are less likely to follow a healthy diet. ^[14] They are less likely to be healthy. In poor neighborhoods many children ^[15] They tend to have lower IQs. ^[16]

Poor children are more likely to get involved. ^[17] [18] However, many people who live in poverty face the odds and are doing very well. See: psychological resilience

Most likely to be poor

Working-class families of ethnic minorities ^[19] Families headed by a single parent are more likely to experience economic hardship than others. While only 0.9% of childless couples and 2.0% of married couples received welfare in 2002, 26.1% of single mothers did. ^[20] In 2008, 43 percent of families headed for a household income. ^[21] A change in social laws, which was made impossible to receive unemployment benefits. Poverty rates are high among people who did not graduate from school and did not learn a trade. 42% of poor people did not learn a trade. ^[22]

References