Poverty in Germany refers to people living in relative poverty in Germany.
During the last decades the number of people living in poverty has been increasing. Children are more likely to be poor than adults. There has been a strong increase 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 states like Bavaria 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.
The German Kinderhilfswerk, an Organization caring for children in need, has demanded the government to do something about this.
| Bundesland (state) | Children on the welfare rolls (percent of all children, in 2005) | Persons on the welfare 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 % |
| [2],[3] | ||
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Poor people in Germany are less likely to be healthy than well-off people. This correlates with statistics about the life style of this group that indicate higher prevalence to smoking cigarettes, being overweight, and exercising less. Consequently, they run a higher risk of experiencing lung cancer, hypertension, heart attacks, diabetes, and a number of other illnesses.[4] Those who are out of work are more likely to smoke, more likely to be hospitalized, and more likely to die early than the ones who work.[5] Furhermore, 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.[6]
Poor children face limited educational opportunities. According to a AWO-Study only 9% of the pupils visiting the Gymnasium are poor.[7] Poor 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 neighbourhoods 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.[8]
Children growing up poor are more likely to get involved in accidents than their non-poor peers.[9] They are less likely to follow a healthy diet.[10] They are less likely to be healthy. In poor neighborhoods many children suffer from speech impairments and stunted motoric development[11] They tend to have lower IQs.[12]
Poor children are more likely to get involved in criminal activities and are more likely to take drugs.[13][14] However, many people who live in poverty overcome the odds and are doing very well. See: psychological resilience
Working class families from ethnic minorities with multiple children are the group most likely to be poor.[15] Families headed by a single parent are also 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.[16] In 2008, 43 percent of families headed by a single woman had to rely on welfare as the main source of household income.[17] A change in welfare laws, which made it impossible to receive unemployment benefits if one had not worked for a time, was accountable for that increase. 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.[18]
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