In recent decades, poverty in Germany 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."Sozialhilfe: Kinderarmut nimmt zu". Focus. 15.11.2007.
Poverty rates differ by states. In 2007, only 6.6% of children and 3.9% of all citizens in states like Bavaria were impoverished. In Berlin, 15.2% of the inhabitants and 30.7% of the children received welfare payments."Poverty in Germany". World Socialist Website. Retrieved 2014-13-05.
The German Kinderhilfswerk, an organization caring for children in need has demanded the government to do something about the poverty problem.
As of 2015, poverty in Germany was at its highest since the German reunification (1990). Some 12.5 million Germans are now classified as poor.
Statistics
Bundesland (state) Children on the welfare rolls (percent of all children, in 2015) People on the welfare rolls (percent of all persons, in 2015) 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% ZEFIR-Datenpool: Leistungsempfänger/-innen von Arbeitslosengeld II und Sozialgeld nach SGB II Juni 2005 ,ZEFIR-Datenpool: Leistungsempfänger/-innen von Sozialgeld nach SGB II im Alter von unter 15 Jahren im Juni 2005
Germany and European Union
According to Eurostat, between 2015 and 2024, the proportion of persons at risk of poverty or social exclusion in the European Union (as illustrated in the graph "Persons at Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion in European Union") has improved by three percentage points. However, Germany is one of the few countries that have recorded a slight increase over the years.
The proportion of persons at risk of poverty or social exclusion visibly varies by gender, according to the data. In the last decade, the discrepancy between the genders lies on average at two percentage points both in Germany and in the European Union. In 2020, a year marked by the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic, there was an increase of approximately three percentage points for both genders (as illustrated in the graph "Persons at Risk of Poverty or Social Exclusion by Gender in European Union and Germany").
Considering both risk of poverty and severe material deprivation (e.g. food, heating, rent, etc.), combined as a poverty indicator; Germany’s position has been below the European Union with the gap visibly closing (as illustrated in the graph "Persons at Risk of Poverty and Severe Material Deprivation with Work Intensity of the Household in Germany and the European Union"). In 2024, Germany lies around a half percentage point below. The gender gap of the indicator, percentage of persons at risk of poverty and severe material deprivation, has decreased between 2015 to 2024 for both Germany and the European Union.
Postwar period
During the postwar period, a number of researchers found that (despite years of rising affluence) many West Germans continued to live in poverty. In 1972, a study by the Sozialpolitisches Entscheidungs- und Indikatorensystem (Social Policy Decision-making and Indicator System, or SPES) estimated that poverty effected over a million. In 1975, a report on poverty published by a CDU politician called Heiner Geissler estimated that poverty was at 5.8 million. The report also showed low pay to be a major cause of poverty.Poverty and Inequality in Common Market Countries edited by Victor George and Roger Lawson
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 (half the average living standards) and 16% lived in “mild” poverty (defined as 60% of average living standards). A study carried out by the EC Poverty Programme derived a figure for 1973 of 6.6%, using a poverty line of 50% of personal disposable income.The Federal Republic of Germany: The End of an era edited by Eva Kolinsky
Consequences of poverty
Poor people in Germany are less likely to be healthy than well-off individuals. This is evident in statistics highlighting the lifestyle of this demographic, revealing higher rates of smoking, lack of proper hygiene and nutrition, and lower levels of exercise. Consequently, they face an elevated risk of conditions such as lung cancer, hypertension, heart attacks, diabetes, malnutrition, and various other illnesses.J. Winkler, Die Bedeutung der neueren Forschungen zur sozialen Ungleichheit der Gesundheit für die allgemeine Soziologie, in: Helmert u.a.: Müssen Arme früher sterben? Weinheim und München: Juventa Those that are unemployed are more likely to smoke, more likely to be hospitalized, and more likely to die early than the ones that work.Gesundheitsberichterstattung des Bundes - Heft 13: Arbeitslosigkeit und Gesundheit, Februar 2003. The unhealthy habits that have been shown to go hand in hand with poverty also affect the next generation: they experience higher rates of mental illness and are less active. Poorer teens are more likely to commit suicide. In addition, their mothers are 15 times more likely to smoke while pregnant than their more financially stable counterparts. Furthermore, 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.Nietfeld/Becker (1999): Harte Zeiten für Familien. Theoretische Überlegungen und empirische Analysen zu Auswirkungen von Arbeitslosigkeit und sozio-ökonomischer Deprivation auf die Qualität familialer Beziehungen Dresdner Familien, Zeitschrift für Soziologie der Erziehung und Sozialisation 19; pp. 369-387
Poor children face limited educational opportunities. According to an AWO-Study, only 9% of the pupils visiting the Gymnasium are poor.AWO/ISS-Studie zur Kinderarmut in Deutschland 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.Hans Weiß (Hrsg.): Frühförderung mit Kindern und Familien in Armutslagen. München/Basel: Ernst Reinhardt Verlag.
Children growing up poor are more likely to get involved in accidents than their non-poor peers.Trabert, Gerhard: Kinderarmut: Zwei-Klassen-Gesundheit in Deutsches Ärzteblatt 2002; 99: A 93–95, Ausgabe 3 They are less likely to follow a healthy diet.Richter, Antje: Armutsprävention – ein Auftrag für Gesundheitsförderung 2005, p. 205. In: Margherita Zander: Kinderarmut. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden, They are less likely to be healthy. In poor neighborhoods many children suffer from speech impairments and stunted motoric development.UNICEF Deutschland: „Ausgeschlossen“ – Kinderarmut in Deutschland They tend to have lower IQs.Roland Merten (2002): Psychosoziale Folgen von Armut im Kindes- und Jugendalter. In Christoph Butterwegge, Michael Klundt (Hrsg.): Kinderarmut und Generationengerechtigkeit. Opladen: Leske und Budrich, , p. 149
Poor children are more likely to get involved in criminal activities such as forming gangs, committing murder, and they are also more likely to abuse drugs and alcohol.Christian Palentien (2004): Kinder- und Jugendarmut in Deutschland. Wiesbaden. VS – Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, ; pp. 218, 219Kinder- und Jugendärzte: Kinderarmut bekämpfen (28.09.2007) retrieved 25.05.2008
Groups most likely to be poor Working-class families from ethnic minorities with multiple children are the group most likely to be poor.Olaf Groh-Samberg: Armut verfestigt sich Wochenbericht der DIW Nr. 12/2007, 74. Jahrgang/21. März 2007 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.Alleinerziehende Frauen kämpfen mit der Armut retrieved 25.05.2008 In 2008, 43% of families headed by a single woman had to rely on welfare as the main source of household income. Focus, 1 December 2008, "Alleinerziehende: 43 Prozent bekommen Hartz IV" A change in welfare laws, which made it impossible to receive unemployment benefits if one had not worked for a long time, was accountable for that increase. Poverty rates are high among people that did not graduate from school and did not learn a trade; 42% of poor people did not learn a trade.Armut heisst es gibt nichts mehr retrieved 25 May 2008
See also Social issues in Germany Crime in Germany Smoking in Germany Immigration to Germany Poverty by country
References