The poverty data in Greece in shocking. One in five Greeks is threatened by poverty, according to statistics from 2010. If one should add the statistics of 2011, that has not been gathered yet, the picture of the Greek reality in times of IMF, bailout, strict austerity and recession, will be much more dramatic.
Strict austerity and unemp0loyment have kneel people into impoverishement and almost 1/3 of the Greek population, that is 3 million people, is living below the poverty line (2009 data). More than 2 million Greeks were threatened by poverty (2010 data). According to Greek Statistics Authority (ELSTAT) 27.7 percent, that is one in four, were living below the poverty line or in a state of social exclusion during 2009. For the following year, 20.1 percent were threatened by poverty, a percentage that translates into 868,597 households and their 2,204.800 members.
In 2009, the number of Greeks living in households with no full-time workers went up to 544K in 2009 from 488K in 2008.
27.8 percent of those living above the poverty line said that they are unable in covering their housing expenses.
Most hit by the poverty are children (0-17 years old) at 23% and seniors 65+ at 21.3%.
While the EU recognizes as poverty threshold a 7,178 EUR annual income per person and 15,073 EUR for families (2 adults, 2 children below 14), half of those living below the poverty line have annual income of 5,500 EUR. And yet! The tax-free income ceiling has been reduced down to 5,000 EUR from 12K in 2010 and 8K in 2011. This unjust measure that touches violation of human rights will kneel thousands of households in 2012 and the years to come. Furthermore the cuts in social benefits gives a real pinch in the faces of the needy.
Taking into consideration that almost 900,000 people lost their jobs in 2011, the next poverty statistics are expected to be more dramatic.
If a Finance Ministry taxes also the proven impoverished, then we can only speak of a callous state. Anyone cares?
What is really scaring the living daylight out of me is that this is the situation without any of the necessary structural measures implemented. Not even a small portion of it.
Read somewhere that in the time it took the politicians to make sure the civil servants would be impacted as little as possible by the ‘labour-reserve’ (just 35000 and I doubt that will be implemented at all), some 450.000 people in the private sector became unemployed.
the private sector is the paria of Greece. You can’t control their votes lol