You are at: Home / Publications / Summaries by year / Summaries 2010 / Working their way out of poverty

Working their way out of poverty

Original title: Uit de armoede werken.

Are people who were members of a low-income household in 2004 still poor three years later? This report describes people's chances of escaping from poverty and the factors  which determine whether they end up above or below the low-income threshold. Is finding work the only exit route or do other factors play a role, such as a change in the household composition? And why do some people not look for work as a means of escaping from poverty? Is this because of health problems, poor labour market chances which lead to discouragement, or particular views about work and unemployment? The report shows that having paid work does not by definition mean the end of poverty. Fortunately, however, it also shows that, where people do escape from poverty, this is accompanied in the vast majority of cases by finding (more hours of) paid work.