Scholarly record
LABOR MARKET ACTIVITY – PROTECTIVE VS. RISK FACTOR IN RELATION TO THE WORKING POVERTY?
Abstract
In the conditions of Slovakia, the main household income is income from work. Just paid work should be a protective factor against an individual or family falling into poverty. However, various socio-economic processes create conditions in which, despite paid employment, it is impossible for a certain group of people and their families to secure an income that would allow them to fully saturate their needs. Despite the increase in the minimum wage and other measures taken by the government in recent years, according to EUROSTAT, in 2018 the in-work at-risk-of-poverty rate in Slovakia was 6.0. The main aim of the research was to find out how families living in poverty reflect their position and activity on the labor market. A qualitative research strategy was used to fulfill the goal; the method of data collection was a semi-structured interview. The research group consisted of 17 families. The condition for inclusion in the research was that at least one of the household members had an income from work and that the household income did not exceed 60% of the national median equalized disposable income after social transfers. Our findings show that although paid employment is perceived by families as a means of meeting needs and a tool for community integration, fluctuations within different occupations are high in this group. In terms of motivation to choose a job, surprisingly, the most important role for family members living in poverty is not the level of wages, but a suitable work team. The way in which members of families living in poverty perceive employment, as well as the way in which they appear in the labor market, can have a significant impact on household income and their overall standard of living. Knowing the motivating factors and strategies for securing paid employment income is essential to support and assist families at risk of poverty in meeting needs.
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