Every tenth child lives in jobless household

According to Statistics Estonia, compared to the 1st quarter of the previous year, the number of children living in jobless households increased two times.

In the 1st quarter of 2009, 27,000 children were living in household where no members were working. That is 11% of under 18-year-old children. The share of children in jobless households was at the same level in 2002, during recent years it has remained around 7%. The corresponding indicator has been slightly higher in the European Union (EU) — about 9–10%.

Living in a jobless household increases the risk of poverty. In 2006, 85% of children in jobless households were living below the at-risk-of-poverty threshold. According to this indicator, among European countries Estonia was the third from behind. The share of children in jobless households living in poverty was higher in Slovakia and Lithuania. In EU, two thirds of children living in jobless households were in poverty. In the households where all the adults were working, 7% of children were in poverty in EU and one tenth in Estonia.

The share of children living in jobless households in EU, 2007

Source: Statistics Estonia

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