Lithuanian charity highlights rising working poverty despite minimum wage hikes, urging complex solutions.
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The head of Caritas Lithuania, DeimantÄ— BukeikaitÄ—, highlights that the UN measures human development through income, education, and health, noting that income inequality is a major challenge in Lithuania, evidenced by the risk of poverty among employed individuals. Representatives from the Ministry of Social Security and Labour state that the situation for employed people is better than many other vulnerable groups, and the increase in employed poverty risk in 2023 was only 0.3 percentage points, remaining below 8% and significantly lower than the overall risk for all Lithuanian residents (20.6%) and the EU average. Although the minimum wage is increasing, the situation remains difficult, with Caritas receiving requests for help to survive the winter due to insufficient wages, especially for those in low-intensity or irregular jobs. BukeikaitÄ— argues that addressing employed poverty cannot solely rely on minimum wage increases, citing a survey showing that 14.3% of people lacked money for food. She suggests that comprehensive measures are needed, mentioning the introduction of a six-month debt holiday for employed individuals. Furthermore, EU statistics show that in 19 regions, at least 35% of people face poverty or social exclusion, with the highest concentrations in countries like Bulgaria, Greece, Spain, Italy, and Romania.
