Poverty conference calls for more support for those in need
politics
The federal government’s latest relief package against the massive inflation is good, but not enough, criticizes the Salzburg Poverty Conference. Instead of one-off payments, support for people should be increased regularly. A clear no comes to the idea of introducing a waiting period for unemployment benefits.
Anyone who becomes unemployed should only receive unemployment benefits from the third week, AMS boss Johannes Kopf recently suggested. This could increase the incentive to look for work again quickly or put pressure on bosses not to fire seasonal workers in tourism immediately after Christmas and then hire them again at the beginning of February.
Poverty Conference: “Waiting is taboo”
Kopf argues that this variant would save tax money. For the chairwoman of the Salzburg Poverty Conference, Carmen Bayer, this suggestion is taboo: “We take a very critical view of this – people already have too little left over at the end of the month anyway. We know that people affected by long-term unemployment and people who are acutely unemployed are more likely to be affected by poverty anyway, so it would be a fatal sign to save again in times like these.”
Backups regular and adjusted
Support services for people with financial means should not be regularly increased to the extent of inflation, Bayer demands and also demands that the minimum income be based on it.
“More and more affected by poverty”
“There were lower limits, which is the minimum that people have to have available. But now there are upper limits, we have price increases, inflation, we have crazy energy markets, you can no longer work with upper limits because they are no longer up to date,” says Bayer. The chairwoman of the Salzburg Poverty Conference warns that the number of people who can hardly afford everyday life with their money will continue to rise.