Fewer "working poor" registered
There has been a decline in the number of working poor in Switzerland.
According to the latest figures from the Federal Statistics Office, the rate dropped from 4.8 to 3.8 per cent of the working population from 2007 to 2008.
“This development is attributable to positive economic growth and a sharp decrease in unemployment in the years 2006 to 2008,” the Statistics Office office said in a statement on Thursday.
People in single-parent households as well as those in which couples are raising three or more children are at a higher risk to be counted among the working poor. Immigrants, persons with low education or self-employed also figure prominently on the list.
In 2008, the poverty line was set at SFr2,300 ($2,375) a month for a single-person household, SFr3,900 for a single-parent/two-children family and SFr4,800 for a married couple with two children.
The amounts are based on the cost of living in Switzerland, including housing, groceries, clothing, health insurance, transport, education and leisure expenses.
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