Study shows Portugal at bottom end of European league table
A study by Gisma University of Applied Sciences has shown what everyone in Portugal has been saying for years: this is a terrible country to try and live in if one earns ‘the minimum wage’.
The minimum wage covers the basic expenses of an adult in only a few European Union countries – Belgium standing as one of the exceptions.
But this new study proves that “in almost all European Union countries, individuals need wages above the legal minimum to cover basic living expenses – families require even more.”
Cyprus, the Czech Republic and Malta are other ‘dire countries’ when it comes to surviving on the net minimum wage – all of them offering little less than €900 per month, when costs of living are generally double that amount.
Portugal is only a short hop behind: the ‘net deficit’ per month for those earning the minimum wage and facing the average cost of living being €717.22.
The study showed exactly what demonstrators for controlled rents/ affordable housing have been saying for years: the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Portugal is €934.92, which, when added to other basic expenses of a single person, amounts to €1,620.22. The minimum wage, however, rose this year to the princely sum of €870 per month.
For a family of four, the problem just get worse: the largest deficits being found in Malta (€1,468.62), Greece (€1,368.69), and Portugal (€1,339.07).
At the other end of the scale, with surpluses, are countries like Denmark (€2,200.63), Sweden (€2,162.97) and the Netherlands (€1,735.76).
“This study highlights a reality that people often overlook: in much of Europe, earning the minimum wage provides insufficient cover for the cost of living”, says Gisma’s statement.
“This issue concerns more than economics; it involves access and opportunity, especially for young people starting their careers,” the university’s president, Ramon O’Challaghan, points out.
Gisma University of Applied Sciences (a private establishment based in Hanover, Germany) conducted this analysis based on minimum and average incomes in EU member states, the cost of living and average rents.
In each case, the analysis assumed the net income from a full-time job (40 hours per week).
This study also considers data from Eurostat, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and national statistical institutes.
Source: LUSA
