Social assistance in Austria: record number of recipients in 2024!

Social assistance in Austria: record number of recipients in 2024!

Social assistance in Austria experienced a significant increase in 2024. According to 5min.at, the number of recipients rose by 4.5 percent. On average, 205,781 people received social assistance, which corresponds to an increase of around 8,800 households compared to the previous year. This has caused total spending on social assistance to rise to 1.317 billion euros, with 60 percent of this additional spending resulting from valorization.

Spending on social assistance represents 0.27 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), an increase compared to 0.23 percent in 2023. Social Affairs Minister Korinna Schumann warns that cuts would further exacerbate poverty. It is also worrying that 90 percent of additional benefit recipients are registered as job seekers with the Employment Service (AMS).

Demographic aspects and challenges

The situational analysis shows that only 43 percent of social assistance recipients are able to work. Of these, 35 percent are unemployed, while 8 percent work as “top-ups” to secure their livelihood. What is particularly striking is the proportion of children among the recipients, which is 37 percent. In addition, 53 percent of recipients have a migration background, while 38 percent are Austrian citizens. This illustrates the challenges that migrants in Austria in particular experience in the labor market. According to bpb.de, only 50 percent of people with a migrant background were employed full-time in 2021.

In addition, the social conditions are difficult for many of them. 33 percent of welfare households cannot pay rent or utilities on time, and 24 percent live in overcrowded apartments. This precarious situation reinforces the need for reforms in the social welfare system. Schumann announced a standardization of social assistance, while social organizations campaigned against possible cuts and their consequences.

Social integration and the labor market

Integration Minister Claudia Plakolm emphasizes that migrants make up a high proportion of recipients, while the FPÖ criticizes the increase in social assistance recipients as a result of a “failed asylum and social policy”. A higher unemployment rate of 11 percent was also observed among people with a migrant background in 2021, which underlines the connection between social integration and access to the labor market.

The social challenges are compounded by the current inflation rate of 4 percent, which places particular strain on the poorest 10 percent of the population. These circumstances require urgent action to improve living conditions and support disadvantaged groups.

All in all, the need for structural reforms both in the social area and in the issue of migration and integration is becoming increasingly clear in Austria due to the increasing numbers of people receiving social assistance and the challenges of the labor market.