Working Poor. Eine vergleichende Längsschnittstudie für Deutschland und die USA

Abstract

The study compares relative risks of working poor in the US and Germany. The risk of working poor is assumed to be a consequence of both the macro-structural change towards postindustrial service societies and the micro-structural change of private households. From this twofold perspective, the guiding hypotheses are developed and then tested with the German Socio-Economic Panel (GSOEP) and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID). The risk of working poor has increased both in Germany and the United States. Both commonalities and marked differences appear: Whereas high numbers of children dominate risks in the US, the German risk-set is determined by the hurdle between part-time and fulltime households, which disadvantages young and lone parents particularly. A common development is the successive devaluation of fulltime employment by sector risks which are growing into the fulltime labour market even in Germany.