A family with two children earns more from unemployment than from work

The news is full of Germany’s crisis, the automobile sector, and the failure of the energy transition, but something deeper is not working in the German system. What’s the point of an economic system where there’s no incentive to work, because you earn more by being unemployed?

The infographic was featured on social media Michelle Arouetfrom data from Biadishe neuste Nachrichter, which showed as an example the income of different households, in terms of size, in the city of Karlsruhe. The example is customized because each city and each landing zone has different social supports. In this case, the reference land is the Upper Rhineland.

Here is the chart:

Even if it seems a bit difficult, let’s try to explain this graph: in red is the income guaranteed by social assistance (family allowances and citizenship income) for families, in light blue is the lower line, the median income, that is, what divides families in half: above and below this line there are Half of the families living in that city. In other shades of blue income is the richest 25% and the richest 10%. The graph shows income by number of children.

You can see how the average family with two children in Karlsruhe has a higher income from working, not working, or living on social security. With four children, even a wealthy family, with income equal to or higher than the richest 25%, has an interest in not working. For example, a family of doctors with four children has no desire to work.

The problem is not helping unemployed families, but rather the excessive tax burden borne by working families. If there is no incentive to look for work with two children, we will have a family that will not engage in any economic activity. Which will not produce wealth for itself or for the state system.

Why aren’t more social contributions made to working families? Among other things, helping a working family with two children with additional income would encourage the work of schools, nurseries and nannies, creating a positive economic circle while increasing employment overall.

This aid structure is a result of the social policy of the traffic light government ruled by the Social Democratic Party. We should not be surprised if the German government sees a decline in its popularity.