Dynamics in SGB II: Many households remain in need for a long time

Abstract

"The report analyses the turnover in households that received payments between 2005 and 2007 under the means-tested unemployment benefit (ALG II) system and looks at the duration of benefit receipt. The system was introduced in 2005 via the German Social Code, Book II (SGB II) as a basic social welfare scheme for the workforce, according benefits to households in need on the condition that they made an effort to participate in the labour market and actively looked for a job. <br> On average, 3.81 million households amounting to 7.12 million persons including children received benefits in the 2005-2007 period. Looking at the incidence of benefit receipt during the period, we found 7.03 million households with a total of 11.6 million persons who had to rely on benefits from the system for at least one month. This means that about 22.1 per cent of households and 17.6 per cent of the population under 65 years had benefit experience during the first three years. <br> The share of households that received benefits continuously for at least 12 months increased from 62 per cent in December 2005 to 75 per cent in December 2007. 40 per cent of households that left the benefit scheme in 2005 or 2006 claimed benefits anew within one year. This results in an additional 9 per cent of households in December 2007 that had had cumulative benefit experience of 12 months and more in the three-year period.<br> Looking at cohorts of new claimants we find lower survival rates for households on benefit in 2006 and 2007 as compared to 2005. This seems to be an effect of improved labour market conditions and the better services offered by newly created local organisations. One-year survival rates decreased from 58 per cent in 2005 to 44 and 45 per cent in 2006 and 2007 respectively. Survival rates for lone parents stood at 63 per cent in 2007 at the end of 12 months thus indicating that they had had the greatest problems in overcoming benefit dependence. <br> To a large extent, therefore, the new benefit system has to support households that are either continuously or repeatedly in need over fairly long periods of time." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))

Cite article

Graf, T. & Rudolph, H. (2009): Dynamik im SGB II 2005-2007: Viele Bedarfsgemeinschaften bleiben lange bedürftig. (IAB-Kurzbericht 05/2009), Nürnberg, 8 p.