This study examines the causes and factors of the prevalence of working poverty among workers in the Sudanese labour market and its impacts on families’ food security. A poor worker is defined as a person who is employed in a job in the labour market but lives in a poor household. This branch of labour economics merges labour market input with welfare economics. Households’ extreme poverty with working members is a widespread phenomenon in many developing countries and has serious consequences for productivity and well-being. This study employs an instrumental variable binary probit model to control for endogeneity between household food shortage propensity and wages, using cross-sectional data from the 2022 Labour Market Framework Survey in Sudan. We construct a household food shortage indicator as a proxy measure for in-work poverty. The results demonstrate that more than 40% of workers in Sudan live in extreme poverty. The model reveals that a 100% increase in wages would reduce the tendency towards poor household’s food shortages by 50%–60%. Wages should be increased at least threefold to eliminate food shortages due to poor working families’ lack of resources prior to the necessary increase to meet other basic living needs such as education, health, adequate housing and other concerns. This means that Sudan must substantially restructure the current labour market and wages to eliminate working poverty.

This paper explores the role of minimum wage policies and transparent wage practices in the European Union as instruments to mitigate multidimensional inequalities. It situates wage regulation within the broader framework of social justice and solidarity, emphasizing its potential to reduce disparities not only in income but also in gender, sectoral, and regional dimensions. By examining EU directives and national implementations, the study highlights how minimum wage standards contribute to safeguarding workers against in-work poverty, while transparency mechanisms foster accountability and narrow wage gaps. The analysis underscores the interplay between legal frameworks, institutional capacity, and cultural attitudes toward fairness, revealing both opportunities and limitations in current approaches. Ultimately, the paper argues that strengthening minimum and transparent wage policies is essential for advancing equitable labour markets and reinforcing the EU’s commitment to social cohesion.

Purpose This paper aims to reveal the opportunities and challenges of co-produced research projects that aim to generate real-world human resource management (HRM) impact. This research explored whether employer adoption of high-road HRM strategies such as the real living wage (RLW) could simultaneously reduce staff shortages and turnover, as well as tackle in-work poverty among employees. Design/methodology/approach The research was co-produced with key local stakeholders across the care economy in Greater Manchester (GM). It draws on two longitudinal case studies to open up the “black box” of HRM implementation within organisations and to understand the diffusion of HRM policies across organisations. Findings Our collaborative research showed that the HRM intervention (the RLW) had varied impacts for workers, organisations and the broader caring industry in GM. For workers, the RLW had a symbolic impact in recognising the value of their labour; for organisations, there were short-term impacts on staff morale. However, where organisations adopt high-road HRM practices for business rather than moral reasons, these practices are more at risk of withdrawal as market and financial conditions change. The ongoing nature of the research also allowed us to critically evaluate the rollout of the RLW across the care economy and impress upon policymakers the importance of incorporating the RLW into a broader bundle of high-road HRM practices. Originality/value We show how research impact happens at different levels and across different time horizons. Clearly, to overcome deep-rooted staff shortages and turnover, there is a need to understand how individual HRM policies, such as the RLW, are adopted, embedded and sustained over time.

Purpose This article examines how European Union member states expanded and adapted their social protection policies over the first 14 months of the Covid-19 pandemic and how their approaches varied based on their welfare regimes, legacies and institutional path dependencies. Design/methodology/approach To examine the social protection measures adopted by EU member states over the first 14 months of the Covid-19 pandemic (March 2020–May 2021), this article draws on two datasets: the World Bank's Social Protection and Jobs Responses to Covid-19 database and the International Monetary Fund's Fiscal Policy Database, which tracks the announcement and implementation of key fiscal measures (January 2020–September 2021). Findings EU countries largely adopted social protection measures aligned with their broader welfare regimes, though intra-regime variation highlights the influence of national policy legacies. Social democratic and continental welfare states relied on their tax-benefit systems and labor market policies, while liberal, Mediterranean and some post-communist states were compelled to expand social assistance given their fragmented welfare systems and structural issues, including persistent unemployment, poverty and in-work poverty dating back to the Great Recession. Although nearly 70% of the measures drawn from the World Bank database were classified as “new” at the time, their design reflects incremental expansion rather than fundamental reform of social protection systems. Research limitations/implications The article contributes to the literature on welfare states by showing that, although crisis responses were shaped by existing institutional logics and welfare traditions, the rapid and transboundary nature of Covid-19's spread prompted rapid social learning and policy adaptation, revealing flexibility that exceeded European countries' path-dependent constraints. Originality/value The article contributes to the literature on welfare states by showing that, although crisis responses were shaped by existing institutional logics and welfare traditions, the rapid and transboundary nature of Covid-19's spread prompted rapid social learning and policy adaptation, revealing flexibility that exceeded European countries' path-dependent constraints.

Cross-country evidence on the individual dynamics of in-work poverty in the EU

The permanent restructuring of the economy, exacerbated by the digital transition and labour market dualization, is progressively increasing the risk of marginalization for semi- and low-skilled workers. This article analyses how Germany, France, Italy, and Spain balance employment and equality concerns in core private service sectors and examines the policy strategies implemented over the last decade for workers ‘at the margins’. The analysis considers multiple tools – skill upgrading, social benefits, incentives to reduce barriers to employment, and wage regulation – and reveals divergent trajectories. Germany and Spain share a common direction, adopting protective policies to mitigate long-standing labour market dualism and improve job conditions for low-wage and at-risk workers. France remains locked in a protective approach, prioritizing job stabilization through subsidies but neglecting skill development, which constrains long-term mobility. Italy, by contrast, exacerbates dualism by failing to improve job quality and training opportunities, resulting in persistent low productivity and rising in-work poverty.

Abstract The article studies effects of social policies on in-work poverty risks, distinguishing between measures that either intervene in labour market processes—that is, pre-distribution policies—or redistribute towards those with low incomes. The analyses use data from EU-SILC and macro-level indicators from various sources to estimate general as well as household-type-specific effects using longitudinal methods. Results reveal important differences between specific policies: Increasing minimum wages contributes to reducing low-wage risks but has no significant effect on in-work poverty risks. In contrast, there is a negative effect of strict employment protection legislation across almost all household types on in-work poverty, which is consistent with the positive role this measure plays in supporting earnings that are sufficient to provide not only for one person but also for potential dependants in the household. With respect to redistribution policies, both unemployment benefits and benefits to low earners reduce poverty due to their contribution to public poverty reduction. However, whereas unemployment benefits reduce in-work poverty only among couple households, benefits to low earners mainly contribute to lower poverty risks among employed single parents. Overall, the results underscore that pre-distribution and redistribution as well as universal and targeted interventions cannot easily substitute for each other.

The impact of in-work poverty on mental health: A cohort study of the Swedish population.

Reforms and in-work poverty in the EU

In-work poverty across Europe

Abstract This paper analyzes the potential introduction of a permanent public subsidy to supplement the wages of low-paid workers in Italy, taking inspiration from Edmund Phelps’ ideas on a welfare system designed to reward work not only as a source of income, but as a means of personal development, social inclusion, and economic contribution. Specifically, we consider how a subsidy scheme for low-wage earners can help address structural labor market challenges such as low participation rates, labor market segmentation, and in-work poverty. Using a dynamic general equilibrium two-sector model, we analyze how such a subsidy could affect wages, employment, and long-term welfare of both low-paid unskilled workers and skilled workers. Furthermore, through a scenario analysis based on Italian Labor Force Survey data, we quantitatively assess the policy’s likely scale, distributional effects, and costs. The paper concludes by discussing both opportunities and challenges for implementing wage subsidies in Italy’s segmented labor market.

Background: Labour migration remains a key driver of socio-economic development in the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), yet ensuring decent wages and access to justice for migrant workers is an under-addressed challenge. This gap in protection persists despite its direct relevance to international labour standards and the UN Sustainable Development Goal 8 on decent work. Methods: The study employs a comparative legal analysis of the EAEU Treaty and national labour legislations of the EAEU countries against international standards (ILO, UN, EU). Empirical data include official wage statistics, government reports, and international publications. The analysis also incorporates case studies from Ireland, Finland, Poland, and the United Kingdom under the ILO “decent work” framework, with special emphasis on judicial mechanisms for rights protection. Results and conclusions: The findings reveal that statutory minimum wages in EAEU countries are very low (only 20–30% of the average wage, and around 10% in Kyrgyzstan) and are often not indexed to inflation. As a result, migrant workers consequently face high rates of in-work poverty and significant barriers to justice (linguistic, financial, and procedural), limiting their ability to claim rights. By contrast, European practices demonstrate the critical role of judicial enforcement: for example, case law of the European Court of Human Rights shows that access to courts can transform formal labour guarantees into effective rights. The study concludes that, to meet international decent work standards, the EAEU must combine strengthened minimum wage guarantees with enhanced judicial protection. Key recommendations include linking minimum wages to median income, introducing automatic indexation, and expanding the EAEU Court’s jurisdiction over labour disputes. Such measures would bolster migrants’ socio-economic security, ensure real access to justice, and align EAEU labour policy with global decent work commitments.

The article presents the results of a study on the relationship between minimum wage increases in Bulgaria and the dynamics of the so-called "working poor". It is assumed that setting the minimum wage amount as a fixed percentage of the national average wage – and therefore imposing it centrally through administrative channels and with limited participation of social partners – weakens the potential of this policy tool to achieve a sustainable reduction of the in-work poverty rate. Applying a single-factor regression analysis of the association between the ratio of the minimum wage to the average wage in the country (Kaitz index) and the share of working poor, it was found that there is a statistically significant positive association between the two variables. In other words, the higher the Kaitz index, the higher the share of working poor. This finding is important for the debate on the procedure for determining and updating the minimum wage in the country. It also highlights the need for public authorities to make targeted efforts in promoting the development of scientific knowledge on the economic and social effects of the minimum wage in a national context.

In recent decades, numerous welfare states have implemented in-work benefits to ‘make work pay’ and tackle in-work poverty. To explain the adoption and institutionalisation of this instrument, studies tend to emphasise either socio-political demand or ideational influences as motivators of policy decisions. However, the relative importance of these causal logics, and the relationship between them, remains ambiguous. To advance this debate, this article examines in-work benefit reforms in two welfare states: France and the United Kingdom. Examining reforms from the late 1990s to the 2010s, findings suggest that policy change and convergence were driven by an ideational rather than a demand-based logic. Reforms were more strongly motivated by the shared interpretive frameworks of policymakers and their instrumental use of ideas (ideational power) rather than the demands of voters and organised interests. This finding on the specific drivers of in-work benefits contributes wider insights into the roles of ideas in public policy.

Working poverty is an increasingly relevant phenomenon in Latin America, yet research on the subject is scarce and mainly focused on national cases. This paper contributes to comparative studies on in-work poverty based on the cases of four countries in the Southern Cone: Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay. The aim of this article is to analyze the macro and micro drivers of working poverty through harmonized microdata from official household surveys. Using different definitions of working poverty and multivariate analysis, the study finds that economic development and labor and social policies are strongly related to different levels of in-work poverty, and that the micro-drivers of working poverty play a similar role in the four countries.

ABSTRACT Growing numbers of social scientists have identified the 1980s as a pivotal decade in labour history, highlighting the surge of in-work poverty, precarity and job insecurity, particularly evident in feminised service sectors. Through the study of changing working conditions in elder care in Britain between 1979 and 2010, this article historicises this body of social science literature. Using oral and written sources, it examines four distinct waves of change—the emergence and feminisation of the care industry, privatisation, casualisation, and the influx of migrant labour—to show the specific processes through which exploitation and precarity were instituted and maintained, and the effect of these changes on care workers’ lives. I argue that the process of creating this feminised and racialized jurisdiction of cheap labour drew on long-standing cultural and historical assumptions about women and ethnic minorities that were given material effect between 1979 and 2010 by economic conditions, government policy, and employment practices.

The purpose of this systematic review was to examine the impact of state interventions on in-work poverty and to explore variations in its definition across studies. Following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, this review analyzed existing literature on the effectiveness of state interventions in reducing in-work poverty. The search spanned 18 electronic databases, covering articles published from 2010 to 2023. Fourteen studies were selected, encompassing 46 units of analysis. The findings reveal a diverse range of outcomes, with state interventions exhibiting positive, negative, and bidirectional impacts on in-work poverty. Tax credits emerged as particularly effective, especially the United Kingdom (UK) working tax credit (WTC) and child tax credit (CTC), though their effectiveness varied by family structure. Other interventions, such as social insurance programs, also showed promise, while some interventions, including unemployment benefits and certain conditional cash transfers, were associated with increased in-work poverty. This review also highlights significant definitional disparities in the literature on in-work poverty, due to differing conceptualizations and measurement methods. These findings underscore the complex interactions between policy measures and demographic factors in addressing in-work poverty. The implications for policymakers include the need for tailored, context-specific interventions and a holistic evaluation approach that considers both short-term outcomes and long-term socio-economic impacts.

Collaborating for change: The importance of multi-sector partnerships in addressing poverty and inequality through decent work

The importance of inclusive growth is widely acknowledged by academia, policymakers, and the public, yet debates persist about whether current policies effectively ensure that growth benefits all. While a pro-poor approach has been vital, focusing on those employed at-risk-of-poverty is increasingly important. Low wages can demotivate workers, pushing them to rely on safety nets and reducing the pool of human capital, a key driver of economic growth. This research shifts the perspective from a pro-poor to a pro-employed at-risk-of-poverty approach by constructing a benefit-sharing and participation inclusiveness index for EU-27 countries from 2010 to 2021, addressing a gap in traditional indices. Unlike methods using the poverty headcount ratio, this index incorporates the in-work at-risk-of-poverty rate, emphasizing job quality. The index was constructed using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and analyzed through an Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression model with fixed effects for both country and year, ensuring robust control for unobserved heterogeneity. Findings reveal the inclusiveness index as a significant determinant of Real GDP per capita, with a strong positive correlation between inclusiveness and economic growth. This relationship is particularly strong in more inclusive countries, where improvements in benefit-sharing and participation are closely linked to higher economic performance. However, exceptions among socio-economically developed countries suggest the need for country-specific policies. The results emphasize the need to address income inequality, reduce in-work poverty, and increase job opportunities to promote sustainable and equitable growth in the EU, ensuring that those contributing to economic growth receive fair benefits and achieve a decent living standard.

This article investigates the hidden gender bias in in-work poverty within the European Union (EU). Using data from EUROSTAT, INE, EIGE, and various surveys, it identifies inconsistencies in poverty rates among employed women due to issues with construction and equivalence scales. The research highlights the "gender paradox," where women face significant disadvantages in the labour market, yet statistical data do not always reflect a gender bias in in-work poverty rates. To elucidate this phenomenon, the study advocates for expanding the analysis of indicators with alternative aggregation methodologies to better understand the household black box. It proposes an alternative methodology for assessing in-work poverty, considering individual incomes and family responsibilities, and suggests including in-kind benefits in poverty measurements. The findings underscore the importance of addressing gender biases in the labour market and their impact on in-work poverty.