Przemiany w sferze ubóstwa w Niemczech

The paper focuses on poverty in the German families. Although there is enormous wealth in Germany, a significant proportion of German citizens live in poverty. The research was carried out using the international standard definition of relative poverty - which is an income of less than 50% of national average earnings. The study results reveal a rising tendency in the phenomenon after 1990 as a result of German unification. Poverty in the Eastern Lands is more widespread, the number of unemployed people is here relatively larger, households have bigger debts and lack of suitable accommodation is more common. In the country as a w hole, the structure of poverty has recently changed. At present, poverty is distributed between all types of households and figures show that it is growing amongst children and teenagers. Overall, the proportion of elder citizens living in poverty has been relatively lower since better welfare. In Germany, several programs have been implemented to reduce the social inequality and poverty. A broad range of policy fields are aimed at a fairer distribution of wealth and social benefits guaranteed by the Constitution.