Income Inequality and Poverty in Portugal

Find out about the main changes in income distribution and the living conditions of the Portuguese during the adjustment period, with the latest figures from the National Statistics Institute on the main indicators of inequality, poverty and social exclusion in Portugal.

• What consequences has the economic crisis had on the incomes of different population groups? Has the middle class in particular been impoverished or has there been a general reduction in family incomes?
• What impact have austerity policies had on family incomes in the different brackets? Have the poorest been spared a reduction in their income? Have the families with the highest incomes been penalised the most by the policies adopted?
• What were the effects of the social policy measures on the different social groups? Have they significantly affected the living conditions of the poorest families?
• What are the consequences of worsening unemployment and changes to labour legislation on wage distribution? What has changed in terms of wage inequality?
• How can we characterise the Portuguese reality when compared to the other countries of the European Union, especially those in the Eurozone? Is Portugal more or less unequal than its European partners?

Looking at:

• the changes in family incomes and the main indicators of inequality;
• the main indicators of monetary poverty;
• the main indicators of material deprivation in Portuguese families;
• the impact of redistributive policies on poverty reduction,

Through this study, FFMS aims to make a thorough assessment of the social consequences of one of the most severe crises Portugal has experienced in recent decades. And to analyse the measures implemented by the public authorities to deal with them.