A single long-term unemployed person in Germany receives about €4000 per year less in benefits than they would have in 2001, while in the Slovak Republic they get €2200 less. By contrast, there have been increases in benefit levels in Belgium and Ireland (€1300 and €1600) over the same period.
Benefits and Wages also compares the level of benefits which unemployed people typically receive with average after-tax earnings, taking into account different family types and unemployment durations ("Net replacement rates", see figure ). Across most OECD countries the level fell to 55% in 2005, from 59% in 2001. The Nordic countries are the most generous, with levels above 70%. In the United States, Greece, Turkey and Italy, where benefits for the long-term unemployed are very low or non-existent, the index of generosity is below 30%.
Unemployment benefits are only one of many factors which make people decide whether or not to look for a job. Wages and Benefits cites other barriers - high tax rates and low wages. When unemployed people start to work, on average they lose 66 cents in increased taxation and lost benefits for every €1 or $1 they earn. And a lone parent, working full time but earning the minimum wage, would still be below the poverty threshold in most countries.
The report also notes the need for high-quality affordable childcare which allows parents to reap financial advantage from working outside the home. Childcare costs typically consume more than a third of family's incomes in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. In one third of OECD countries - Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Iceland, Ireland, Korea, New Zealand, the Slovak Republic, Switzerland and United Kingdom - lone parents may see no financial gain from low-wage employment.
