Caritas warns working poverty is being underestimated

Nearly 360,000 employed people in Switzerland cannot cover their regular household needs, according to Caritas Switzerland. The figure represents 8.8% of the working population, and the organisation says it has reached its highest level since the current measurement method was introduced in 2014.

Caritas issued the warning on Monday, September 28, 2026, ahead of the announcement of higher health insurance premiums. Rising premiums threaten to absorb an even larger share of household budgets that already leave little room for food, childcare, transport or unexpected bills.

The scale grows when family members are counted. More than 820,000 people are living in households affected by working poverty, Caritas said. The figures challenge the assumption that employment alone protects people from poverty in one of Europe’s wealthiest countries.

A case presented by the organisation illustrated the pressure. A full-time driver in canton Zurich earns barely enough to support a family of six. The contribution required for his youngest son’s nursery place exceeds the family’s available budget.

Caritas is urging federal and cantonal authorities to adopt targeted measures for people whose earnings place them above the threshold for social assistance, while still leaving them unable to manage essential costs.

More than 820,000 people are affected when household members are included, turning a labour market issue into a family and social policy concern. Caritas says people with incomes just above the poverty line often receive no social assistance, even when fixed costs consume nearly everything they earn.

Aline Masé, head of Caritas Switzerland’s research and policy department, said households on the lowest incomes spend almost all their resources on fixed expenses and essential needs. That leaves little capacity to absorb higher premiums, rent increases or childcare charges.

The pressure is especially severe for families. Around 180,000 working age people at risk of poverty live with children, according to Caritas. A parent may hold a job and still struggle to pay for care that makes employment possible. In such cases, the cost of working can remove the benefit of the wages earned.

Health insurance premiums add a nationwide burden because basic insurance is compulsory. Premium reductions help some households, but eligibility and support levels vary by canton. Caritas argues that current protections do not adequately reach working households whose earnings are too high for social assistance but too low to create a financial buffer.

The organisation’s warning arrives as cantons and the Confederation debate how to contain living costs without weakening access to essential services.

Low-paid work, irregular hours and limited education reinforce one another, according to Caritas. People without post-compulsory education face a higher risk of working poverty, yet those in insecure jobs often lack the money and time needed to retrain.

Pierre-Alain Praz, director of Caritas Vaud, said many affected workers hold low-paid jobs with irregular schedules. On-call work and hourly contracts can leave employees waiting for shifts without knowing how many hours they will receive. That uncertainty makes it difficult to plan childcare, housing costs or debt repayments.

Single parents face a particularly tight calculation. They must balance paid work and childcare without a second income in the household. A cancelled shift can reduce earnings, while additional childcare can create a cost that exceeds the wages from the work available.

Caritas wants grants that cover more than tuition fees. The proposed support would also compensate for lost income and childcare costs during training. The organisation says this would allow people in low-paid employment to improve their qualifications without pushing their families further into debt.

The concern also reaches schools and children’s prospects. Recent analysis by UNICEF found that family background strongly influences educational opportunities in Switzerland. For Caritas, preventing working poverty requires action that begins before a family’s income crisis affects a child’s education.

Caritas is calling for a statutory minimum wage and more predictable working hours as the first elements of a targeted response. The organisation also wants employers to provide clearer workloads and schedules, reducing the uncertainty created by on-call and hourly contracts.

Its proposals extend beyond pay. Caritas advocates expanding supplementary benefits for families and introducing grants for working people who need further training. Those grants would cover course fees, lost income and childcare expenses, three costs that can prevent low-paid workers from improving their position.

Supplementary family benefits already exist in five cantons, Caritas said. The organisation wants broader access so that support does not depend so heavily on where a family lives. Cantonal differences are a recurring feature of Swiss social policy, affecting assistance, childcare costs and premium reductions.

The call also puts pressure on policymakers to examine how support is withdrawn. A household can earn slightly too much to qualify for social assistance while losing benefits and facing rising mandatory expenses. That gap can make additional hours or a modest pay increase financially ineffective.

Caritas has not proposed a single measure that would resolve working poverty. Its programme combines wages, working conditions, family support and education. The organisation says authorities should target these areas together as health insurance premiums rise.

The next test will come when higher health insurance premiums meet already stretched household budgets. Caritas says the people most exposed are those who work, care for children and remain just outside existing safety nets.

The organisation’s estimate gives policymakers a broad measure of the challenge: 8.8% of the working population cannot meet regular household needs despite being employed. More than 820,000 people live in the affected households. The figures include workers whose insecurity may not appear in unemployment statistics or traditional welfare caseloads.

Federal and cantonal authorities will determine how far premium reductions, family benefits and training support reach households with low but taxable incomes. Employers and lawmakers will also face decisions about minimum pay, shift predictability and the use of on-call contracts.

For families, the immediate calculation is practical. A higher premium, a nursery invoice or a missed shift can erase the small margin left after rent and food. Caritas argues that policy should recognise those costs before a household falls into formal poverty.

The debate will test Switzerland’s approach to social protection, particularly its reliance on employment as the main route to security. Caritas wants measures that reflect the real budgets of working households, not only their employment status or eligibility for assistance.