More than a million children from households in the frontline of the fight against the coronavirus pandemic are living in poverty, according to new research published by the TUC.
One in five children of key workers in England, Scotland and Wales were living below the official breadline – rising to almost one in three in the worst-affected region, the north-east.
The report by the consultancy Landman Economics and using the government definition of key workers, found that 29% of the children of key-worker households in the north-east were living in poverty, followed by London (27%), the West Midlands (25%) and Yorkshire and the Humber (25%). The lowest rates were in the east of England (15.5%) and the south-west (15.6%).
Low pay and insecure hours – widespread in occupations such as social care, supermarkets and delivery drivers – were the main reasons for in-work poverty among key workers. Also high housing costs were reducing the amount of money key worker households could spend on groceries and utility bills.
Support through universal credit, due to be cut by £20 a week in the autumn after a temporary pandemic uplift, was not enough to guarantee that families avoid poverty.
Frances O’Grady, the TUC’s general secretary, said: “Every key worker deserves a decent standard of living for their family. But too often their hard work is not paying off like it should. And they struggle to keep up with the basic costs of family life."
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