Employment

With the global recession hitting Latvia the hardest of any European country, there is a lack of employment opportunities in the country: which is resulting in large scale migration away from Latvia.

For those left behind the situation is bleak due to the lack of opportunities. 79% of the population are judged to be at risk of falling below the poverty line₍₁₎. Unemployment rates have risen to 17% in the last year₍₂₎

There is also a high incidence of in work poverty₍₃₎. This occurs when worker’s wages are too small to take them above the poverty line. It is linked to low skilled jobs and means that holding down a job is not always enough to escape poverty

_{References:
(1) Eurostat by Pascal Wolff
(2) New York Times report on the Latvian Recession
(3) Eurostat by Pascal Wolff}