The study also highlights the impact of aging and social isolation on senior poverty. Older women living alone are particularly vulnerable, with a poverty rate significantly higher than that of men.
Older women are particularly affected by poverty
In France, more than one elderly person in ten (11.1%) lives below the poverty line. That’s around 2 million people. Elderly poverty has increased significantly in recent years, partly due to stagnating pensions and high inflation. While the poverty rate for those aged 65 and over was 5.9% in 2016, it reached 10.6% in 2022 for those aged 65-74 and 11.4% for those aged 75 and over. This increase is part of a broader context of precariousness of the French population, but it is particularly worrying among the elderly, who are traditionally less exposed to poverty than the rest of the population.
Older women are more likely to be poor than older men: in the 65-74 age group, their poverty rate is 8.7%, compared to 8.2% for men. The poverty rate for women also increases with age: the poverty rate for women aged 75 and over is 10.1%, compared to 6.6% for men. This is explained by the fact that women generally have broken careers (pregnancy and the birth of children) and generally occupy less qualified jobs, hence a lower pension.
A daily life made of calculations and deprivations: this is what the new report of the Little Brothers of the Poor reveals, dedicated for the first time to the 2 million elderly people who live below the threshold of #poverty In France.
(thread ) pic.twitter.com/CI6ipVu2vQ— Little Brothers of the Poor (@PFPauvres) September 30, 2024
Relational isolation worsens poverty
The Little Brothers of the Poor also remind us of the growing energy poverty among the elderly. According to the data collected, 26% of seniors report having suffered from the cold during the winter of 2022-2023, a figure up sharply compared to previous years. Retirees, often faced with rising energy bills, struggle to meet their basic needs.
The report finally touches on the relational isolation of poor elderly people. In 2022, 43% of minimum old-age beneficiaries reported seeing their family less than once a week, and 12% of them had no family contact during the year. This breakdown in social ties aggravates their precarious situation, both materially and psychologically. In 2022, among elderly people living alone, 18.8% lived below the poverty line, compared to 6.4% of elderly people living with a couple.
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Poverty in France: isolated women on the front line
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