Over 32,000 low-income Danish workers earning less than 300,000 kroner annually will not receive the new food voucher because they don’t have children under 18, new figures reveal. The exclusion of childless workers from the 4.5 billion kroner subsidy scheme has sparked criticism from unions and opposition parties, who call the system unfair and arbitrary.
Thousands of Low-Paid Workers Left Out
More than two million Danes are set to receive a food voucher to help offset high supermarket prices. However, new data shows that tens of thousands of Denmark’s lowest earners won’t see a single krone.
In total, 32,000 people earning less than 300,000 kroner per year will not receive a food voucher, according to figures the center-right think tank Cepos compiled for DR Nyheder. That equals a monthly salary below 25,000 kroner.
The reason? These low-wage workers don’t have children under 18, which is a requirement for receiving the food voucher. The government, SF, and Enhedslisten emphasized that families with children especially need a helping hand when they announced the agreement last Tuesday.
Unions Criticize Exclusion of Low-Income Workers
The HK union says it’s unfair to completely bypass low-wage earners without children. These workers also struggle to make ends meet when shopping at the supermarket, according to the organization.
Mads Samsing, chairman of HK, acknowledges the food voucher is needed and welcomed. But he stresses that other solutions must be found for low-wage employees who don’t benefit from the check. One possibility could be increasing the job deduction, he suggests.
The situation is particularly striking given that workers in several low-paying sectors won’t receive support. Among those earning under 300,000 kroner and excluded from the voucher are 3,300 retail workers, 1,300 office and secretarial workers, and 1,100 healthcare assistants.
Government Points to Other Relief Measures
Tax Minister Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen from the Social Democrats emphasizes that the government has already provided help that benefits low-income Danes. She points to billions spent on making electricity bills cheaper and increasing the employment deduction so people can earn more before paying income taxes.
According to the minister, the government prioritized giving the food voucher to people receiving public benefits and families with children. The decision was made because these groups face particular financial pressure from rising food costs.
Opposition Calls System Illogical
Several parties not involved in the agreement are critical of excluding low-income workers without children. Christina Olumeko, finance spokesperson for Alternativet, calls it inexplicable. She argues the check should go to people with low incomes regardless of whether they have children or how old their children are.
When asked about lower expenses for those without children under 18, Olumeko acknowledges this is true. However, she maintains that even people with adult children or no children can struggle to put food on the table if they have low incomes. The point is directing support toward people who can’t make ends meet, which this food voucher fails to do, she says.
Millionaire Families Receive Checks While Low Earners Don’t
The government allocated 4.5 billion kroner total for the food voucher. Social assistance recipients and pensioners without significant liquid assets will receive 2,500 kroner. Families where both parents earn under 500,000 kroner annually will get the same amount per adult.
Recent days have brought revelations about who receives the voucher. Thousands of families where one partner earns over a million kroner annually also get a food voucher. This happens because the other partner earns under 500,000 kroner per year and therefore qualifies.
Additionally, pensioners who earn over 500,000 kroner alongside their pension, for example if they remain professionally active, also receive the check. The only restriction is having liquid assets in stocks or cash exceeding 350,000 kroner.
For pensioners, earnings beside the pension don’t matter when determining eligibility for a food voucher, according to the agreement. For families with children, income is completely decisive.
Niklas Praefke, chief economist at Cepos, calls the check an expression of pure arbitrariness. The only thing that seems to count is that money can quickly be sent to many voters, he argues. It’s difficult to explain to a cashier without children why she must pay tax so families with far higher incomes can receive a check, he adds.
Even Supporters Admit Design Flaws
While SF’s leader Pia Olsen Dyhr called the food voucher agreement the most left-wing deal she’s made with the SVM government, Enhedslisten’s political spokesperson Pelle Dragsted highlighted that hundreds of thousands of pensioners and social assistance recipients benefit.
However, when asked whether it’s fair that a low-paid cashier or healthcare assistant without children receives nothing, Dragsted admits it isn’t. He explains that Enhedslisten tried during negotiations to include all low-wage earners. But finding methods to get money out quickly was also important. The government chose to use the child benefit system as the mechanism, which is why the system works this way.
Danmarksdemokraterne also shake their heads at the arrangement. Political spokesperson Susie Jessen points out that many people who could use extra money for beef, milk, and butter aren’t covered by this check.
She describes the entire situation as a massive mess. Because everything had to happen so quickly with an election coming soon, the targeting has gone completely wrong, Jessen argues. Many different circumstances determine whether someone needs a check, which makes the current system problematic from the start.
Sources and References
The Danish Dream: Income Taxes in Denmark
The Danish Dream: Best Tax Advisor in Denmark for Foreigners
DR: Nye tal afslører: Titusindvis af de lavestlønnede danskere går glip af fødevarecheck
