[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] A survey found that 3 out of 10 citizens in European Union (EU) member countries cannot afford to go on summer vacation.
According to AP News and others on the 2nd (local time), the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) analyzed data from Eurostat, the EU's statistical agency, and found that 28% of citizens in EU member countries cannot afford to take a one-week vacation.
Among those in poverty risk, defined as having less than 60% of the median income, the proportion unable to go on vacation was analyzed to be as high as 59.5%.
The member country with the highest rate of poverty risk group unable to take a vacation was Greece (88.9%), followed by Romania (86.7%), Croatia (84.7%), and Cyprus (79.2%).
The European Trade Union Confederation analyzed that over the past 10 years, in 16 out of 27 member countries, the vacation inequality gap between the poverty risk group with less than 60% of median income and the income group above 60% has widened.
Esther Lynch, Deputy General Secretary of the European Trade Union Confederation, stated, "Vacation should not be a luxury for a few," and argued, "The expansion of vacation inequality shows how unfairly the benefits of European economic growth over the past decade have been shared."
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