"I want to work"

Claudia is 35 years old. The Portuguese has lived in Luxembourg for 15 years. Alessandro, 52, started working when he was 16 and has known the Grand Duchy for 21 years. Douglas, 41, has only been in the country for three and a half years. Three different biographies, but with two things in common. All three receive the social inclusion income, better known by the acronym Revis (short for revenu d’inclusion sociale), and all three work as part of an activation measure at Caritas.

Three years ago, on 1 January 2019 to be precise, Luxembourg introduced the Revenu d'inclusion sociale. With this measure, the government intended to promote social inclusion, mainly through social and professional activation. The reform was also intended to combat poverty among children and single parents and to reduce the administrative burden of the procedures. The Revis income replaced the guaranteed minimum income, better known by the acronym RMG (revenu minimum garanti), which had been in place since 1999.

Claudia, Alessandro and Douglas leave no doubt that they want to work. "I'm here because it becomes difficult to find work being over 50", says Alessandro. Born in Italy, he has been looking for a job for more than four years. He would not have thought that it would turn out to be so difficult. The truck driver feels as if he is up against a wall. Next year he actually wants to get married. "Now I need a flat, it's hard with the contract here", the jovial man elaborates. He certainly doesn't want to talk down the non-profit activation measure at Caritas. However, in the end, only a permanent employment contract can help him get a larger flat.