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P. 97
Chapter 1: The legacy of the crisis: resilience and challenges
Annex 3: Coping and, whether individuals’ trust towards Member States (Germany, Greece, Spain,
strategies during institutions stays intact. France, Ireland, Portugal and Romania).
the recession — As such, in addition to the novelty lying in
Qualitative analysis The project is novel in its approach, as it the use of a mixed methods approach, the
goes beyond the use of traditional, quan- project is also unique to its kind because of
This project ( 117 ), which was launched titative methods, which help to describe its broader coverage, enabling international
in July 2013 in DG EMPL, investigates the economic and social situation of comparison in times of crisis. The main
the coping strategies of individuals and individuals but oftentimes lack the abil- qualitative research component is then
households hit by the crisis, and that as ity to provide insights into the behaviour complemented by a focus group study con -
a result of this, either lost their job, and response of individuals experiencing ducted by TNS to enable a deeper insight
therefore their main source of income, hardship. Therefore, in order to uncover into coping mechanisms through group dis -
or did not manage to find a regular job the coping mechanisms for the impact cussion, a specific quantitative research
in the first place. Specifically, it seeks to of the crisis, the project uses qualitative component using EU-SILC data to analyse
understand what happens to family and research methods in addition to quantita - the deprivation profile of households fac-
social ties in the course of a job loss; tive research methods. ing a severe economic shock, and a range
what individuals do to remain active; of EU-wide surveys (Eurobarometer, EQLS,
The main part of this qualitative research LFS and SHARE) to illustrate trends in dif-
forms a study, which consists of over ferent socioeconomic indicators.
( ) Facing the crisis - The coping strategies 100 face-to-face interviews, conducted
117
of unemployed people in Europe (2014), with the help of national experts and the Extracts below illustrate different aspects
available at : http://ec.europa.eu/social/main. coordination efforts of a high-level expert of the trends reported in the core of
jsp?catId=738&langId=en&pubId=7729&typ
e=2&furtherPubs=yes using a sociological approach in seven EU the chapter:
Extract 1: Informal work
Interviews with people having experienced long-term unemployment show that working in the informal economy is a matter of surviving:
‘Yeah, that’s right, if you have no choice, you have no choice... I wasn’t even receiving the RSA [earned income supplement], due to an
incomprehensible administrative hold-up, I had zero income, I mean zero, … I was doing computer repairs out of my house, undeclared,
and I was doing undeclared odd jobs, like mowing lawns, hanging wallpaper, parqueting floors.’ No 52. FR, M, 45 years
Also show that informal economy puts people into fragile situations. A women living in Athens explains how she was working in the
informal sector and was injured:
‘I’m working without insurance and they’re always late in paying me.’ No 21. EL, F, 43 years
‘Last month I had an accident at work...… After 25 days, I’d reached the point where the doctor told me I could walk again, so I returned
to work, …They said, “You better come back to work soon or else we’ll find someone else.”’ No 21. EL, F, 43 years
Extract 2: Running into debt
Interviews with people having experienced long-term unemployment illustrate that people hit by economic hardship face
difficulties in accessing credit and find low support from banks.
Family and friends are a frequent source of loans. Respondents prefer these informal routes to formalised loan agreements,
although such loans are not always emotionally stress free. However, such solutions remain limited as sometimes friends
and family members also experience financial difficulties.
‘Sometimes I have needed to ask a pal for €20 if my money hasn’t lasted over the last few days of the month. That’s normal,
that’s okay, even though it’s not great.’ (DE)
Loans were taken out for two main reasons: A one-off expense, either unexpected (such as a medical expense) or more pre-
dictable (such as a loan to pay one’s taxes); and to help cover daily expenses such as paying utility bills or paying for food.
‘I borrow €50 from a friend of mine at the beginning of each month. I use the money to pay the supermarket. I give back the
money at the end of the month only to borrow it again at the beginning of the next month. I do not seem able to break from
this pattern no matter what.’ (EL, Group 3)
Respondents were generally reluctant to approach banks for loans. Some respondents also mentioned struggling with loans
that they had incurred before the crisis. There was some, but limited mention of using overdraft facilities. Banks are also not
looked upon favourably as they are seen as part of the cause of the financial crisis.
‘I went to the bank to see whether I could delay payments on my mortgage and they told me I couldn’t, I would have to find
a way to take out a loan, they didn’t make it easy for me.’ (ES, Group 3)
Such situations are often reported to generate stress.
‘When someone lends you money your first reaction is relief, but later it’s just one more problem.’ (FR, Group 3)
95
Annex 3: Coping and, whether individuals’ trust towards Member States (Germany, Greece, Spain,
strategies during institutions stays intact. France, Ireland, Portugal and Romania).
the recession — As such, in addition to the novelty lying in
Qualitative analysis The project is novel in its approach, as it the use of a mixed methods approach, the
goes beyond the use of traditional, quan- project is also unique to its kind because of
This project ( 117 ), which was launched titative methods, which help to describe its broader coverage, enabling international
in July 2013 in DG EMPL, investigates the economic and social situation of comparison in times of crisis. The main
the coping strategies of individuals and individuals but oftentimes lack the abil- qualitative research component is then
households hit by the crisis, and that as ity to provide insights into the behaviour complemented by a focus group study con -
a result of this, either lost their job, and response of individuals experiencing ducted by TNS to enable a deeper insight
therefore their main source of income, hardship. Therefore, in order to uncover into coping mechanisms through group dis -
or did not manage to find a regular job the coping mechanisms for the impact cussion, a specific quantitative research
in the first place. Specifically, it seeks to of the crisis, the project uses qualitative component using EU-SILC data to analyse
understand what happens to family and research methods in addition to quantita - the deprivation profile of households fac-
social ties in the course of a job loss; tive research methods. ing a severe economic shock, and a range
what individuals do to remain active; of EU-wide surveys (Eurobarometer, EQLS,
The main part of this qualitative research LFS and SHARE) to illustrate trends in dif-
forms a study, which consists of over ferent socioeconomic indicators.
( ) Facing the crisis - The coping strategies 100 face-to-face interviews, conducted
117
of unemployed people in Europe (2014), with the help of national experts and the Extracts below illustrate different aspects
available at : http://ec.europa.eu/social/main. coordination efforts of a high-level expert of the trends reported in the core of
jsp?catId=738&langId=en&pubId=7729&typ
e=2&furtherPubs=yes using a sociological approach in seven EU the chapter:
Extract 1: Informal work
Interviews with people having experienced long-term unemployment show that working in the informal economy is a matter of surviving:
‘Yeah, that’s right, if you have no choice, you have no choice... I wasn’t even receiving the RSA [earned income supplement], due to an
incomprehensible administrative hold-up, I had zero income, I mean zero, … I was doing computer repairs out of my house, undeclared,
and I was doing undeclared odd jobs, like mowing lawns, hanging wallpaper, parqueting floors.’ No 52. FR, M, 45 years
Also show that informal economy puts people into fragile situations. A women living in Athens explains how she was working in the
informal sector and was injured:
‘I’m working without insurance and they’re always late in paying me.’ No 21. EL, F, 43 years
‘Last month I had an accident at work...… After 25 days, I’d reached the point where the doctor told me I could walk again, so I returned
to work, …They said, “You better come back to work soon or else we’ll find someone else.”’ No 21. EL, F, 43 years
Extract 2: Running into debt
Interviews with people having experienced long-term unemployment illustrate that people hit by economic hardship face
difficulties in accessing credit and find low support from banks.
Family and friends are a frequent source of loans. Respondents prefer these informal routes to formalised loan agreements,
although such loans are not always emotionally stress free. However, such solutions remain limited as sometimes friends
and family members also experience financial difficulties.
‘Sometimes I have needed to ask a pal for €20 if my money hasn’t lasted over the last few days of the month. That’s normal,
that’s okay, even though it’s not great.’ (DE)
Loans were taken out for two main reasons: A one-off expense, either unexpected (such as a medical expense) or more pre-
dictable (such as a loan to pay one’s taxes); and to help cover daily expenses such as paying utility bills or paying for food.
‘I borrow €50 from a friend of mine at the beginning of each month. I use the money to pay the supermarket. I give back the
money at the end of the month only to borrow it again at the beginning of the next month. I do not seem able to break from
this pattern no matter what.’ (EL, Group 3)
Respondents were generally reluctant to approach banks for loans. Some respondents also mentioned struggling with loans
that they had incurred before the crisis. There was some, but limited mention of using overdraft facilities. Banks are also not
looked upon favourably as they are seen as part of the cause of the financial crisis.
‘I went to the bank to see whether I could delay payments on my mortgage and they told me I couldn’t, I would have to find
a way to take out a loan, they didn’t make it easy for me.’ (ES, Group 3)
Such situations are often reported to generate stress.
‘When someone lends you money your first reaction is relief, but later it’s just one more problem.’ (FR, Group 3)
95
