Occupational profile of poverty in Pakistan

Abstract

The study is designed to examine the occupational profile of poverty, as it is important in determining the economic status of an individual. The empirical evidence indicates that there are wide variations in the incidence of poverty among different occupational groups. The highest disparity is found among those individuals who are labourers, skilled agriculture and service workers by occupation. The employment status indicates that the highest incidence of poverty is found among the unpaid family helpers, service and sale workers, labourers, agriculture workers, and trade workers. The inequality in consumption expenditure shows that the bottom 20 percent have 10.5 percent expenditure share while the top 20 percent have 37.2 percent expenditure share. The socio-demographic indicators show that the lowest share of poverty is found in young employed population. Thereafter it increases steadily, with a peak between 31 and 50 years of age for different occupational categories. The study shows that a high percentage of the poor has no formal education. The employment status shows that the self-employed have the lowest share of poverty in most of the occupational groups.