Europe plunged into financial crisis in early 2008. Official data show the collective debt in the eurozone has hit a new record high of 92.2 percent in first quarter of 2013, as the 17-nation bloc continues to grapple with a worsening financial crisis. The data released by Eurostat, the EU’s statistics office, on Monday showed that government debt as a share of the total annual GDP of the eurozone... 

The Greek people, did not have to wait for the European Commission to tell them what we already know. Real unemployment is higher than what is recorded on paper, just like in the United States. The report says that 20% of households, are living off of 60% of the average median income in the country. The reality is in fact much worse, it is certain that more than 1/5 are below the poverty line. Young... 

The city of Detroit has filed for federal bankruptcy, or Chapter 9 protection, which could mean municipal employees are laid off, assets sold and services like trash collection, which have already been cut to the bone, further scaled back. Detroit has become the largest city in American history to file for bankruptcy. Kevin Orr, a bankruptcy expert hired by the state of Michigan in March to try and... 

Italians receive a free meal at a soup kitchen in Rome. The number of Italians living in absolute and relative poverty soared in 2012 with families in southern Italy hit the hardest, Italy’s national statistics office says in a report. The Wednesday report, citing a study conducted by ISTAT, revealed that about 4.8 million people, or 8 percent of the population, are grappling with absolute poverty,... 

A report has found that a third of low-to middle-income British families are unable to afford paying private rents for homes since the rise in rent costs. The think-tank Resolution Foundation said the British government’s plans to kick-start the housing market would do little to help low income families who are being forced to rent privately. This comes as in the recent years; competition for renting... 

Protesters attend a demonstration in Athens, Greece, July 8, 2013. Tens of thousands of Greek municipal workers have staged a strike to protest against the massive public sector layoffs enacted by the government in order to secure promised loans. Greek civil servants including policemen and schoolteachers took to the streets outside the Administrative Reform Ministry in Athens on Monday, as the government... 

Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis Greek staff unionists have physically assaulted Athens Mayor Giorgos Kaminis amid protests against job cuts tied to Greece’s bailout, officials say. The mayor’s office said Kaminis was “physically attacked” on Sunday while he was leaving a Confederation of Greek Municipalities (KEDE) meeting, where he held discussions about the austerity measures and their affects... 

The unemployed make up nearly 6 in 10 young people under 25 years of age – unemployment continues to climb. The nightmare of unemployment does not end, especially among young people. For another month, Greece is … “the champion” in unemployment, with 26.8% of the working population without a job. 26.8% is an increase from the month before, February was 26.7% according to figures released... 

A homeless sleeps at the entrance of a bank in Milan, Italy on June 27, 2013. Recent figures released by the Eurostat data agency show the eurozone unemployment rate has hit its previous record-high of 12.1 percent in May. According to the data, the jobless rate rose 0.1 percentage in May after the previous months’ figures were amended down from 12.2 percent to 12.0 percent. Approximately 19.22... 

Italy’s unemployment rate has risen to a new record high in May as the country is struggling with a recession-hit economy following implementation of tough austerity cuts. The Rome-based national statistics office, Istat, said on Monday that the jobless rate rose to 12.2 percent in May from 12 percent in April, the highest since the institute started collecting data on Italy in 1977. The eurozone’s... 

Public service workers in Portugal have engaged in a general strike to protest government austerity measures that have led to the nation’s worst economic slump since the 1970’s. The Thursday protest effort, which was called by Portuguese trade unions, began peacefully although it brought the nation’s public transport system to a halt, prompting anger and despair among those who decided to go... 

Italian students protesting against austerity measures Tens of thousands of workers and jobless people have taken part in a rally in the Italian capital, Rome, in protest against the country’s rising unemployment rate and unfair taxes. Italy’s three largest labor union confederations, the CGIL, CISL, and the UIL, organized the Saturday rally. The protesters slammed the government of Prime Minister... 

Protesters attend an anti-government protest in downtown Sofia on June 16, 2013. Thousands of people have demonstrated in the Bulgarian capital for the eighth straight day, demanding the resignation of the government of Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski. Up to 10,000 protesters gathered in front of the government headquarters in downtown Sofia on Friday, shouting slogans against the government. The... 

Thousands of Spaniards attend an anti-austerity demonstration in the capital Madrid, on June 16, 2013. Thousands of Spaniards have staged rallies across the country to express resentment against austerity measures, recession and the soaring rate of unemployment in the country. The protests took place on Sunday in 29 cities including the capital Madrid, the country’s second-largest city, Barcelona,... 

At least one in six children in Britain lives in relative poverty. At least one in six children in Britain lives in relative poverty, new figures released by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have revealed. In 2011-12, 2.3 million or 17 percent of UK children were recorded as “living in homes with substantially lower than average income”. The figure rises to 3.5 million or 27 percent when...