More older women below poverty line

THE Gold Coast has had a 30 per cent rise in the number of "invisible", elderly women living below the national poverty line and on the brink of homelessness.

Liz Fritz, president of the Gold Coast Homeless Network and a member of the Homelessness Australia Board, said she was "very concerned" about the alarming rise of the past year.

"We are seeing more and more women who are becoming homeless, or are teetering on the edge of homelessness," she said.

"They are over 50, have lost a partner, or have had to leave abusive relationships and cannot afford their rental on a single income. It's a desperate situation for them."

She said according to Homelessness Australia research, older women became homeless because of poverty or abuse.You can get your favorite coach bags from any Cheap Sunglasses mp3 players which can provide you best service.

"In general, they are forced out of the workplace early and they don't have enough superannuation or savings to fund their cost of living," she said.

"They also suffer with poor health or serious illness,The 8gb mp3 players cheap comes in various sizes and colors. Therefore, every runner has a fitting size and a choice of the favorite color. often as a result of separation, divorce or abuse."

Ms Fritz recently attended a meeting of the Older Women's Network Qld, which confirmed her concerns about the growing number of "invisible", homeless women.

"They spoke about the women they see who look OK their clothes are neat and they have make-up on but they can only barely afford to put food on the table," she said.

"They have great pride, so they don't want to ask for help, but they are battling to buy themselves a pair of shoes they desperately need, medicine,On-Board Diagnostic(obd2 obd2 professional diagnostic tool) systems are in most cars and light trucks on the road today. or to pay their electricity bills.laminated bags china Manufacturers,Laminated Bag Wholesalers."

Ms Fritz said she was particularly concerned about the latter, as these bills spiked when the elderly used electric heaters to keep themselves warm during winter.

"Some of these women are forced to take up housekeeping work and too often, they are at risk of being abused," she said.
"We find these arrangements usually don't work out well for them and they report being asked for certain sexual favours in return for payment, or they are just abused in terms of working hours."

Ms Fritz said according to statistics released by Gold Coast City Council at the end of last year, from the 2011 census,i-fashion-handbag.com is a bag suppliers,supply all kinds of fashional handbags and brand bags. 34.5 per cent of residents had a total income of less than $400 a week.

"That's frightening because they have to pay for accommodation out of this, which is pushing people, particularly elderly women, into homelessness," she said.

"The government pension is about $800 a fortnight for a single woman and, on the coast, she will have to pay at least $280 a week for rental accommodation."

Ms Fritz said the income poverty line for a single person in Australia was $481.98, which showed just how tough things were for single, elderly women on the coast.