Samaritans Scotland launches new report, Paid Yesterday, Broke Today, examining the impact of financial and employment insecurity on suicidal thoughts and behaviour

Too many people in Scotland are finding that their hard work is not providing an income that can cover their basic needs. For many, there is no certainty about when they will get their next shift, or how long a job will last. These experiences take their toll.

Our new report, produced in collaboration with Strathclyde University, sets out the experiences of people living in Scotland who face impossible financial difficulties. Participants told researchers how they have felt the pressures of insufficient pay and poverty, of the stigma placed on them when reaching out for financial support, and of the sense of being trapped in debt. This is the reality for many people living in Scotland. For the people who took part in this research, these experiences contributed to suicidal feelings, thoughts and behaviours.

Samaritans’ vision is that fewer people die by suicide. Our volunteers provide life-saving support for our callers 24/7, 365 days a year. We also provide support in a range of settings including prisons, schools, bereavement support groups, and many others. But this work alone isn’t enough. To prevent suicide, we need governments and other agencies to take action to tackle job insecurity and insufficient pay.

Paid Yesterday, Broke Today outlines how we can work together to reduce the number of people in Scotland experiencing suicidal thoughts, feelings and deaths by suicide due to insecure work and financial instability.

We worked with research participants to co-produce the report’s recommendations. They call on Scottish Government to ensure people have enough money to meet their basic needs, and to take suicide prevention into account in this work. Participants also told us that social connection should be harnessed as a protective factor, ensuring that we all have meaningful opportunities for connection in the workplace and beyond. The Scottish Government should continue the Fair Work agenda and ensure there are decent incentives for workplaces to put fair employment practices into place.

“That’s the problem with poverty. People get stuck in this cycle and die in that cycle, because you cannot think beyond this point. I’m in a cycle of poverty.” (Joe, research participant).

“…sometimes you want to be independent with you own life. And the income is so low, sometimes you can’t afford a meal, so you have to stay hungry. It’s dinner or breakfast. You have to forego one. It’s a really difficult situation.” (Elizabeth, research participant).

This research has been shaped by the lived and living experience of the participants who chose to take part. Research participants have told us that they believe their recommendations will begin to make a difference for people in Scotland facing insecurity in the workplace and their income.

Suicide is preventable. Our hope is that this report can play a part in giving a voice to people in Scotland experiencing insecurity in pay and work, and begin to build a better Scotland where work, pay and social security function together to saves lives.

You can read Paid Yesterday, Broke Today here, and to learn more about Samaritans Scotland work you can visit our website here.

If you would like to discuss the report you can contact Dave Morris at d.morris@samaritans.org

Anyone can contact Samaritans, free, 24/7, 365 days a year. Call 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org.

Dave Morris is policy manager for  Samaritans Scotland.