ECONOMIC INEQUALITY

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ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
What is your social class?
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ECONOMIC INEQUALITY

• Continuous measure
• Multidimensional
• Mix subjective and objective criteria
• Measure as Socioeconomic
• statuseducoccincome
• Non-conflictual

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ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
Marxist Definition of Class

• Class is an economic issue
• defined by structural condition
• position in the social relations of production
• control and ownership of the means of production
• proletariat
• bourgeoisie
• Discrete
• Conflict is natural condition

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ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
Modern Marxist Definition of Class
Eric Olin Wright

• Class is an economic issue
• defined by structural condition and authority
• categorical
• contradictory class location
• authority over other workers but do not own the
  means of production
• exploit others and are exploited

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The Six Part U.S. Class System
upper
Upper-middle
Lower-middle
Working
Working poor
underclass
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Differences between Wealth and Income

• Income is monetary gain
• Typically money earned from employment that is
  spent on surviving. Includes wages, pensions,
  welfare payments, other sources.
• Wealth is the value of assets and property minus
  debt.
• Assets that produce income.
• Stocks
• Property

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What is the difference between income and wealth?

• Wealth
• Assets and/or property
• Things that have market value and typically
  generate more money

• Income
• Monetary gain
• Money earned from employment

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Economic Inequality

• Industrialized nation have
• more wealth
• higher living standards
• Among Industrialized Nation the U.S.
• among the highest levels of inequality
• The greatest degree of wealth inequality among
  families
• among highest levels of poverty

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Trends in Inequality

• What is the Income Distribution?
• What is the distribution in wealth?
• How much Inequality is there?
• Quintiles

Are things getting better or worse?
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Who are the Poor?

• Absolute poverty
• A socioeconomic condition in which people are
  unable to meet their their fundamental human
  needs
• Relative poverty
• Standards that people have in a particular
  society at a given time
• Official poverty
• The official government definition. It is set at
  three times the cost of a nutritionally adequate
  diet.

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Considering Poverty

• How decide who is poor?
• Family income is as a Percentage of the official
  poverty threshold.
• Near poverty
• Extreme poverty
• Who are these people?
• Nickel and Dimed examples
• Relation of job to poverty
• What is the prevalence of Poverty?
• How easy it to get out of poverty?

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Poverty Trends

• Who are the poor? What are the risk factors?
• Are the number of people in poverty increasing or
  decreasing?
• What is the official U.S. guidelines ?
• poverty threshold
• Official poverty

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Types of Poor

• Working Poor
• Not permanently employed
• Not eligible for government programs
• Bottom rung of occupational hierarchy
• Underclass
• Rarely if ever employed
• Lowest levels of education
• Reside mostly in inner city
• Participate in underground economy
• Chronic poverty and dependent on government
  programs

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Theories of Poverty

• Blaming the Poor
• social Darwinism
• survival of the fittest
• biologically deficient
• Culture of Poverty
• subculture of poverty
• self-perpetuating through socialization
• Situational Adaptation
• rational reaction to poverty
• behave different but same cultural values
• Structural Explanation
• change in economic structure
• connected to capitalism

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What is the popular view of poverty?

• Its is their own fault
• There are the deserving poor and the undeserving
  poor
• The majority of poor are African American and
  Minorities

But what do we now know based upon empirical
evidence?
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The Middle Class

• They are many different groups that include
• Upper middle class professionals and
  technocrats
• Lower middle class lack of significant wealth.
  Depend on job for a living and have no
  significant assets.
• Working class typically considered blue collar
  workers. Limited education. Those at bottom of
  working class can be step away from poverty
• Distinct subculture

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ECONOMIC INEQUALITY

• Is the middle class shrinking?
• What does Olsen say?
• Modern Data?

Yes!
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Who are the Truly Affluent?

• The upper class
• SUPER RICH
• Consists of mainly the top 1 of wealth holders
• The other 9 percent of the top 10 are the rich
• Much of their income is not derived from earning
• Linked to the capitalist class
• Great wealth is connected to great power
• More on the power elite in section on POWER

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Conflicting Ideas
LIBERTY
EQUITY
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Economic Inequality
What accounts for rise in inequality?

• decline in earnings growth
• shift in economy from manufacturing to service
• Shifting demands of workforce skills
• change in age structure of population and labor
  force
• decline of unions
• change in government policies
• Cut programs for needy
• Deregulate financial institutions and businesses
• cuts in govt programs for the needy
• change in tax policies
• degradation of white collar work
• degradation and decline of skilled manual work
• increase in global competition
• influx of immigrants

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Economic Inequality

• Coming of the

Post-industrial Society