Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsDavid Sirota: Economic Inequality is Much Worse Than Most Americans Believe
from In These Times:
Economic Inequality is Much Worse Than Most Americans Believe
According to a recent study, most of us severely underestimate just how bad the gap between the rich and the rest of us have gotten.
BY DAVID SIROTA
If critics of income inequality are wondering why the growing gap between rich and poor hasnt been a more potent political issue in the upcoming elections, a new study offers some answers: Americans grossly underestimate this inequality. That's one of the key findings of a survey showing the gap between CEO and average worker pay in America is more than 10 times larger than the typical American perceives.
In the report, Harvard University and Chulalongkorn University researchers analyzed survey data from 40 countries about perceptions of pay gaps between rich and poor. In every country, respondents underestimated the size of the gap between CEO and average worker pay. In the United States, for example, the researchers found the median American respondent estimated that the ratio of CEO to worker income is about 30-to-1. In reality, the gap is more than 350-to-1.
The study also found the median American respondent said the ideal pay gap is about 7-to-1a lower ideal than respondents in many industrialized countries. Additionally, no major industrialized country has anywhere close to a 7-to-1 pay gap. That ratio is more than seven times lower than the actual gap in social democratic countries like Denmark and Sweden.
In an interview with the Harvard Business Review, one of the researchers who conducted the study said Americans' inaccurate beliefs about the pay gap may be the reason economic inequality hasn't become more of a political issue. ................(more)
The complete piece is at: http://inthesetimes.com/article/17217/economic_inequality_is_much_worse_than_most_americans_believe
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
2 replies, 687 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (12)
ReplyReply to this post
2 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
David Sirota: Economic Inequality is Much Worse Than Most Americans Believe (Original Post)
marmar
Oct 2014
OP
KG
(28,751 posts)1. i'm just so thankful the prez fixed the economy even if my job pays half what i earned before. but
wall st is roaring, and after all isn't that what really matters?
Scuba
(53,475 posts)2. So "trickle down" should kick in real soon now. Just be patient. 20-30 more years, tops. Trust us.