The Truth About Poverty In Britain Is Much Worse Than You Think
extent of neoliberal market reforms are still unravelling and
inequality, as we are now hearing almost daily, has inexhorably taken a
grip and harming society much more widely as a direct result with
evidence of rising poverty its consequence.
The Equality Trust and
High Pay Centre has average pay for UK workers calculated as £26,500.
However, average pay conceals the reality for millions.
For instance, the top 0.1% are earning a few pounds over £1 million a
year and the top 1% are earning an average £271,888. What this figure
hides is the fact that the top FTSE chief executives are earning an
average of £4.3 million and it takes them just 2.5 days to earn the
average annual workers pay. These statistics do not include other
successful groups such as self employed entrepreneurs.
The top 10% of UK workers earn £79,196. But the truth here is that
this also includes the earnings of the top 1%, meaning the next 9% don’t
really earn that figure.
What is grotesque is the next number that should shock everyone. The
average pay of the next 90%, (by stripping out all earnings of the top
10%, including the 1% and 0.1% groups) leaves an annual income of just £12,969.
Yes, you read that right. Stripping out the top 10% of average pay,
leaves just £12,969 average pay for the remaining 90% of the population.
What is interesting about the figures collated by the Inequality
Trust is that the data is about two years old (not their fault – it’s
what is available), so things will actually be slightly worse as all
analysts agree that inequality is getting worse, not better.
That statistic itself is shocking enough on its own but many people
in that 90% category earn considerably more than £12,969, leaving the
bottom 20% earning around £5,500 per annum.
So how are British workers and families really doing?
