22nd June, 2015
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The cover of the ACOSS report |
The rich are getting richer and the poor relatively poorer, according to the findings of a new report from the Australian Council of Social Service.
It found the top 20 per cent of income earners get five times as much as those in the bottom 20 per cent while people in the top 20 per cent of wealth holders have 70 times as much wealth as a person in the bottom 20 per cent.
The report, Inequality in Australia: A nation divided, showed that over the past 20 years the share of income and wealth held by those at the top increased while the share of income and wealth held by those at the bottom end declined.
In a statement, ACOSS said that while strong employment growth over the past 17 years had helped to reduce inequality, wages growth was very unequal over the period and acted to increase inequality.
Pointing to figures showing the top 20 per cent wealthiest people owned more than 80 per cent of the wealth in shares and investment real estate and more that 60 per cent of superannuation, ACOSS also said that inequality was caused by increased concentration of wealth in areas such as real estate and superannuation where people on the highest incomes benefit most from measures such as tax concessions.
The organisation said that while inequality in Australia is not as extreme as in the US or UK, "cracks" have appeared in the tax system which favors those on higher incomes.
In order to counter inequality, ACOSS is calling for the government to ensure every individual and organisation pays its fair share of tax, for the reforming of tax breaks "skewed" in favor of those on higher incomes, for the strengthening of the social safety net and protection of the minimum wage system. It is also calling for a "redoubling of efforts" to stem the tide of rising unemployment and an improvement in the "adequacy" of payments for the unemployed.
Dr Cassandra Goldie, ACOSS CEO, said that inequality should not be seen as "inevitable".
"In a country as wealthy as ours, all citizens should be included and able to realise their potential. In this way we could proudly pursue a fairer, more inclusive society, to advance the common good."
– DAVID ADAMS
