Figure 4 - uploaded by Matthew Polacko
Content may be subject to copyright.
Index of social mobility by Gini coefficient. Data on social mobility index from World Economic Forum (2020); data on Gini coefficients from SWIID (Solt 2020).
Source publication
Rising income inequality is one of the greatest challenges facing advanced economies today. Income inequality is multifaceted and is not the inevitable outcome of irresistible structural forces such as globalisation or technological development. Instead, this review shows that inequality has largely been driven by a multitude of political choices....
Context in source publication
Context 1
... (2013) famously expanded on this with his 'Great Gatsby Curve' for 22 countries using the same measure. I update and expand on these studies in Figure 4 to include all 36 OECD members, utilising the WEF's inaugural 2020 Social Mobility Index. It clearly shows that social mobility is much lower on average in more unequal countries across the entire OECD. ...
Citations
... Income and wealth inequalities are subjects of interest to the general public [32,41], governments [15,53], economists [44,48], sociologists [59], epidemiologists [35,56], and political scientists [20,28]. These inequalities are often attributed to a systemic lack of educational and employment opportunities [15,26] and are also seen as results of politics and policies [15,42]. Many government policies attempt to address these inequalities through redistribution of income by taxation [9,53]. ...
Income inequalities and redistribution policies are modeled with a minimal, endogenous model of a simple foraging economy. The model is scaled to match human lifespans and overall death rates. Stochastic income distributions from the model are compared to empirical data from actual economies. Empirical data are fit to implied distributions providing necessary resolution for comparison. The impacts of redistribution policies on total wealth, income distributions, and inequality are shown to be similar for the empirical data and the model. These comparisons enable detailed determinations of population welfare beyond what is possible with total wealth and inequality metrics. Estate taxes in the model appear quite effective in reducing inequality without reducing total wealth. Significant income inequality emerges for the model for a population of equally capable individuals presented with equal opportunities. Stochastic population instability at both the high and low ends of infertility are considered.
... High income inequality can negatively affect a country and society (Polacko, 2021). For instance, higher income inequality is associated with higher risks of internal conflicts (Parsons, 2023). ...
Amid growing global concern over increasing income inequality, the role of monetary policy and the central bank have come under increased scrutiny. This study employed a dynamic panel data analysis, drawing upon data from the World Bank's PovcalNet and the World Development Indicators for 25 countries from 2000 to 2018. The research explored the effects of central bank independence on income distribution. The analysis revealed that central bank independence plays a crucial role in controlling inflation, which, in turn, contributes to lowering income inequality. However, the findings also highlighted that while central bank independence fosters financial stability and controls inflation, it tends to weaken the effectiveness of fiscal policy, potentially exacerbating income disparities. Additionally, it is observed that central bank independence is associated with greater financial openness , which can lead to increased asset prices and further widen the income inequality gap. This research offers a nuanced understanding of the trade-offs entailed in central bank policies and their extensive socioeconomic ramifications, thereby contributing a novel perspective to the discourse on monetary policy and income inequality.
... Widening income disparities have emerged as an important topic of research interest and public policy concern in recent years, as the large social and economic costs of high and sustained levels of income inequality have been widely acknowledged (e.g. Stiglitz, 2012;Ostry, Berg and Tsangarides, 2014;Dabla-Norris et al., 2015;Polacko, 2021). Focusing on income disparities is especially important for the Bulgarian economy, as in addition to being the member state with the lowest GDP per capita in the European Union (EU), it has the most uneven income distribution since 2016. ...
The causes and effects of income inequality have become widely discussed among researchers and policy makers in recent years. Rising income disparities are of particular concern in Bulgaria, as it is not only the country with the most unequal income distribution in the European Union, but also the member state with the lowest GDP per capita. An important dimension of income inequality in Bulgaria is related to the significant regional wage disparities existing in the country. What is more, of rising interest is the impact of foreign-owned companies on wage inequality, as a particular feature of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Bulgaria is its highly uneven regional distribution, with half of inward FDI stock being concentrated in the capital city. Hence, the aim of the paper is to explore wage differences and wage inequality between the districts in Bulgaria in the period 2008-2021, comparing the role of foreign and local firms. To estimate between-district wage inequality for all enterprises, as well as separately for the two types of firms, we use the between-group component of the Theil’s T Statistic, as this approach allows not only to trace the evolution of between-district wage inequality over time, but also to reveal the changing contribution of each district. The results show an upward trend in the overall wage inequality across districts. When distinguishing between the two types of firms, the analysis shows that between-district wage inequality in the case of foreign firms is greater compared to local companies. However, the between-district wage inequality among foreign affiliates’ employees tends to decrease which is mainly due to a narrowing gap between foreign firms’ average wage in the capital and the country average wage level of foreign firms. Conversely, there is an upward trend in between-district wage inequality among local firms’ employees. This is mostly due to an increasing contribution of local firms in the capital, which experience an expanding employment share and rising relative wages.
... The level of industrialisation can also be cited, since regions with higher levels of industry may require more refined management, which would justify higher salaries (Nath et al., 2020). Places with greater social inequalities tend to have greater wage inequalities, which could have a direct impact on the ability to attract and retain qualified managers in certain regions (Polacko, 2021). Although all the arguments mentioned above may influence the disparity in the salaries of public sports managers in Brazil, the data on social inequalities seems to be easily suited to the justification. ...
This study aims to identify the profile of the public sports manager working at the municipal level in different Brazilian states. The Northeast, Centre-West, Southeast, and South regions were considered as the sample, through the states of Bahia, Ceará, Espírito Santo, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Rio Grande do Norte, Santa Catarina, and Sergipe, for a total of 1.955 municipalities in this research. The analysis was based on data relating to the "Human Resources" axis of the Sports Management in States and Municipalities (GEEM) instrument. The results showed a predominance of males, differences in Race; Age; Schooling; Level of School; Remuneration, both for each state and each region of the country. The conclusion is that there is a need for the academic and professional training for public managers in the field of physical education, combined with sports management, in order to make public policies more effective, as well as the continuation of public service programmes independent of the region. Keywords: Management, Sport Management, Public Policy, Sports Manager, Profile Manager.
... The extraordinary increase in the inequality in pay systems that has occurred in recent years (Dundon and Rafferty, 2018) cannot be separated from the drive in the mainstream HRM literature for performance-based pay and for 'talent management'. The gap between the rich and powerful in society and the 'precariate' (Polacko, 2021), and the extent of poverty in some of the richest countries in the world (Cerra et al., 2021, Nolan et al., 2019, cannot be separated from the drives for talent management, flexible working practices, cost-effective workers, lean and mean organisations, that currently characterise much of HRM both in scholarly and practitioner contexts. The HRM function is seen in many organisations as purely administrative and therefore 'not responsible' for any of these issues. ...
Many of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals apply directly to Human resource management (HRM) within organisations, and most of them have indirect relevance. It is clear, however, that by 2030 the world will have failed to meet the Goals. Although the connection between the SDGs and HRM is not so apparent, it has been argued that the two are, or perhaps should be, related: but maybe there is failure there too. This conceptual paper uses extant research to argue that the reasons for this are inherent in our understanding of HRM, in the nature of the Goals themselves, and in the relationship between HRM and the SDGs. We argue that HRM fails to advance the likelihood of the Goals being met because of construct clarity problems. Nonetheless, we argue that the SDGs have value for HRM specialists in signalling the importance of the multiple stakeholders involved and in focusing attention on crucial aspects of the role of HRM within organisations.
... Despite the many studies addressing the issue (Grzebyk et al., 2022;Maket et al., 2022;Murawska, 2014;Murawska et al., 2020), the knowledge available, and the corrective measures applied by institutions, the outcomes are not as anticipated. The causes of income inequality are many (Bartak, 2014;Polacko, 2021;Zhou & Song, 2016), one of which is the level of education (Bartak, 2019;Murawska, 2017;Suryadarma, 2011;Vintilă et al., 2017). The connection between countries' income inequality and the level and quality of education lies at the heart of current scientific and political debates on social and economic development. ...
... Numerous studies addressing income inequality as well as the causes and consequences of its widening can be found in the literature (Kawachi et al., 1997;Kuźmar, 2023;Polacko, 2021;Topolewski, 2020;Tusińska, 2018;Welch, 2001;Zhou & Song, 2016). Not only is the importance of studying inequality evidenced by the international institutions' expressed concerns regarding the persistence and growth of inequity, which is considered a major challenge of our time, but there is increasing talk of inequality worsening as an effect of pandemic shock (Davidescu et al., 2022). ...
Motivation: The relationship between the level of education and population income lies at the heart of current scientific and political debates on the social and economic development of countries. The issue is an important one, as the gap between countries in this regard is large and has widened even further amid the current economic crisis that started in 2020 and is a result of, among others, the Covid-19 pandemic.Aim: The present article aimed to undertake a multivariate comparative analysis of population level of education (EL) and income (IL), construct synthetic measures of the phenomena under study, rank and classify the objects/countries studied, and investigate whether significant interdependencies exist between the level of education and income inequality. Additionally, an effort was made to determine the scale of changes and variability in the phenomena explored, both prior (before 2020) to and during the economic crisis (years 2020–2021).Results: The study confirmed the existence of a significant interdependence between populations’ education level (EL) and income level (IL) variability across EU regions. The marginalization of and disparity among several of the EU(27) countries has intensified even further during the current economic crisis. Significant correlations exist between countries with high population incomes and the percentages of individuals holding tertiary education qualifications as well as the adults pursuing further education. Concomitantly, as the percentage of young people not in education or employment falls, countries’ GDP and income levels increase, while income inequality and the risk of poverty decrease. The understanding of the aforementioned interdependencies is vital for the implementation of education policy as one of the biggest levers reducing educational disparities and thus income inequality in the population.
... One of the main challenges that developing economies face is growing income inequality. Research studies relate inequality with various socio-economic issues such as the decline of innovation and capital investments, slowing economic growth, as well as rising violence, a decline in social mobility, and healthcare issues (Polacko 2021). Despite the attempts made to promote inclusive growth and reduce income inequality and poverty, most developing countries-particularly African nations-continue to struggle to meet the fundamental needs of their citizens and to close income disparity gaps. ...
Income inequality is one of the biggest problems affecting developing economies. Market imperfections and information asymmetry lead to lack of access to the financial system, which will exacerbate income inequality. The growing adoption of FinTech (financial technology) has altered the structure of how financial services are delivered and makes these services accessible to underserved groups. This study explores the causal relationship between FinTech development, financial inclusion, and income inequality in a panel study of 29 African countries. We apply pooled OLS regression and structural equation models to samples from the years 2011, 2014, and 2017. The findings indicate that FinTech has a positive and statistically significant effect on financial inclusion and income inequality in African countries. The study results also demonstrate that financial inclusion plays a pivotal mediation role in the negative effect of FinTech on income inequality in African economies. Further, financial inclusion (the ability to create a bank account and borrow money) negatively and significantly affects income inequality in African countries, whereas saving shows a positive and significant impact on income inequality. Overall, our study results suggest that to reduce income inequality and increase the effectiveness of FinTech investments, policymakers in African countries should design proper policies to enhance financial inclusion and offer more accessible and equitable financial services.
... The model includes current and lagged variables. The models were modified by replacing general social security benefits with means-tested social assistance benefits, which many researchers recognize as directly reducing poverty: Δ(Pov_risk40(60)i,t)=α+δ3td2007t+...+δ17td2021t + β1Δlln(Mtestedi,t) + β2Δln(Mtested,t-1) + β3Δln(Mtested,t-2)+ β4ln (GDP_ pcap,t)+ β5Δ(GDP_ pcap i,t-1)+ Δei,t Δ(Gap_60i,t)=α+δ3td2007t+...+δ17td2021t + β1Δln(Mtestedi,t) + β2Δln(Mtested,t-1) + β3Δln(Mtested,t-2) + β4ln(GDP_ pcap,t) + β5ln (GDP_ pcap i,t-1)+Δei,t Δ(MatDepri,t)=α+δ3td2007t+...+δ17td2021t + β1Δln(Mtestedi,t) + β2Δln(Mtested,t-1) + β3Δln(Mtested,t-2) + β2ln(GDP_ pcap,t) + β3ln (GDP_ pcap i,t-1) + Δei,t According to Polacko (2021), the rise in income inequality has resulted in negative consequences such as poverty and material deprivation, particularly for those with low income. The study analysed to investigate the relationship between income inequality (measured by the d_GINI variable) and poverty in two groups of countries. ...
... One of the biggest issues confronting developed nations today is the increase in economic disparity. Income disparity has many different aspects and is not a natural result of unstoppable structural processes like globalization or technological advancement (Polacko, 2021). A significant social, political, and economic concern is income inequality. ...
One of the regencies on Madura Island, namely Sumenep, will be the regency with the lowest gini ratio in East Java Province in 2022. This research was conducted to analyze: 1) the effects of health, education, open unemployment rate, and poverty rate partially on the Gini ratio; 2) the effects of health, education, open unemployment rate, and poverty rate simultaneously on the Gini ratio in Madura Island. The research method was carried out using panel data regression. The results obtained using the CEM: 1) health, education, and poverty levels have a negative and not significant effect; 2) the open unemployment rate influences positively and significantly; 3) all independent variables simultaneously have a significant positive effect. The government can issue policies to reduce income inequality in the form of providing free health services, education and compulsory education scholarships, periodic job fairs, skills training for workers, and distribution of social assistance that is right on target.
... Income inequality is also associated with poorer public health, as a lack of income leads to insecurity and stress and makes it harder to buy quality food and access quality health services. This also leads to increased consumption of alcohol and other harmful substances and mortality (Polacko, 2021). ...
Income inequality is a growing problem worldwide, especially in developed countries, with adverse social, economic, political and health consequences. In 2017, the goal of reducing poverty and inequality was included in the United Nations' seventeen Sustainable Development Goals list. Despite this, governments are not paying enough attention to tackling the problem, and inequality continues to rise. To take appropriate measures to reduce income inequality, it is essential first to understand the underlying causes, as this can help to tackle the problem at its root. Many different factors have been identified as impacting income inequality, one of which is inflation. Inflation is currently at an all-time high in the country, reaching as high as 19.7% in 2022. This makes it particularly difficult for low-income earners to make ends meet, as buying necessities is becoming harder and harder. Given that rising inflation, due to geopolitical factors, is also an issue in Lithuania and throughout Europe, it is essential to analyse the relationship between income inequality, as this can help us make the right decisions in tackling both problems. This study aims to identify the impact of inflation on income inequality in Lithuania. The research methods used to achieve the objective were graphical analysis, literature analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis. The study shows a linear relationship between the Gini coefficient and inflation, as measured by the change in the GDP deflator, in Lithuania over 2008-2021, but that the impact of inflation on inequality is observed after one year. Similarly, a parabolic relationship is found when examining the impact of a change in inflation, as measured by the change in the GICP, on income inequality. However, changes in producer prices significantly impact income inequality only after three years. An analysis of the impact of changes in the prices of different commodities on income inequality reveals that, over the period analysed, the main contributors to inequality have been increases in the prices of oil, gas, food, and non-alcoholic beverages. Inflation directly impacts income inequality in Lithuania, so policymakers should consider it when formulating social policy.
