Social Inequality Around the World

We have seen an increase in social inequality in the UK as well as all around the world due to several factors. It affects almost every element of our lives in some way or the other. The drivers of excessive inequality are well known. Factors such as trade and financial globalisation processes destabilised the bargaining station of comparatively immobile labour has played its part too.

Poverty impacts all societies and domains and is often a cause for inequality. It also has adverse effects on other things such as living conditions, education, status and class. This type of inequality is more prominent in developing countries. In a report conducted in 2013 it was mentioned that “a significant majority of households in developing countries- more than 75% of the population – are living today in societies where income is more unequally distributed than it was in 1990’s” (Humanity Divided). Poverty of employees has been a great concern over the last few years. Let alone in London employees are greatly affected by this.

Class, income, wealth plays a vital role in the imbalance of equality. Social class background is another factor that creates the imbalance within a society. People from a lower social background have seen differences such as shorter life expectancy compared to the richer side. “There are wide inequalities in exam passes between schools with different social class intakes” (BBC Bitesize) Educated parents are more likely to support their children succeed at school in comparison to their peers whose parents may not have had sufficient education or means themselves. They are also willing and able to spend more on extra-curricular activities as well as after school tuitions to enhance progression and grades.

Sex and gender inequality has been the centre of many research papers over the years. According to the pay gap research conducted by Brynin (2017) “Women not only earn less than men overall, but they are also more likely to be low paid. In 2014, 20.4% of men earned less than ￡8 per hour while 30.3% of women did so. However, the proportion of women experiencing low pay has declined over time”

Global matters also have their share in increasing social inequality such the recent pandemic Covid 19. Millions of job losses across the world, several bereavements, health concerns, lower wages- all played a part in increasing the gap. Mental well-being was affected in many households as well.

Inequality not only jeopardises economic growth, but it also becomes a barrier to poverty reduction, stalls progress in education, health and general life conditions. It causes a wide range of health and social problems such as shorter life expectancy, poor education, mental illness, social networking, etc.

There is however some good news as countries globally have managed to reduce inequalities through a combination of progressive policies and legislations. Good HR practices can help to reduce the gap in many ways.

The Introduction of work-based qualifications such as the apprenticeships have played a vital role in education and up-skilling employees without the huge university fees to pay. In fact, they earn whilst they learn. This has allowed people from lower economic background to enter education and has created more job opportunities. This benefits the employers as well because they can train the employee as per their needs that reflects the ethos of the company plus it is more cost effective.

Poverty affects all areas of life hence it’s an essential inequality that should be dealt with. A workforce that is affected by penury will be less effective for the company and hence reduces productivity for the organisation, therefore good HR practices plays an important role. “Their own performance and productivity is also being impacted, as poverty affects the health and wellbeing of their workers (26% of them) and increases the amount of sick leave (24%). But more broadly it also demoralises their whole workforce (25%).” (Hyde, R. & Sheperd, J.,2021)

The minimum wage regulation has been a drive towards the reduction of poverty. It is a practice that is regulatory which plays a role in reducing inequality. However, this is a debatable point, an area for discussion as in certain households the increase in minimum wage does not necessarily mean better income as their benefits are then capped. Although it surely helps families where there are more than two people working and no reliance on any social support. It also criticised in some publications because it has not been proven to increase productivity or profits of a company.

As very recently published in the Financial Times, “Low pay commission finds uplift did not boost poorest workers’ incomes because of freezes and tapering of benefits.” (ft.com)

Some organisations have also a financial well-being policy that would introduce regimes like healthy eating and subsidised education plans. One of the ways we support employees at our organisation is by giving people given contractual hours. This allows some reassurance within their minds as well as finances. Although the monetary value of these is not significantly huge, it helps to have a level of security for them and their families that plays a part in their wellbeing.

Globalisation has also been a positive way of reducing social inequalities. Borderless countries allowed people to freely move from one end to another for work. It created more opportunities; cross border investments generated more jobs and a bigger pool of skilled and non-skilled workers.?

“Inequality in society is not a new phenomenon. And yet it can be fatal, if left unchecked it can undermine the very foundations of development and social and domestic peace” (Humanity undivided)