Economic Inequality in Australian Society
When people have unequal possibilities or access to money and income, that is when economic inequality is present. Economic inequality predominates in Australian society when it comes to earnings and wages. The salary disparity between individuals with high salaries and those with low earnings is widening.
Measuring Economic Inequality
Wealth inequality and income inequality are the two metrics used to quantify economic inequality. The amount of money that each person or household makes is measured in terms of income inequality. The amount of money possessed by each family or person is measured in wealth inequality (Dorling, 2015).
Wealth Inequality in Australia
The Australian society has a higher wealth inequality as compared to income inequality. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the top 20% of the wealthiest households account for 61% of the total household wealth while the poorest 20% account for only 1%. The report further states that the middle and high-income households obtain their income from salaries and wages, while the poor get their income from government pensions and allowances (Furze, Savy, Webb, James, Petray, Brym, & Lie 2015).
Impact on Education
Because of these inequalities, children go to school with different levels of preparedness and the urge to learn. The public schools do not help in dealing with the disparities. However, the Catholic system tries to develop a more comprehensive system.
References
Dorling, D. and Dorling, D., 2015. Injustice: Why social inequality persists. Policy Press.
Furze, B, Savy P, Webb R, James S, Petray T, Brym R, Lie J 2015, Sociology in Today’s World 3rd Ed. South Melbourne, Cengage Learning Australia.
