Income Inequality In America Essay

617 Words3 Pages

Income inequality is a significantly large problem within the United States. Many Americans are unaware of how unfairly money is distributed. Lots of Americans don’t even consider the income gap to be a crucial problem within the United States. There are solutions, but only if the government were able to change its economy. Income inequality is truly a massive issue needing to be recognized. Several Americans do not know how large the income gap is. In a 2011 paper by Michael Norton and Dan Ariely, they asked 5,000 Americans about the distribution of money between social classes. “The average American believes that the richest fifth own 59% of the wealth and that the bottom 40% own 9%.” (Fitz) In reality, the richest 20% of Americans own …show more content…

Multiple of these solutions involve government help, if not all. In Nobel prize winner Joseph Stiglitz’s new book, Rewriting the Rules of the American Economy: An Agenda for Growth and shared Prosperity, he talks about solutions for the American Economy. Some of these solutions include wage increases, new tax laws and regulation, and and changes within the American economy and how it operates. (White) And as said earlier, several Americans believe that hard work can help anyone climb up the social ladder. However, it seems very difficult at the moment as is. It is quite tough to live in the United States. The most common minimum wage within the United States is $7.25. (NCSL) The living wage for one adult within the state of Wisconsin is $10.20. (livingwagecalculator.mit.edu). That is a $2.95 difference, which may not seem that big of difference until expanded further. With a wage of $7.25 per hour, for eight hours each week, for a year, is $21,112. Meanwhile, with a wage of $10.20, the yearly income is $29,702.40. That is an $8,000 plus difference, and all these numbers haven’t even gone through taxes yet. No wonder it is so difficult for many families, no wonder parents have to work multiple jobs to sustain themselves. Although there are solutions, it may take a while until distribution of money will become more