A new oxfam report has found that 82% of the wealth generated in 2017 went to the richest 1% of the global population.
The report, titled: “Reward Work, Not Wealth” is released at the time when world leaders and politicians are gathered in Davos, Switzerland, for the 48th annual World Economic Forum .
It says 3.7 billion people who make up the poorest half of the world saw no increase in their wealth. The inequality in South Africa is out of control.
Oxfam says in 2017 one billionaire was created every two days. Since 2010, billionaire wealth has risen by an average of 13% a year.
This is six times faster than the wages of ordinary workers which have risen by an annual average of just 2%.
Head Of Economic Justice, Thembinkosi Dlamini, says some policies adopted during in the past need to be urgently revisited.
The plight of the working poor in South Africa is also highlighted in the report.
Some are hoping that the introduction of the National Minimum Wage will help to narrow the disparaging inequality gap.
However, top executives salaries still far outstrip those of ordinary workers.
Additional Data from Oxfam shows that it takes 4 days for the best-paid executive at Shoprite to earn what a temporary farm worker will earn in their lifetime. On the other hand, it would take the same farmer 3,590 years to earn what the top paid executive at Shoprite earns in a year.
The same goes for Woolworths; there it takes 11 days for best-paid executives to earn what a temp farm worker earns in their lifetime. However, it will take the same farmer 1,406 years for them to earn what the top paid executive earns in a year.
Oxfam is calling for a people’s economy that works for everyone, and not just the wealthy few. It says returns to shareholders and top executives should be limited while ensuring that the wealthy pay higher taxes.
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