The Statistics
According to the July 15, 2010 issue of Business Insider.com, here are some startling facts that demonstrate changes affecting the middle class.
83% of all stocks are held by 1% of the population
61% of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck, which was up from 49 percent in 2008 and 43 percent in 2007
66% of the income growth between 2001 - 2007 went to the top one percent of the population
36% of Americans are not able to contriubte to any retirement savings
43% of Americans have less than $10,000 in retirment savings
24% of American workers postoponed their retirement in the last year
Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, a 32% increase from the previous year
In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.
As of 2007, the bottom 80 percent of American households held only about 7% of the nation's liquid financial assets.
The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.
The top 1% of U.S. households own nearly twice as much of America's corporate wealth as they did just 15 years ago.
In America today, the average time needed to find a job has risen to a record 35.2 weeks.
More than 40% of Americans who actually are employed are now working in service jobs, which are often very low paying. Millions of others are employed in part-time jobs.
For the first time in U.S. history, more than 40 million Americans are on food stamps, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that number will go up to 43 million Americans in 2011.
Approximately 46.2 million Americans live below the poverty level ($22,000 for a family of four, $11,000 for a single person)
More than 43 million Americans do not have medical insurance.
Globalization has reduced the number of jobs available to Americans. One reason is wages. This is what American workers now must compete against: in China a garment worker makes approximately 86 cents an hour and in Cambodia a garment worker makes approximately 22 cents an hour.
Despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose a whopping 16 percent to 7.8 million in 2009.
Approximately 21 percent of all children in the United States are living below the poverty line in 2010 - the highest rate in 20 years.
The top 10% of Americans now earn around 50% of our national income.
83% of all stocks are held by 1% of the population
61% of Americans "always or usually" live paycheck to paycheck, which was up from 49 percent in 2008 and 43 percent in 2007
66% of the income growth between 2001 - 2007 went to the top one percent of the population
36% of Americans are not able to contriubte to any retirement savings
43% of Americans have less than $10,000 in retirment savings
24% of American workers postoponed their retirement in the last year
Over 1.4 million Americans filed for personal bankruptcy in 2009, a 32% increase from the previous year
In 1950, the ratio of the average executive's paycheck to the average worker's paycheck was about 30 to 1. Since the year 2000, that ratio has exploded to between 300 to 500 to one.
As of 2007, the bottom 80 percent of American households held only about 7% of the nation's liquid financial assets.
The bottom 50 percent of income earners in the United States now collectively own less than 1 percent of the nation’s wealth.
The top 1% of U.S. households own nearly twice as much of America's corporate wealth as they did just 15 years ago.
In America today, the average time needed to find a job has risen to a record 35.2 weeks.
More than 40% of Americans who actually are employed are now working in service jobs, which are often very low paying. Millions of others are employed in part-time jobs.
For the first time in U.S. history, more than 40 million Americans are on food stamps, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that number will go up to 43 million Americans in 2011.
Approximately 46.2 million Americans live below the poverty level ($22,000 for a family of four, $11,000 for a single person)
More than 43 million Americans do not have medical insurance.
Globalization has reduced the number of jobs available to Americans. One reason is wages. This is what American workers now must compete against: in China a garment worker makes approximately 86 cents an hour and in Cambodia a garment worker makes approximately 22 cents an hour.
Despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose a whopping 16 percent to 7.8 million in 2009.
Approximately 21 percent of all children in the United States are living below the poverty line in 2010 - the highest rate in 20 years.
The top 10% of Americans now earn around 50% of our national income.