Wages in Germany are as unequal as before the First World War, according to a study on wage equality from best-selling French economist Thomas Piketty.
The top 10% of earners in Germany earn 40% of the workforce’s total income, the research found, with the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) calculating that this proportion has been growing since the middle of the 1990s.
In the 1960s, the bottom 50% earned a third of the total, but are now making only 17%. Meanwhile, the percentage of overall earnings taken home by the middle classes has remained relatively stable at 40% over the last six decades, according to English language news website, The Local.
The report found that income inequality has grown across the globe, with the most dramatic disparity being seen in North America, China, Russia and India. Europe has the lowest proportion of income lying in the hands of the top 10%.
The economists say the main reason for this growth in inequality is the privatisation of industry.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
Wages in Germany are as unequal as before the First World War, according to a study on wage equality from best-selling French economist Thomas Piketty.
The top 10% of earners in Germany earn 40% of the workforce’s total income, the research found, with the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) calculating that this proportion has been growing since the middle of the 1990s.
In the 1960s, the bottom 50% earned a third of the total, but are now making only 17%. Meanwhile, the percentage of overall earnings taken home by the middle classes has remained relatively stable at 40% over the last six decades, according to English language news website, The Local.
The report found that income inequality has grown across the globe, with the most dramatic disparity being seen in North America, China, Russia and India. Europe has the lowest proportion of income lying in the hands of the top 10%.
The economists say the main reason for this growth in inequality is the privatisation of industry.
Emma Woollacott is a freelance business journalist. Her work has appeared in a wide range of publications, including the Guardian, the Times, Forbes and the BBC.
