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Research, Practice, and Policy Strategies to Reduce Extreme Economic Inequality.
Health & Social Work ( IF 1.896 ) Pub Date : 2020-07-26 , DOI: 10.1093/hsw/hlaa016
Christine M Rine 1 , Charles LaBarre 1
Affiliation  

The Grand Challenges for Social Work put forth by the American Academy of Social Work and Social Welfare (AASWSW) tasks the profession to confront complex and widespread societal issues. The challenge to reduce extreme economic inequality confronts a pervasive problem entrenched in ineffective and outdated social and economic policies that can only be ameliorated by recognizing our agency in changing the status quo (Lein, Romich, & Sherraden, 2015). The unprecedented extent of economic inequality in the United States is clearly illustrated by staggering statistical comparisons. Recent data reveal that individuals in the top 1 percent of the income bracket own almost half of the nation’s wealth while nearly 40 million Americans live in poverty, 20 percent of them children (AASWSW, 2020; Center for Poverty Research, 2018). One-quarter of the country’s workers are deemed to earn low pay by international comparative standards, placing the United States at the bottom among other countries (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2014). Whereas higher-paying jobs afford generous benefits, opportunity for growth, and a voice in one’s workplace, lower-paying positions lack these advantages (Kalleberg, 2011). Students from low- and middle-class backgrounds must borrow to pay for the very education required to improve their social class, which results in a financial burden shouldered long after graduation (Elliott, 2015). Widespread barriers have furthered economic inequality between the top and bottom earners, ultimately reducing the size of our middle class. Political action has done little of late to address extreme income inequality; policies have become less progressive over time as seen in heightened requirements for public assistance and harsher income-tax adjustments (Lein et al., 2015). However, the country also has a rich history of combating economic injustice as seen in the efforts of social reform trailblazers like Frances Perkins and Harry Hopkins (Downey, 2009; Hopkins, 2008). The social work profession is aptly suited to meet this grand challenge by altering misguided economic policies and the very social fabric that allows extreme inequality to persist across generations.

中文翻译:

减少极端经济不平等的研究,实践和政策策略。

美国社会工作与社会福利学会(AASWSW)提出的社会工作大挑战要求该专业面对复杂而广泛的社会问题。减少极端经济不平等的挑战面临着普遍存在的问题,即根深蒂固的无效和过时的社会和经济政策,只有承认我们的机构能够改变现状,这一问题才能得到改善(Lein,Romich,&Sherraden,2015)。惊人的统计比较清楚地说明了美国前所未有的经济不平等程度。最近的数据显示,收入最高的1%的人拥有该国近一半的财富,而近4000万美国人生活在贫困中,其中20%是儿童(AASWSW,2020年;贫困研究中心,2018年)。按照国际比较标准,该国四分之一的工人被视为低薪,使美国在其他国家中排在最后(经济合作与发展组织,2014)。高薪职位提供丰厚的福利,增长机会并在工作场所发出声音,而低薪职位则缺乏这些优势(Kalleberg,2011)。来自中下阶层背景的学生必须借钱来支付改善其社会阶层所需的良好教育,这导致毕业后很长的时间承受着经济负担(Elliott,2015)。广泛的壁垒进一步加剧了最高收入者和最低收入者之间的经济不平等,最终缩小了我们中产阶级的规模。为了解决极端的收入不平等问题,政治行动几乎没有做。随着对公共援助的要求提高和对所得税的调整更加严格,政策随着时间的推移变得不那么进步(Lein等人,2015)。但是,从弗朗西斯·珀金斯和哈里·霍普金斯等社会改革先驱的努力中可以看出,该国在打击经济不公方面也拥有丰富的历史(Downey,2009; Hopkins,2008)。社会工作专业通过改变误导的经济政策和允许世代相传的极端不平等现象的社会结构,非常适合应对这一巨大挑战。从法兰西斯·珀金斯和哈里·霍普金斯等社会改革先驱者的努力中可以看出,该国还拥有丰富的打击经济不公的历史(Downey,2009; Hopkins,2008)。社会工作专业通过改变误导的经济政策和允许世代相传的极端不平等现象的社会结构,非常适合应对这一巨大挑战。从法兰西斯·珀金斯和哈里·霍普金斯等社会改革先驱者的努力中可以看出,该国还拥有丰富的打击经济不公的历史(Downey,2009; Hopkins,2008)。社会工作专业通过改变误导的经济政策和允许世代相传的极端不平等现象的社会结构,非常适合应对这一巨大挑战。
更新日期:2020-07-26
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