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Politics : Moderate Forum -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: TigerPaw who wrote (6328)	1/27/2004 8:07:05 PM
From: Ron	Respond to of 20773

Inequality Is Seen as Result Of the Jobless Recovery; Potential Election Theme By GREG IP Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL WASHINGTON -- Wage inequality -- the gap between America's highest and lowest earners -- has started widening again, a situation with election-year ramifications. The trend is a reflection of the job market's exceptionally weak response to the current economic recovery, as well as long-term technological and economic changes that have eroded the bargaining power of America's lowest-paid workers. The data show that young workers -- who currently have fewer job prospects than a few years ago -- and men, in particular, are bearing the brunt. New data from the Labor Department show that after adjustment for inflation, salaries of the country's lowest-paid workers -- those who fall just inside the bottom 10% of the pay range -- fell 3% last year, from 2002. Meanwhile, the salaries of the highest paid workers -- those who are just inside the top 10% -- were unchanged. The divergence appeared to grow in the fourth quarter as higher-paid workers gained ground and lower-paid workers slipped further, based on comparisons with original year-earlier data that are subject to revision. The numbers continue a movement to greater wage inequality that began around the time President Bush succeeded President Clinton and the economy slid into recession three years ago. The trend represents a reversal from the late 1990s, when the lowest unemployment rates in a generation had enabled the lowest-paid workers to keep pace with those at the top. This wage picture is likely to figure in this year's unfolding election campaign. Democratic presidential candidates have made the economic hardship of typical working families a centerpiece of their platforms. They also say President Bush's tax cuts aggravate growing inequality by giving larger benefits to those in higher income brackets.