The bottom 20 % actually has a decrease in income and the second 20% and middle 20% are the categories with the fewest growth. This is likely a result of the Great Recession in 2008 which affected those in the lower class the hardest. Unemployment rates reached a soaring high and people had a difficult time finding another job after they were laid off. Also, in this time period more people started going to school especially those who weren’t permitted to attend in previous years such as women and African Americans. Some students don’t work while they’re in school or they only work part time so their income is a relatively small. That could be another reason why the growth in the second 20% and middle 20% is so low. Another factor to consider is the changes in family structure. In these years it became more common for single parents to raise kids. Single mothers especially struggle financially since they have to rely on one paycheck instead of two so some of them fall into the bottom 20% or middle 20% groups. Additionally, the upper class holding a lot of the wealth in the country explains why the top 5% sees a larger growth than all the other categories in the
The bottom 20 % actually has a decrease in income and the second 20% and middle 20% are the categories with the fewest growth. This is likely a result of the Great Recession in 2008 which affected those in the lower class the hardest. Unemployment rates reached a soaring high and people had a difficult time finding another job after they were laid off. Also, in this time period more people started going to school especially those who weren’t permitted to attend in previous years such as women and African Americans. Some students don’t work while they’re in school or they only work part time so their income is a relatively small. That could be another reason why the growth in the second 20% and middle 20% is so low. Another factor to consider is the changes in family structure. In these years it became more common for single parents to raise kids. Single mothers especially struggle financially since they have to rely on one paycheck instead of two so some of them fall into the bottom 20% or middle 20% groups. Additionally, the upper class holding a lot of the wealth in the country explains why the top 5% sees a larger growth than all the other categories in the