America’s Obliterated Middle Class
- Written by: Charles Graham
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), theU.S. job market is projected to increase by seven percent over the next ten years, adding about ten million jobs by the year 2024. On the surface this seems like good news. But the BLS statistical sample actually reflects an alarming decrease in the number of middle class jobs. A combination of outsourcing and technological developments has rapidly been hollowing out the population that historically considered itself America’s special social and economic club.
It turns out this disturbing trend has been with us for a while. According to the Pew Research Center, upper-income households laid claim to forty-nine percent of U.S. aggregate income, up sharply from just twenty-nine percent from 1970. But the share of that income that went to middle-income households: only forty-three percent, down considerably from the reassuring sixty-two percent share the middle class enjoyed in 1970.
So if you thought you were the only one struggling, you’re not. If you remember the past as being a more comfortable time, it was – because many of us, and our parents, had much better-paying jobs.
Then again, you may not even be who, or what, you think you are anymore. According to Margaret King, director of the Center for Cultural Studies & Analysis, “Although over 90% of Americans identify as middle class, their income positions vary widely, from poverty level to wealthy.” So while your head and heart may be middle class, your wallet may not qualify anymore.
It seems Americans are starting to catch on. In a recent CNNMoney/E*Trade survey of Americans with a minimum of ten thousand dollars in an online trading account, fifty-two percent assigned a grade of “C” to the economy. Another fifteen percent gave it a grade of “D” or “F.”
According to one study, this anxiety is caused by increasing financial challenges that particularly came to the fore in the wake of the Great Recession, including reduced savings and declining household income. As of this past January, at least thirty-five percent of all income levels claimed they’ve been encountering financial challenges within the last six months.
