Those who earn about two-thirds and double the median household income are considered middle class. People who earn between $40,500 and $122,000 are considered middle-class. The middle-class fuels economic development; A strong middle class ensures a secure customer base, which encourages profitable investment. A strong middle class is also important for fostering other national and societal conditions that promote development. A large middle class creates a stable source of demand for goods and services. A robust middle class nurtures the next generation of entrepreneurs. A strong middle class helps to underpin economic development by supporting inclusive political and financial institutions. The middle class is critical because it fuels change and creativity. Without the middle class, the world will fall into chaos. It split between the upper class and lower class. I have read many books, such as Divergent and Maze Runner. In both, the world has fallen into a state of upper and lower classes. Eventually, the upper class cannot compare the lower class to the middle class but instead compare them to the upper class. They eventually see the lower class as a parasite or lower being and decide to eliminate them. I believe the middle class is shrinking. The middle class is shrinking because people are gaining more wealth and increasing their income. Another reason that it is shrinking is that people are losing their jobs and moving into the lower class because of the pandemic.
One reason the middle class is shrinking is that people are moving up. According to the most recent data from the United States Census Bureau, over 30% of American households received more than $100,000 in 2018. Fewer than 30% of households had incomes of $50,000 to $100,000. Since 1967, when just 9% of all U.S. households earned $100,000, the percentage of households earning at least $100,000 has more than tripled. For the first time since the United States Census began collecting data on this measure in 1967, the share of households earning less than $50,000 fell below 40% in 2018. At the time, 54 percent of households had an annual income of less than $50,000. Meanwhile, the proportion of people living in low- and high-income households has risen. “While the size of the nation’s middle class remained relatively stable during this time, financial gains for middle-income Americans were modest when compared to those of higher-income households,” wrote Pew senior researcher Rakesh Kochhar.
On the other hand, the pandemic is affecting the middle class. Certain age groups have also experienced a higher rate of job loss. Overall, 25% of U.S. adults claim the coronavirus epidemic caused them or anyone in their household to be laid off or lose their employment, with 15% claiming it happened to them personally. Young adults and adults with lower incomes are the most likely to claim this has happened in their homes. Half of those who say they’ve lost a job say they’re still looking for work, a third say they’ve returned to their old position, and 15% say they’ve changed jobs. Even if they didn’t lose their jobs, many employees have had to cut back on their hours or take pay cuts due to the pandemic’s economic consequences. Around a third of all adults claim it has happened to them or anyone in their family, with 21% saying it has happened to them personally. The majority of staff who have been affected by this claim are earning less now than they were before the coronavirus outbreak, while 34% say they are earning the same and only 6% say they are making more. This shows that lots of people are losing their jobs and with it their money. This is sending the middle class into the lower level.