Wealth, poverty and welfare 3

Wealth, poverty and welfare 3

SOCIOLOGY - Wealth, Poverty and Welfare
Defining poverty The early part of the twentieth century did bring about many reforms and altered the dire poverty that had existed in Britain.

The debate about ‘what is poverty?’ has continued right up to the present day though. There is not just one way to define or measure the word ‘poverty’.

Defining poverty So how can we attempt to measure poverty?

Defining poverty Townsend (1979) defined poverty as ‘not living like the rest of society’. He calculated that those whose income was significantly below the ‘supplementary benefit’ level (which has since become income support) were not living like the rest of the community.

Defining poverty Townsend felt that the basic necessity of just providing food, water and shelter was not providing enough for people. He felt people should have more in life than just the bare minimum. The bare minimum does not allow people to make any choices about their life.

Defining poverty The ‘poverty line’ is calculated by making a list of what is necessary to take part in everyday life. This will change as living standards change over time. Townsend created a ‘deprivation’ list of 12 items which were linked to a low income. He then surveyed people to see how many households were without these items.

Defining poverty You might be surprised to know that Townsend's list in 1979 included: Your own flush toilet, sink or washbasin with cold water tap, bath or shower, gas or electric cooker A refrigerator One or more days in the last fortnight without a cooked meal

Defining poverty Some of the findings are listed below: About 7 million people did not have an item of essential clothing, such as a warm coat. 10 million lived in unheated or damp housing or had to make children share bedrooms 5 million people did not feed themselves properly, in terms of being able to afford fresh fruit and vegetables

Defining poverty Another way of measuring poverty is to consider how income and wealth in society have changed. This can help us decide how much poverty exists in our society.

Defining poverty Statistics show us the number of households that are on less than 50 % of the average income in the country. In , 25% of the population were said to be living at below 50% of average income, after housing costs were deducted.

Defining poverty Many people argue that it cannot be denied that general living standards have been raised in the last century. Nearly everyone in this country lives at a better standard of living due to the market economy. This is not always taken into consideration in some of the studies undertaken on poverty.

Defining poverty A ‘consensual’ definition of poverty can also be used. People can be asked to list what the necessities of life are and these can be ranked in order of importance. So, antique furniture and perfume may not be considered absolute necessities but clothes, food and basic furniture might be.

Defining poverty Depending on which approach to estimating poverty is used the response to the question, ‘How many people live in poverty?’ can be very different. Different definitions will give different answers and sociologists need to be aware of this. Government policy can be formed on statistics about poverty so sociologists have a very important responsibility.

Explanations of poverty Explaining why poverty still exists, even in relatively rich countries such as America and Britain, is a problem that sociologists consider.

Explanations of poverty Cultural explanations exist as to why there is poverty in our society. The culture of poverty is seen as a set of values that the poor have which others do not have. So, poverty is not defined just as not having money but is also combined with morals and behaviour.

Explanations of poverty The inner-city poor are often portrayed in the media as a group of people who are badly behaved and criminal in many cases. The emergence of a supportive welfare state is also held to be a reason for remaining poor. There is no incentive to try to rise out of the situation that people find themselves in. A word of warning here though – these are generalisations and have to be considered very carefully, as they obviously do not apply to all people.

Explanations of poverty Some people may decline into a state of poverty temporarily and then climb out of it. The poor may be a group of changing people. Some elderly people may enter the group when they are retired and their savings run out, for example, but they may not have been part of this group previously.

Explanations of poverty Studies have shown that people who are classed as ‘poor’ have the same hopes for themselves and their families as people who are wealthy and are not, as some people want us to believe, ‘different’ from those who have wealth.

Explanations of poverty Poverty can also remain in families just because they are poor. They begin poor; they continue to be poor. A poor couple have children and bring them up fighting against poverty but those children cannot, or do not, have the skills to take themselves out of the poverty environment so they remain poor and have poor children themselves. Education and possessing the right skills that are needed in the job market may be a passport to climbing out of the poverty trap for young people.

Explanations of poverty Governments have tried to put forward various solutions to combat a dependency on benefits and to encourage people out of the ‘poverty trap’. Governments want to ensure the people do not just rely on benefits even in times of unemployment but still retain the will to work. Equal pay for women and the introduction of a minimum wage, for example, have also improved the situation.

Explanations of poverty The poverty trap happens to people when they are tested for state benefits and allowed certain benefits as a result. They then find that if they accept employment, they will lose out because some, or all, of the benefits will be withdrawn and the claimant will end up less well off than if they had remained unemployed and just accepted the state benefits.

Explanations of poverty A cultural explanation of poverty may be too simple though. People become ill; people become unemployed through no fault of their own. There are many reasons why people can suddenly find that they have fallen below the poverty line. We cannot just adopt the idea that the poor must be ‘problem people’. The poor are also those who work but cannot earn enough in unskilled jobs to raise themselves and their families out of poverty.

Explanations of poverty Feminists believe that women fall into the poverty trap more easily than men. Due to their responsibilities for looking after children, women are dependent on their male partners. If that partner should leave, the woman is then left to cope with childcare and employment. Women often fill the gaps in the labour market with poorly paid jobs, casual jobs where they have few rights and low paid or part-time work.

So, who are the poor?

Who are the poor? The following categories of people can feature greatly amongst the poor: Lone parent families Unemployed people Sick and disabled Low paid workers The elderly Refugees

Who are the poor? Some facts to consider: There are fewer elderly amongst the poor than there were previously There are more unemployed amongst the poor Unemployment is a powerful reason for poverty The numbers of single-parent families have increased Homelessness has increased since the 1970s Debt has also increased

Who are the poor? Women are more likely to become victims of poverty Working class people are more likely to be poor Members of ethnic minority groups are more likely to be poor Children and the elderly are afflicted by poverty Government statistics show these trends.

Who are the poor? The unemployed who are out of work are often the least skilled among the workforce. Ethnic minorities can be prone to unemployment in greater numbers than white people. Lone parent families are often poor because of the limited opportunity for employment and the high cost of having children.

The Welfare State In this section, we are going to consider the welfare state . What is welfare? A simple explanation is that through the welfare state the government ensures that families receive a minimum income on which to live.

The Welfare State At the same time, the government tries to overcome problems associated with unemployment and retirement. They provide social services, such as the National Health Service and housing benefits.

The Welfare State After the second world war, the welfare state was considered a support for those who through unemployment or illness could not help themselves.

The Welfare State The Welfare State has undergone many changes in recent years. Public services have been privatised or made to be much more competitive, such as schools competing for pupils or hospitals competing to meet targets that have been set for them.

The Welfare State However, an undeniable fact is that people are living longer; the cost of health care is rising, as new technology is created and new advances in medicine take place. More pupils remain in school longer and a greater number of students go on to higher education. The financial costs are high.

The Welfare State Due to the spiralling costs, governments have found it increasingly difficult to continue providing welfare at the rate they did during the second half of the 20th century. There is a general view in most political parties that the welfare state has to be affordable and be highly effective.

The Welfare State Care in hospitals has become expensive so the elderly and mentally ill are encouraged to accept ‘care in the community’ which is cheaper than having them stay in hospital. There have been reforms designed to assist women. Child benefit is paid to mothers and there are tax allowances for childcare.

The Welfare State If we consider what life was like for the working classes before the introduction of the Welfare State, most people would argue that it has benefited the population. Only some people would say that the Welfare State has made people too reliant on state benefits helping them if things go wrong in their lives.

SUMMARY Although poverty is an issue that has been in our society since it began, we have not been able to eliminate it. Inequality still exists between the wealthy and the not so wealthy. The welfare system, for all its imperfections, has attempted to cushion the gap between poverty and a reasonable standard of living.

SUMMARY Education, housing and health care have all improved for the masses. The voluntary services also have helped in cases of dire need. Charities, such as Shelter, who assist homeless people and many other charity organisations supply resources and assistance to those who need support.

SUMMARY Most people would agree that the system is far from perfect. It is the role of sociologists to continue to attempt to understand poverty and to contribute to the means of finding a solution to it. Social inequality and poverty will remain sociological issues for some time to come. The end

Wealth, poverty and welfare 3

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