The Federal Reserve is showing the pandemic has widened the wealth gap and increased income inequality.
The coronavirus has exposed the differences in jobs, education, and income in the U.S.
Non-essential workers are paid more, have better educations, and typically work from home, but essential workers, are paid less, have not attended or graduated college, and are forced to travel to work using public transportation.
The top 1% of Americans have a net worth of $34.2 trillion, which is one-third of all household wealth in the U.S. but the bottom 50% holds $2.1 trillion combined, less than 2% of all wealth in the U.S.
Billionaires in the tech industry have thrived during the pandemic, millions of Americans are unemployed, forced to wait in long lines for food to feed their families while trying to protect themselves from the coronavirus.
The Fed study also shows the wealth gap between races in the U.S. is expanding: White Americans hold 85% of the nation’s wealth, versus just 4.1% for Black households.
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