Macroeconomic Equity: Addressing Income Inequality And Social Justice Through Economic Policy
Keywords:
Economic Inequality, Progressive Taxation, Social Welfare, Inclusive Growth, Global Cooperation, Labor Market Policies
Abstract
The purpose of this paper will be to discuss the status, policies, and prospects of economic development and income distribution in the existing literature. The research aim is to understand the determinants of global and national income distribution, analyse prior data, and assess the effectiveness of different policies in combating inequality. Emphasis is placed on the taxation system, social insurance, labor market, and education and health care reforms. The study therefore calls for the use of good growth practices, international collaboration, and the use of creativity in the fight against inequality and injustice. The results of the study imply that some practices and minorities’ integration are essential for the decrease of the gap and the formation of an equal economy.
References
[1] Piketty, T. (2014). Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Harvard University Press.
[2] Stiglitz, J. E. (2012). The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future. W.W. Norton & Company.
[3] World Economic Forum. (2020).
[4] Global Risks Report 2020.
[5] Wilkinson, R., & Pickett, K. (2009). The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better. Allen Lane.
[6] Alvaredo, F., Chancel, L., Piketty, T., Saez, E., & Zucman, G. (2018). World Inequality Report 2018. Belknap Press.
[7] OECD. (2015). In It Together: Why Less Inequality Benefits All. OECD Publishing.
[8] Milanovic, B. (2016). Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. Harvard University Press.
[9] Autor, D. H. (2019). Work of the Past, Work of the Future. AEA Papers and Proceedings.
[10] Galbraith, J. K. (2012). Inequality and Instability: A Study of the World Economy Just Before the Great Crisis. Oxford University Press.
[11] Esping-Andersen, G. (1990). The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. Princeton University Press.
[12] Piketty, T. (2014). Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Harvard University Press.
[13] Stiglitz, J. E. (2012). The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future. W.W. Norton & Company.
[14] Atkinson, A. B. (2015). Inequality: What Can Be Done? Harvard University Press.
[15] Korpi, W., & Palme, J. (1998). The paradox of redistribution and strategies of equality: Welfare state institutions, inequality, and poverty in the western countries. American Sociological Review, 63(5), 661-687.
[16] Goldin, C., & Katz, L. F. (2008). The Race between Education and Technology. Harvard University Press.
[17] Autor, D. H. (2014). Skills, education, and the rise of earnings inequality among the “other 99 percent”. Science, 344(6186), 843-851.
[18] Milanovic, B. (2016). Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. Harvard University Press.
[19] Rodrik, D. (2011). The Globalization Paradox: Democracy and the Future of the World Economy. W.W. Norton & Company.
[20] Card, D., & Krueger, A. B. (1995). Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage. Princeton University Press.
[21] Freeman, R. B. (2010). Labor regulations, unions, and social protection in developing countries: Market distortions or efficient institutions? In D. Rodrik & M. Rosenzweig (Eds.), Handbook of Development Economics (Vol. 5, pp. 4657-4702). North-Holland.
[22] Ostry, J. D., Berg, A., & Tsangarides, C. G. (2014). Redistribution, inequality, and growth. IMF Staff Discussion Note 14/02. International Monetary Fund.
[23] Lustig, N., Pessino, C., & Scott, J. (2014). The impact of taxes and social spending on inequality and poverty in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay: An overview. Public Finance Review, 42(3), 287-303.
[24] Coibion, O., Gorodnichenko, Y., Kueng, L., & Silvia, J. (2017). Innocent bystanders? Monetary policy and inequality in the US. Journal of Monetary Economics, 88, 70-89.
[25] Ali, I., & Son, H. H. (2007). Defining and measuring inclusive growth: Application to the Philippines. Asian Development Review, 24(1), 11-31.
[26] Ravallion, M. (2013). How long will it take to lift one billion people out of poverty? The World Bank Research Observer, 28(2), 139-158.
[27] Blau, F. D., & Kahn, L. M. (2017). The gender wage gap: Extent, trends, and explanations. Journal of Economic Literature, 55(3), 789-865.
[28] Duflo, E. (2012). Women empowerment and economic development. Journal of Economic Literature, 50(4), 1051-1079.
[29] Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2012). Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Crown Business.
[30] Sen, A. (2009). The Idea of Justice. Harvard University Press.
[31] Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies. W.W. Norton & Company.
[32] Card, D., & Krueger, A. B. (1994). Minimum Wages and Employment: A Case Study of the Fast-Food Industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. American Economic Review.
[33] Rawls, J. (1971). A Theory of Justice. Harvard University Press.
[34] Sen, A. (1992). Inequality Reexamined. Harvard University Press.
[35] Keynes, J. M. (1936). The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money. Macmillan.
[36] Skidelsky, R. (2010). Keynes: The Return of the Master. Penguin Books.
[37] Mankiw, N. G. (2014). Principles of Economics. Cengage Learning.
[38] Solow, R. M. (1956). A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth. Quarterly Journal of Economics.
[39] Lavoie, M. (2014). Post-Keynesian Economics: New Foundations. Edward Elgar Publishing.
[40] Marx, K. (1867). Das Kapital: Critique of Political Economy. Volume I.
[41] Atkinson, A. B. (2015). Inequality: What Can Be Done? Harvard University Press.
[42] Temin, P. (1991). Lessons from the Great Depression. MIT Press.
[43] Harvey, D. (2005). A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford University Press.
[44] Lindert, P. H. (2004). Growing Public: Social Spending and Economic Growth Since the Eighteenth Century. Cambridge University Press.
[45] Freeman, R. B. (1994). Labor Markets in Action: Essays in Empirical Economics. Harvard University Press.
[46] Standing, G. (2011). The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class. Bloomsbury Academic.
[47] World Inequality Report 2022
[48] U.S. Census Bureau (2023)
[49] Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) (2023)
[50] Soares, S. (2016). Income Inequality and Social Policy in Brazil. Cambridge University Press.
[51] Deaton, A. (2013). The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality. Princeton University Press.
[52] World Income Database. Income inequality trends across the globe [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://wid.world/
[53] Saez E, Zucman G. Yes, the rich have done great at the expense of everyone else [Internet]. The Washington Post. 2019 Apr 4 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/04/04/yes-rich-have-done-great-expense-everyone-else/
[54] World Bank. Poverty and inequality database [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://databank.worldbank.org/source/poverty-and-inequality-database
[55] Zhang X, Kanbur R. Spatial inequality in education and health care in China. World Econ. 2009;32(8):1058-81.
[56] Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Income distribution database [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.oecd.org/social/income-distribution-database.htm
[57] Banerjee AV, Duflo E. Poor economics: a radical rethinking of the way to fight global poverty. New York: PublicAffairs; 2011.
[58] International Monetary Fund. Progressive taxation and inequality [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2017/01/20/Progressive-Taxation-and-Inequality-44596
[59] Standing G. Basic income: and how we can make it happen. London: Penguin Books; 2017.
[60] Card D, Krueger AB. Minimum wages and employment: a case study of the fast-food industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Am Econ Rev. 1994;84(4):772-93.
[61] Neumark D, Wascher W. Minimum wages. Cambridge: MIT Press; 2008.
[62] World Economic Forum. Global wealth and income inequality: Oxfam report [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/01/global-wealth-income-inequality-oxfam-report/
[63] Bivens J, Mishel L. Understanding the historic divergence between productivity and a typical worker’s pay: why it matters and why it’s real. Economic Policy Institute; 2015.
[64] Karabarbounis L, Neiman B. The global decline of the labor share. Q J Econ. 2014;129(1):61-103.
[65] Kuznets S. Economic Growth and Income Inequality. Am Econ Rev. 1955;45(1):1-28.
[66] World Bank. World development indicators: inequality trends in China [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://databank.worldbank.org/source/world-development-indicators
[67] Saez E, Zucman G. The Rise of Income Inequality in the United States and the Role of Taxing the Rich. Brookings Papers on Economic Activity. 2019;50(1):1-87.
[68] World Bank. SMEs and job creation in developing countries [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.worldbank.org/smes
[69] United Nations. Infrastructure development in rural areas: implications for inclusive growth [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.un.org/rural-infrastructure-development
[70] International Monetary Fund. Progressive taxation and inequality [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2017/01/20/Progressive-Taxation-and-Inequality-44596
[71] World Bank. Inclusive growth: overview and key policies [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/inclusivegrowth/overview
[72] Fiszbein A, Schady N. Conditional cash transfers: reducing present and future poverty. Washington, D.C.: World Bank; 2009.
[73] De La O A. Crafting policies to end poverty: conditional cash transfers and their effects on inequality in Mexico. World Dev. 2012;40(9):1689-701.
[74] Datt G, Ravallion M. Has India's economic growth become more inclusive? World Bank Research Observer. 2011;26(3):271-92.
[75] Lee J-W. Economic growth and income inequality in South Korea. J Dev Econ. 2006;81(1):192-212.
[76] Subramanian A, Roy D. Who can explain the Mauritian miracle: Meade, Romer, Sachs, or Rodrik? In: Rodrik D, editor. In search of prosperity: analytic narratives on economic growth. Princeton: Princeton University Press; 2003. p. 205-41.
[77] World Economic Forum. The Nordic model: how we can achieve inclusive growth [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/11/the-nordic-model-inclusive-growth/
[78] Sen A. Inequality reexamined. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1992.
[79] United Nations Development Programme. Equity vs. equality: understanding the difference [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.undp.org/equity-vs-equality
[80] Sen A, Nussbaum M. The quality of life. Oxford: Clarendon Press; 1993.
[81] Miller D. Principles of social justice. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1999.
[82] United Nations Development Programme. Social justice frameworks and economic policy [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.undp.org/social-justice-frameworks
[2] Stiglitz, J. E. (2012). The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future. W.W. Norton & Company.
[3] World Economic Forum. (2020).
[4] Global Risks Report 2020.
[5] Wilkinson, R., & Pickett, K. (2009). The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always Do Better. Allen Lane.
[6] Alvaredo, F., Chancel, L., Piketty, T., Saez, E., & Zucman, G. (2018). World Inequality Report 2018. Belknap Press.
[7] OECD. (2015). In It Together: Why Less Inequality Benefits All. OECD Publishing.
[8] Milanovic, B. (2016). Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. Harvard University Press.
[9] Autor, D. H. (2019). Work of the Past, Work of the Future. AEA Papers and Proceedings.
[10] Galbraith, J. K. (2012). Inequality and Instability: A Study of the World Economy Just Before the Great Crisis. Oxford University Press.
[11] Esping-Andersen, G. (1990). The Three Worlds of Welfare Capitalism. Princeton University Press.
[12] Piketty, T. (2014). Capital in the Twenty-First Century. Harvard University Press.
[13] Stiglitz, J. E. (2012). The Price of Inequality: How Today's Divided Society Endangers Our Future. W.W. Norton & Company.
[14] Atkinson, A. B. (2015). Inequality: What Can Be Done? Harvard University Press.
[15] Korpi, W., & Palme, J. (1998). The paradox of redistribution and strategies of equality: Welfare state institutions, inequality, and poverty in the western countries. American Sociological Review, 63(5), 661-687.
[16] Goldin, C., & Katz, L. F. (2008). The Race between Education and Technology. Harvard University Press.
[17] Autor, D. H. (2014). Skills, education, and the rise of earnings inequality among the “other 99 percent”. Science, 344(6186), 843-851.
[18] Milanovic, B. (2016). Global Inequality: A New Approach for the Age of Globalization. Harvard University Press.
[19] Rodrik, D. (2011). The Globalization Paradox: Democracy and the Future of the World Economy. W.W. Norton & Company.
[20] Card, D., & Krueger, A. B. (1995). Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage. Princeton University Press.
[21] Freeman, R. B. (2010). Labor regulations, unions, and social protection in developing countries: Market distortions or efficient institutions? In D. Rodrik & M. Rosenzweig (Eds.), Handbook of Development Economics (Vol. 5, pp. 4657-4702). North-Holland.
[22] Ostry, J. D., Berg, A., & Tsangarides, C. G. (2014). Redistribution, inequality, and growth. IMF Staff Discussion Note 14/02. International Monetary Fund.
[23] Lustig, N., Pessino, C., & Scott, J. (2014). The impact of taxes and social spending on inequality and poverty in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay: An overview. Public Finance Review, 42(3), 287-303.
[24] Coibion, O., Gorodnichenko, Y., Kueng, L., & Silvia, J. (2017). Innocent bystanders? Monetary policy and inequality in the US. Journal of Monetary Economics, 88, 70-89.
[25] Ali, I., & Son, H. H. (2007). Defining and measuring inclusive growth: Application to the Philippines. Asian Development Review, 24(1), 11-31.
[26] Ravallion, M. (2013). How long will it take to lift one billion people out of poverty? The World Bank Research Observer, 28(2), 139-158.
[27] Blau, F. D., & Kahn, L. M. (2017). The gender wage gap: Extent, trends, and explanations. Journal of Economic Literature, 55(3), 789-865.
[28] Duflo, E. (2012). Women empowerment and economic development. Journal of Economic Literature, 50(4), 1051-1079.
[29] Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2012). Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Crown Business.
[30] Sen, A. (2009). The Idea of Justice. Harvard University Press.
[31] Brynjolfsson, E., & McAfee, A. (2014). The Second Machine Age: Work, Progress, and Prosperity in a Time of Brilliant Technologies. W.W. Norton & Company.
[32] Card, D., & Krueger, A. B. (1994). Minimum Wages and Employment: A Case Study of the Fast-Food Industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. American Economic Review.
[33] Rawls, J. (1971). A Theory of Justice. Harvard University Press.
[34] Sen, A. (1992). Inequality Reexamined. Harvard University Press.
[35] Keynes, J. M. (1936). The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money. Macmillan.
[36] Skidelsky, R. (2010). Keynes: The Return of the Master. Penguin Books.
[37] Mankiw, N. G. (2014). Principles of Economics. Cengage Learning.
[38] Solow, R. M. (1956). A Contribution to the Theory of Economic Growth. Quarterly Journal of Economics.
[39] Lavoie, M. (2014). Post-Keynesian Economics: New Foundations. Edward Elgar Publishing.
[40] Marx, K. (1867). Das Kapital: Critique of Political Economy. Volume I.
[41] Atkinson, A. B. (2015). Inequality: What Can Be Done? Harvard University Press.
[42] Temin, P. (1991). Lessons from the Great Depression. MIT Press.
[43] Harvey, D. (2005). A Brief History of Neoliberalism. Oxford University Press.
[44] Lindert, P. H. (2004). Growing Public: Social Spending and Economic Growth Since the Eighteenth Century. Cambridge University Press.
[45] Freeman, R. B. (1994). Labor Markets in Action: Essays in Empirical Economics. Harvard University Press.
[46] Standing, G. (2011). The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class. Bloomsbury Academic.
[47] World Inequality Report 2022
[48] U.S. Census Bureau (2023)
[49] Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (IBGE) (2023)
[50] Soares, S. (2016). Income Inequality and Social Policy in Brazil. Cambridge University Press.
[51] Deaton, A. (2013). The Great Escape: Health, Wealth, and the Origins of Inequality. Princeton University Press.
[52] World Income Database. Income inequality trends across the globe [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://wid.world/
[53] Saez E, Zucman G. Yes, the rich have done great at the expense of everyone else [Internet]. The Washington Post. 2019 Apr 4 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/04/04/yes-rich-have-done-great-expense-everyone-else/
[54] World Bank. Poverty and inequality database [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://databank.worldbank.org/source/poverty-and-inequality-database
[55] Zhang X, Kanbur R. Spatial inequality in education and health care in China. World Econ. 2009;32(8):1058-81.
[56] Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Income distribution database [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.oecd.org/social/income-distribution-database.htm
[57] Banerjee AV, Duflo E. Poor economics: a radical rethinking of the way to fight global poverty. New York: PublicAffairs; 2011.
[58] International Monetary Fund. Progressive taxation and inequality [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2017/01/20/Progressive-Taxation-and-Inequality-44596
[59] Standing G. Basic income: and how we can make it happen. London: Penguin Books; 2017.
[60] Card D, Krueger AB. Minimum wages and employment: a case study of the fast-food industry in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Am Econ Rev. 1994;84(4):772-93.
[61] Neumark D, Wascher W. Minimum wages. Cambridge: MIT Press; 2008.
[62] World Economic Forum. Global wealth and income inequality: Oxfam report [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/01/global-wealth-income-inequality-oxfam-report/
[63] Bivens J, Mishel L. Understanding the historic divergence between productivity and a typical worker’s pay: why it matters and why it’s real. Economic Policy Institute; 2015.
[64] Karabarbounis L, Neiman B. The global decline of the labor share. Q J Econ. 2014;129(1):61-103.
[65] Kuznets S. Economic Growth and Income Inequality. Am Econ Rev. 1955;45(1):1-28.
[66] World Bank. World development indicators: inequality trends in China [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://databank.worldbank.org/source/world-development-indicators
[67] Saez E, Zucman G. The Rise of Income Inequality in the United States and the Role of Taxing the Rich. Brookings Papers on Economic Activity. 2019;50(1):1-87.
[68] World Bank. SMEs and job creation in developing countries [Internet]. 2013 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.worldbank.org/smes
[69] United Nations. Infrastructure development in rural areas: implications for inclusive growth [Internet]. 2016 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.un.org/rural-infrastructure-development
[70] International Monetary Fund. Progressive taxation and inequality [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2017/01/20/Progressive-Taxation-and-Inequality-44596
[71] World Bank. Inclusive growth: overview and key policies [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/inclusivegrowth/overview
[72] Fiszbein A, Schady N. Conditional cash transfers: reducing present and future poverty. Washington, D.C.: World Bank; 2009.
[73] De La O A. Crafting policies to end poverty: conditional cash transfers and their effects on inequality in Mexico. World Dev. 2012;40(9):1689-701.
[74] Datt G, Ravallion M. Has India's economic growth become more inclusive? World Bank Research Observer. 2011;26(3):271-92.
[75] Lee J-W. Economic growth and income inequality in South Korea. J Dev Econ. 2006;81(1):192-212.
[76] Subramanian A, Roy D. Who can explain the Mauritian miracle: Meade, Romer, Sachs, or Rodrik? In: Rodrik D, editor. In search of prosperity: analytic narratives on economic growth. Princeton: Princeton University Press; 2003. p. 205-41.
[77] World Economic Forum. The Nordic model: how we can achieve inclusive growth [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/11/the-nordic-model-inclusive-growth/
[78] Sen A. Inequality reexamined. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1992.
[79] United Nations Development Programme. Equity vs. equality: understanding the difference [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.undp.org/equity-vs-equality
[80] Sen A, Nussbaum M. The quality of life. Oxford: Clarendon Press; 1993.
[81] Miller D. Principles of social justice. Cambridge: Harvard University Press; 1999.
[82] United Nations Development Programme. Social justice frameworks and economic policy [Internet]. 2020 [cited 2024 Aug 9]. Available from: https://www.undp.org/social-justice-frameworks
Published
2024-09-25
How to Cite
Vikas Kumar. (2024). Macroeconomic Equity: Addressing Income Inequality And Social Justice Through Economic Policy. Revista Electronica De Veterinaria, 24(3), 578-592. Retrieved from https://www.veterinaria.org/index.php/REDVET/article/view/715
Issue
Section
Articles
