The destructive applied policies lead to an impoverished society while enhancing plutocracy





Spain is in the first place, another country of the eurozone periphery which suffers from the destructive neoliberal policies





Greece holds one of the worst positions in European level concerning income inequality, as the gap between the richest and the poorest people in the country has broadened according to the Hellenic Statistical Authority data released on Monday. Greece is in the second place behind Spain according to the S80/S20 index and the gap inequality is getting bigger.





The Hellenic Statistical Authority (ELSTAT) announced data on inequality in income distribution, based on the available results of the 2012 Survey on Income and Living Conditions of Households (EU-SILC), with reference income period the year 2011. Income inequality is mainly depicted by the indicators S80/S20 (income quintile share ratio) and the Gini coefficient (income inequality distribution). EU-SILC is the main source for comparable statistics on income distribution and social exclusion at

European level.





In 2012 the S80/S20 ratio, with reference income period the year 2011, rose to 6.6, meaning that the share of the income of the wealthiest 20% of the population is 6.6 times higher than the share of the income of the poorest 20% of the population. In 2008 the S80/S20 ratio, with reference income period the year 2007, rose to 5.9 and in 2010 the S80/S20 ratio, with reference income period the year 2009, rose to 5.6 .





The first quartile of households (25% of households with the lowest income) holds 8.7% of total national income, while in 2011 it held 9.4%. The fourth quartile of households with the highest income holds 47% of the total national income, while in 2011 it held 46.8% .





In order to depict more accurately income inequality, another indicator - the Gini coefficient - is complementarily used because as already mentioned, the S80/S20 ratio is affected by the extreme values of income distribution.





The Gini coefficient is defined as the relationship of cumulative shares of the population arranged according to the level of equivalised disposable income, to the cumulative share of the equivalised total disposable income received by them. If there was perfect income equality (i.e. all persons receive the same income), the Gini coefficient would be 0%. A Gini coefficient of 100% indicates that there is total income inequality and the entire national income is in the hands of one person. For example, a Gini coefficient of 30% means that choosing randomly 2 persons, the difference between their income is at 30% of the mean income.





In 2012 the Gini coefficient increased by 0.7 percentage points compared with 2011 when the Gini coefficient was 33.6% . In comparison with 2008, the overall inequality increased by 0.9 pencentage points (33.4% in 2008). In comparison with 2010, the overall inequality increased by 1.4 pencentage points (32.9% in 2010).





Inequality of income distribution in Europe depicted by the S80/S20 ratio and the Gini coefficient. At one extreme, the European country with the highest rates is Spain (S80/20: 7.2% and Gini coefficient: 35%). At the other extreme, the European country with the lowest rates is Norway (S80/20: 3.2% and Gini coefficient: 22.6%). Greece holds one of the worst positions (S80/20: 6.6% - 2nd worst and Gini coefficient: 34.3% - 4th worst).







