Who Gets the Biggest Slice of Pie?

by   |  April 18, 2007

If there’s one economic figure that under the Bush administration has continued to rise year after year, it’s corporate profits. Meanwhile, salaries remain stagnant. Don’t you think it’s time to take a hard look at how the national income pie is cut and who gets the biggest slice? (Pssst! Here’s a clue: It’s not working families!) According to the latest report from the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, the U.S. national income paid to wage and salary workers fell from 52.4 percent in 2005 to 51.6 percent last year. At the same time, corporations raked in the highest amount of profits on record, hitting 13.8 percent in 2006. The report also brings up some interesting facts about federal spending. Of the nearly $2.7 trillion spent by the government in FY 2006, some 21 percent of the budget ($557 billion) went to defense, homeland security and security-related activities. In contrast, social safety net programs like child care assistance and unemployment insurance made up just 9 percent ($250 billion) of the federal budget. Talk about misplaced priorities… Working families contribute like no other group to the country’s economic well-being. As noted by the AFL-CIO blog, an average worker’s salary is only 15 percent higher than in 1980, despite a 67 percent increase in productivity. Isn’t it time we enjoyed more of the wealth we create?