So there are no people who work hard and are poor? There are no people who through circumstances beyond their control are still poor?
My view on this predicament - having lived for 50 plus years -
In Aus, the opportunity to do well financially is there. It is everywhere.
Even for the poorest kids living in the poorest areas; the opportunity is there. It might be harder given their demographic and geographic circumstances, but it is still there.
I think of places like say; Donald out in the middle of Victoria; these types of towns are not progressing much - if at all.
So, a kid born in Donald will have a limited choice of school, and limited choice of job when he/she leaves school and so on. Easy to not do well if they choose.
But, they have the opportunity to learn basic money management and finances, to leave Donald and move to the Cities for a career, or to stay in such a town, manage their money wisely and arrive at 40 years of age in a pretty good financial position.
Despite this you can still come unstuck and lose it all, but to say folks will work hard and never get ahead and remain poor - the working poor - I don't agree with this.
It is all in our own hands and to choose the right decisions in life to get ahead.
From my experience, many (most) of the "working poor" are that way through their own choices in life.
Such decisions as leaving school early, working in a job, but spending everything they earn on cars, or grog, or cigarettes, or clothes, or night clubs, or travel...the list is endless where we can waste money, or find ways to impede our financial success.
Most of it is ignorance, but noone is stopping any of us from learning..especially in this current world of unlimited and instant knowledge to help us.
Much of the problem is laziness from an early age...laziness to try and find out about money management, or finances, or laziness in saving money, laziness to study, to do homework, to work in shiddy dead-end jobs to get some cash. It is far more fun and easier to spend money on stuff, and not work hard to earn another $100 each week for investing, etc..
The amount of folks I have met who are the "working poor" yet will not do overtime, or work weekends, or do the extra yard...They pi.zz me off, because they are often the first ones to cry about their lot.
Every day of my life I am surrounded by broke pensioners and broke tradies... all these folks have made choices...bad ones.
That's fine; just stop crying about how bad you've got it. Take yer badge off.
All it takes is for that person to
not spend all their money; to save some for a shares parcel or a deposit on a property; spend less on the car and put some aside for investing, and they can become well off - it's not the level of income in the early years; it's what you do with it.
Of course; (and I am one of these folks, so I can talk with authority on the matter) they all say; "god; I wished I new about this stuff when I was in school!"
Or they blame their upbringing and so forth.
But they still have the choice and opportunity to change the pattern, to get off their @rse and learn about money management and apply it, and they can still win.
I found out at aged 40 about investing, and have bumbled and stuffed up all the way through until aged 53 and am doing ok. God I wished I knew what I now know at aged 14 when I started my first early morning paper round.
So; it is all in our own hands, and I won't entertain the "working poor" aspect - they can change it as soon as right now.
But most won't because it requires a massive change in their thinking and lifestyle choices, and a bit of extra effort..