Do the rich earn their wealth?

August 1, 2023

The 8 richest people on the planet own as much as the poorest 4 billion. The idea that they worked harder to earn it is patently ridiculous. Can 8 humans do more work than 4 billion? Even if this handful of uber-rich lost 99% of their swag, they’d still own more wealth than 99% of the human race (Oxfam).

Meanwhile each member of the Bloomberg Billionaires Index made around $14 million a day in the last 6 months.

The average annual UK salary in 2023 is £33,402, which represents around 3 ½ minutes’ income for those top billionaires, and according to the BBC isn’t enough to qualify for affordable rent schemes in London.

Still think the rich work hard for their money?