According to the 2022 OECD Risks that Matter Survey, nearly 80% of respondents across 27 OECD countries believed that economic inequality should be reduced or that more should be done to ensure equal opportunity. The perception that social mobility is limited is supported by OECD evidence: in European OECD countries, children with the greatest socio-economic disadvantage grow up to earn as much as 20% less as adults than those with more favourable childhoods.
Social mobility and equal opportunity
Social mobility refers to how a person's socio-economic situation improves or declines relative to that of their parents or throughout their lifetime. It can be measured in terms of earnings, income, social class, and well-being dimensions such as health and education. Promoting social mobility benefits individuals, the economy, and social cohesion.
Key messages
Inequality and lack of opportunity have enduring and far-reaching effects on people’s lives. For instance, across the OECD, children whose parents have a tertiary degree are 45 percentage points more likely to graduate from university themselves compared to those whose parents had less than a secondary education. Addressing opportunity gaps requires providing equitable access to good education, health, housing and social protection as well as favoring inclusion and non-discrimination across all policies.
Thanks to the work of researchers in academia and institutions across the world, there is now a substantial body of knowledge on the extent of, drivers and policy responses to social mobility and equal opportunity. Yet, internationally comparably evidence on social mobility trends and how these have evolved for minorities and under-represented groups remains scant. Developed with the aim of addressing these existing gaps, the OECD Observatory on Social Mobility and Equal Opportunity is mapping social mobility trajectories across OECD countries and over time; it is also studying how the growing economic insecurity and large wealth inequalities shape social mobility; and how large are the disparities in opportunities across local areas and regions. Future work of the Observatory will delve into gender as well as racial and ethnic differences in social mobility.
Context
People view minimum wages and equal access to education as key levers to promote equal opportunity
There is strong public support for government actions to reduce inequalities and boost equal opportunity. The Opportunities module of the 2022 OECD Risks that Matter survey shows strongest support for policy measures that protect vulnerable workers and enhance the opportunities of young and future generations. On average, across the 27 countries surveyed, the highest approval is found for policies that introduce or increase the minimum wage (52%) and to improve equal access to education (46%). Redistributive measures such as increasing taxes on top earners or expanding benefits for low-income households also received moderate support, with more than 30% of respondents including any such options in their preferred policy mix.
Some OECD countries have experienced substantial declines in the size of their middle class
Thriving middle classes are the backbone of democratic societies and strong economies, but in many OECD countries they face mounting pressures. Countries with traditionally large middle classes, such as the Nordics and Germany, have experienced large declines in the size of their middle classes over recent decades as income inequalities have risen. By contrast, middle classes have proven more robust in France, Italy and the United States, and they substantially expanded in Ireland, Chile and Mexico. Policy options to promote prosperous middle classes include helping middle-class workers adjust to economic transformation by upskilling and reskilling; creating pathways into the middle class for minority groups and the young generation; and addressing the rising cost of living.
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People’s life chances can be strongly influenced by factors such as ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, their place of birth, or their parents’ socioeconomic status. The OECD provides governments with data and analysis to help design policies that address obstacles to ensuring equal opportunities for all.Learn more