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Based on fresh research, the typical employee in the UK would need over five decades of income to attain the net worth of the most affluent 10% of the population.

Expanding Wealth Gap Over Time

This research examined wealth distribution data covering the recent health crisis years and determined that back in 2006-08, it would have required 38 years' worth of typical employment income to reach the top 10th of the financial hierarchy.

A research lead part of the report observed: "Economic disparities in Britain are presently so substantial that a typical full-time employee setting aside their entire income throughout their career would still not be able to attain the highest level of the economic scale."

Quantifying the Financial Disparity

The study discovered that the gap between the net worth of the median citizen and an individual in the richest segment was £1m in 2006-08, but had expanded to £1.3 million in actual value by recent times.

The analyst continued: "These disparities are doubly concerning as financial progression in Britain is restricted – people that start life well-off tend to stay wealthy, and the opposite holds true."

Relative Wealth Inequality

Even with the wealth gap growing in absolute terms, the percentage of total wealth in the UK held by the most affluent homes – termed "comparative financial divide" – has been "mostly consistent since the 1980s era," per the research.

Throughout these years, complete net worth in the UK surged from triple the annual GDP, to nearly seven and a half times.

Contributors of Financial Divide

Termed "automatic" gains, by means of rising house prices and changes in superannuation evaluations, were the primary factors of the expanding economic divide over the past decade, according to the analysis.

These gains typically went to elderly homeowners, the analysis reveals – worsening the intergenerational wealth divide.

Generational Economic Gaps

The average wealth gap between thirty-somethings and sixty-somethings more than doubled in inflation-adjusted terms, from £135,000 in 2006-08, to £310k.

Regional Disparities

Furthermore, the study revealed pronounced area-based disparities, with the typical amount of net worth in recent years standing at £290k in south-east England, where real estate values have generally grown substantially, versus £110k in the NE of England.

Pandemic Period Effects

During the pandemic, when numerous employees were supported by the taxpayer-backed furlough scheme, and Covid shutdowns curtailed consumption options, the data shows numerous families were capable of accumulating, enhancing their financial standing.

More affluent homes achieved superior outcomes, however. "The median home in the poorest fifth saw their available funds increase by just £80 over the pandemic period (across the pandemic timeframe), approximately equivalent to the pre-crisis period. In contrast, the typical family in the wealthiest fifth saw their liquid savings rise by £4,200," the study reveals.