Economic Mobility and the Rise of the Latin American Middle Class

Economic Mobility and the Rise of the Latin American Middle Class PDF Author: Francisco H. G. Ferreira
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 0821397230
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 203

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Book Description
After decades of stagnation, the size of Latin America's middle class recently expanded to the point where, for the first time ever, the number of people in poverty is equal to the size of the middle class. This volume investigates the nature, determinants and possible consequences of this remarkable process of social transformation. We propose an original definition of the middle class, tailor-made for Latin America, centered on the concept of economic security and thus a low probability of falling into poverty. Given our definition of the middle class, there are four, not three, classes in Latin America. Sandwiched between the poor and the middle class there lies a large group of people who appear to make ends meet well enough, but do not enjoy the economic security that would be required for membership of the middle class. We call this group the 'vulnerable'. In an almost mechanical sense, these transformations in Latin America reflect both economic growth and declining inequality in over the period. We adopt a measure of mobility that decomposes the 'gainers' and 'losers' in society by social class of each household. The continent has experienced a large amount of churning over the last 15 years, at least 43% of all Latin Americans changed social classes between the mid 1990s and the end of the 2000s. Despite the upward mobility trend, intergenerational mobility, a better proxy for inequality of opportunity, remains stagnant. Educational achievement and attainment remain to be strongly dependent upon parental education levels. Despite the recent growth in pro-poor programs, the middle class has benefited disproportionally from social security transfers and are increasingly opting out from government services. Central to the region's prospects of continued progress will be its ability to harness the new middle class into a new, more inclusive social contract, where the better-off pay their fair share of taxes, and demand improved public services.

Economic Mobility and the Rise of the Latin American Middle Class

Economic Mobility and the Rise of the Latin American Middle Class PDF Author: Francisco H. G. Ferreira
Publisher: World Bank Publications
ISBN: 0821397230
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 203

Get Book Here

Book Description
After decades of stagnation, the size of Latin America's middle class recently expanded to the point where, for the first time ever, the number of people in poverty is equal to the size of the middle class. This volume investigates the nature, determinants and possible consequences of this remarkable process of social transformation. We propose an original definition of the middle class, tailor-made for Latin America, centered on the concept of economic security and thus a low probability of falling into poverty. Given our definition of the middle class, there are four, not three, classes in Latin America. Sandwiched between the poor and the middle class there lies a large group of people who appear to make ends meet well enough, but do not enjoy the economic security that would be required for membership of the middle class. We call this group the 'vulnerable'. In an almost mechanical sense, these transformations in Latin America reflect both economic growth and declining inequality in over the period. We adopt a measure of mobility that decomposes the 'gainers' and 'losers' in society by social class of each household. The continent has experienced a large amount of churning over the last 15 years, at least 43% of all Latin Americans changed social classes between the mid 1990s and the end of the 2000s. Despite the upward mobility trend, intergenerational mobility, a better proxy for inequality of opportunity, remains stagnant. Educational achievement and attainment remain to be strongly dependent upon parental education levels. Despite the recent growth in pro-poor programs, the middle class has benefited disproportionally from social security transfers and are increasingly opting out from government services. Central to the region's prospects of continued progress will be its ability to harness the new middle class into a new, more inclusive social contract, where the better-off pay their fair share of taxes, and demand improved public services.

Care Work and Class

Care Work and Class PDF Author: Merike Blofield
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271053275
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 199

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Book Description
"Examines the movement for labor reform among domestic workers in Latin America. Explores how domestic workers' mobilization, strategic alliances, and political windows of opportunity can lead to improved rights"--Provided by publisher.

The Class Struggle in Latin America

The Class Struggle in Latin America PDF Author: James Petras
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1351763105
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 311

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Book Description
The Class Struggle in Latin America: Making History Today analyses the political and economic dynamics of development in Latin America through the lens of class struggle. Focusing in particular on Peru, Paraguay, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela, the book identifies how the shifts and changing dynamics of the class struggle have impacted on the rise, demise and resurgence of neo-liberal regimes in Latin America. This innovative book offers a unique perspective on the evolving dynamics of class struggle, engaging both the destructive forces of capitalist development and those seeking to consolidate the system and preserve the status quo, alongside the efforts of popular resistance concerned with the destructive ravages of capitalism on humankind, society and the global environment. Using theoretical observations based on empirical and historical case studies, this book argues that the class struggle remains intrinsically linked to the march of capitalist development. At a time when post-neo-liberal regimes in Latin America are faltering, this supplementary text provides a guide to the economic and political dynamics of capitalist development in the region, which will be invaluable to students and researchers of international development, anthropology and sociology, as well as those with an interest in Latin American politics and development.

Social Movements in Latin America

Social Movements in Latin America PDF Author: Ronaldo Munck
Publisher: McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN: 0228004942
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 195

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Book Description
Social movements are a key feature of the political and social landscape of Latin America. Ronaldo Munck explores their full range, emanating from different sections of Latin American society and motivated by many different concerns, including worker organizations, peasant and land reform movements, Indigenous groups, women's movements, and environmental groups. Although the mosaic of interlocking and connected issues and rights presents a complex map of social concerns and potentially a fragmented political force, these movements are likely to be at the centre of any future progressive politics in Latin America. As a result, they require careful understanding and a more nuanced theoretical approach. Drawing on insights from Latin American approaches to social movement theory, the book offers a distinctive contribution to social movement literature. The text incorporates detailed case studies and a methodological appendix for students wishing to develop their own research agendas in the field.

Labor Politics in Latin America

Labor Politics in Latin America PDF Author: Paul W. Posner
Publisher: University Press of Florida
ISBN: 1683400569
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 275

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Book Description
In recent decades, Latin American countries have sought to modernize their labor market institutions to remain competitive in the face of increasing globalization. This book evaluates the impact of such neoliberal reforms on labor movements and workers’ rights in the region through comparative analyses of labor politics in Chile, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela. Using these five key cases, the authors assess the capacity of workers and working-class organizations to advance their demands and bring about a more just distribution of economic gains in an era in which capital has reasserted its power on a global scale. In particular, their findings challenge the purported benefits of labor market flexibility—the freedom of employers to adjust their workforces as needed—which has been touted as a way to reduce income inequality and unemployment. In-depth case studies show how flexibilization as well as privatization, trade liberalization, and economic deregulation have undermined organized labor in all of these countries, leading to the current internal fragmentation of unions and their inability to promote counterreforms or increase collective bargaining. This assessment concludes that even with substantial variation among countries in how reforms have been implemented, most workers in the region have experienced increasing precarity, informal employment, and weaker labor movements. This book provides vital insights into whether these movements have the potential to regain influence and represent working people’s interests effectively in the future.

Women at Work

Women at Work PDF Author: Claudia Piras
Publisher: IDB
ISBN: 9781931003957
Category : Sex discrimination in employment
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description


Ideology and Social Change in Latin America

Ideology and Social Change in Latin America PDF Author: June Nash
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136858679
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
First published in 1977, this reissue contains original articles by contemporary leading scholars in the field of Latin American politics on a range of topics including: working class organisation, populism and US labour imperialism. It will be of interest to anthropologists, students of political science and specialists in Latin American studies.

Crisis and Contradiction

Crisis and Contradiction PDF Author:
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004271074
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 399

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Book Description
Since the late-1990s much of Latin America has experienced an uneven and contradictory turn to the Left in the electoral arena. At the same time, there has been a rejuvenation of Marxist critiques of political economy. Drawing on the expertise of Latin American, North American, and European scholars, this volume offers cutting-edge theoretical explorations of trends in the region, as well as in-depth case studies of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, and Venezuela. Essays in the volume focus on changes to class formation in Latin America and offer new insights into the state-form, exploring the complex relationship between state and market in contexts of late capitalist development, particularly in countries endowed with incredible natural resource wealth. Contributors are: Dario Azzellini, Emilia Castorina, Mariano Féliz, Juan Grigera, Nicolas Grinberg, Gabriel Hetland, Claudio Katz, Thomas Purcell, Ben Selwyn, Susan J. Spronk, Guido Starosta, Leandro Vergara-Camus, and Jeffery R. Webber.

Development in Theory and Practice

Development in Theory and Practice PDF Author: Ronald H. Chilcote
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 9780742523937
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 412

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Book Description
This definitive reader brings together seminal articles on development in Latin America. Tracing the concepts and major debates surrounding the issue, the text focuses on development theory through three contrasting historical perspectives: imperialism, underdevelopment and dependency, and globalization. By offering a rich array of essays from Latin American Perspectives, the book allows students to sample all the important trends in the field. A new general introduction and conclusion, along with part introductions, contextualize each selection. One of the leading figures in development studies, Ronald Chilcote shows in this text why work on imperialism dating to the turn of the twentieth century informs the controversies on dependency and underdevelopment during the 1960s and 1970s as well as the globalization debates of the past decade. If students are to understand development in Latin America, they must not only be familiar with historical examples and recognize that various theoretical perspectives affect our interpretation of events, they must be willing to keep an open mind. Thus, rather than setting out established premises, this reader offers different points of view, raising provocative questions about Latin America that remain largely unanswered even today. Students will come away from this rewarding collection ready to pursue new understanding through critical inquiry and thinking.

Sustaining Civil Society

Sustaining Civil Society PDF Author: Philip Oxhorn
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271048948
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
"Devoting particular emphasis to Bolivia, Chile, and Mexico, proposes a theory of civil society to explain the economic and political challenges for continuing democratization in Latin America"--Provided by publisher.