Giving Compass' Take:

• Richard V. Reeves and Jonathan Rothwell show how class divides correlate to risk factors, increasing the gap between the class and deepening inequalities. 

• Are you prepared to support those most impacted by COVID-19 through funding and advocacy? 

• Find COVID-19 funds to support. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a harsh light on inequality. People living paycheck to paycheck in service sector jobs are in a very different position to those working in salaried jobs they can do from home. Stark gaps in wealth, health and work have gone from being chronic problems to acute ones. Other inequalities have become even more consequential in a time of social distancing – such as access to a fast internet connection.

Some worry that COVID will make class divides even deeper. Others hope that some of the emergency measures to maintain the structure of the economy will lead to positive long term shifts in our political economy. Basic income might not seem as crazy in November 2020 as it did a year ago. It is of course too early to tell. We might be at a historical political inflection point. We might be back to business as usual relatively quickly.

But class gaps are of more immediate significance. There are wide gaps by income class in both the risk posed by the virus, because of existing health conditions, and in levels of response to the risk of infection.

Class gaps in risk factors:

Read the full article about inequalities and COVID-19 by Richard V. Reeves and Jonathan Rothwell at Brookings.