Today marks World Day of Social Justice – a United Nations event and this year’s theme is “Overcoming Barriers and Unleashing Opportunities for Social Justice”.

At AMS we are using this day to continue to highlight the importance of social mobility in relation to breaking down barriers and opening up opportunities for all.  This is a global issue and the statistics continue to speak loudly:

• According to Deloitte research, the UK has one of the poorest rates of social mobility in the developed world.
• Goldman Sachs stated in their Briefings letter, 7th April 2022 – “compared with other countries, the most disadvantaged in the UK are less likely to climb the income ladder and the economically advantaged tend to stay at the top”.
• “Over half of the UK population think that COVID has increased social inequality” – quoted in the The Bigger Picture, Social Mobility research conducted by Goldman Sachs on Feb 2022
• In China, COVID has had a more negative impact on the poorest communities, China’s youth unemployment rate has been at near record levels and the brunt of this impact is felt by those born in to poorer households (quoted FT,com 3rd Jan, 2023)
• Social mobility continues to decline in the USA – one of the key reasons is that the ladder of opportunity has become harder to climb.  This can be evidenced by rising levels of income and wealth inequality “Currently those in the top 20% of income distribution earn nine times more than those in the bottom 20% (quoted in The Guardian 13th March 2021)

Over the course of this week we have organised a series of events to highlight the importance of social mobility.  This continues to be an important issue for AMS, evidenced by our inclusion in the Social Mobility Foundation Employers Index 2022.  We are proud of the work that we are doing to progress social mobility, but we know that we have more to do.

Poverty and inequalities within and among countries are on the rise in many parts of the world. The economic and social crises of recent years have been exacerbated by the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters due to accelerating climate change, geopolitical tensions and armed conflicts.

https://www.un.org/en/observances/social-justice-day