The greatest pay excesses, in New Zealand and elsewhere, are in the private sector. But pay rates for the chief executives of government departments have also spiralled over the last three decades. And more so in New Zealand than almost anywhere else, it seems. The chart below, from the OECD’s Government at a Glance report, shows…

There’s a great piece today on one of the economist’s blogs, arguing that more redistribution is needed to make globalisation work. It’s coming in response to a recent line of attack on anti-inequality arguments: the idea that, because poorer countries are catching up to richer ones, and therefore global inequality is declining, we shouldn’t worry…

A reader has just emailed in with a link to something she’s been working on: this amazing graphic on poverty in America, and how it’s changed over the past 50 years. One thing that stands out for me is how much more educated people are (especially going by high school graduation rates), yet poverty levels…

This year’s Household Incomes in New Zealand, a key report on poverty and inequality published yesterday, bears very little to cheer about. Key points below. Inequality has risen slightly post the global financial crisis, reversing the decreases we saw before that thanks to policies like Working for Families. Since 2009, incomes have been static or…