Class inequality Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Class inequality - Essay Example To put the short story in context, the following statistic pertaining to academicians in Morocco raises a relevant point. Since 1981, average earnings for non-manual workers have increased by almost 40 per cent in Morocco; academicians earnings since then have increased by just one per cent, which means that their middle-class status is under threat, and theyre starting to wear a haunted, underclass look. But, as recent as the early 1970’s, things were looking much brighter for the middle classes. Back then it was believed that academic scholars are on a social parity with lawyers, only with access to more, and better, resources and with other trappings that bestow social status. But, the present state of affairs and the lack of enthusiasm for academic jobs paint a grim picture of the nature of class disparity within Morocco, which is related to the kind of disparity depicted by Abouzeid. For instance, the custodian says â€Å"My pay is very low. The Children are endlessly in need of things, costs keep rising and no one gives a damn about us† (The Discontented). This utterance clearly captures the sentiments expressed above about the state of the middle classes in Morocco. The labor unions, which have been pivotal in improving the working conditions of the working classes, have traditionally been very active in Moroccan politics. But the recent trend is unfavorable to the labor movement. The adverse trend is manifest in the kinds of youth conferences taking place across Morocco. One can see the difference: â€Å"The beer-bellied salt-of-the-earth types who still pervade the delegations of the old manual unions at labor unions could never be mistaken for the small businessmen and their wives with the conservative sections. One can hear the difference: many labor union delegates may be quaffing Chardonnay not bitter these days, but there is no equivalent of the upper-class baying for G-and-Ts which will echo