How has income, wealth and employment inequality negatively impacted on our health?

Since the 1990s, Australia has benefitted from continual progress across a range of social and economic indicators, including health, learning, jobs and living standards. However, uneven distribution of these benefits across decades has resulted in growing social and health inequities.

Flinders’ University researcher Dr Joanne Flavel will use a Flinders Foundation Health Seed Grant to identify the ways in which the distribution of employment, wealth and income have contributed to the increase in socio-economic health inequalities in Australia between the 1980s and 2016.

For people living in disadvantaged circumstances, inequities in income, wealth and employment opportunities have a negative impact on health, and limit their social and economic participation.

Dr Flavel’s research will help us better understand the complex interactions that have led to our current worsening health inequality compared to the 1980s, and form part of a broader evidence base that can be translated into action to help improve health and reduce socio-economic inequities.

Income inequality has been found to have damaging effects on a range of population health outcomes.

Project title: Examining increasing health inequities in Australia: the contribution of employment, income and wealth.

Lead researcher: Dr Joanne Flavel