Britons from privileged, wealthy backgrounds are better protected than ever from ending up in a ‘working class job’, new research suggests.
And people from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to get a top position – even if they have the requisite intellectual capabilities.
A comprehensive new analysis, based on more than 90,000 British adults, reveals the shocking effect of class and status on employment.
Affluent families ‘hoard’ the best opportunities for children who are less academically gifted, at the expense of their poorer peers.
By age 30, about 70 percent of men and women from privileged, wealthy backgrounds hold a well-paid or prestigious position, the study found.
Only 10 percent have ‘working class’ occupations such as builder, cleaner, mechanic, plumber or hairdresser, while the rest end up in ‘intermediate’ jobs.
The research suggests that posh but dim types – epitomized by the TV character Tim Nice-But-Dim played by Harry Enfield – really do exist.
Such types are not particularly academically gifted, yet they still manage to land the highest-paying jobs, largely due to their privileged and wealthy backgrounds.
Tim Nice But Dim’s Triumph: If you come from a privileged background, you are less likely to end up in a ‘working class’ job than someone of an equivalent intellect from a disadvantaged background
Research author Dr Robert de Vries, a lecturer in quantitative sociology at the University of Kent, said Britain’s glass floor is ‘even sturdier than we realised’.
The metaphorical “glass floor” – a concept long used in social and economic studies – forms a barrier between the rich and the poor.
It prevents the poor from rising to the top (known as ‘upward mobility’), while preventing the rich from falling to the bottom (‘downward mobility’).
“Children from the most privileged families are at virtually no risk of significant downward mobility,” Dr de Vries said.
“The most likely outcome for them is a smooth path to a highly prestigious or high-paying job – or both.”
Dr. de Vries thinks that privileged families can “use their resources to ensure that their children are successful academically and professionally.”
‘This can be related to wealth – for example paying for private school or extra education, buying houses near high-performing state schools, financial support for low or unpaid career opportunities in competitive industries,’ he told MailOnline.
‘But it can also be social and cultural – for example family networks with useful contacts and ‘insider’ expertise.’
High-paying or prestigious positions – such as doctors, lawyers and executives – are defined as highly qualified and typically require additional training (file photo)
On the other side of the coin, disadvantaged workers – for example the daughter of a factory worker – may never be able to find a well-paying role, even if they are perfectly capable of excelling in it.
The new findings are based on an analysis of data from more than 94,000 respondents to the UK Labor Force Survey (LFS), the largest representative household survey in Britain.
LFS collects personal information including employment, income and academic background, taking into account the same information from parents.
For this study, the sample was limited to respondents aged 30 to 59 years, whose main current activity was paid work, including part-time work and self-employment.
Dr. de Vries defines “blue-collar jobs” as low-paid, low-skilled occupations that typically require less education.
“Examples of jobs in this category include non-managerial clerks or administrative assistants – these are one of the largest groups, especially in local government,” he said.
‘Also professionals, including plumbers and electricians, chefs, healthcare workers, receptionists, hairdressers and salespeople.’
Meanwhile, high-paying or prestigious positions – such as doctors, lawyers and executives – are defined as highly qualified and typically require additional training.
Occupations typically considered ‘working class’ include builder, cleaner, mechanic or plumber (file photo)
The results, published in Social scientific researchResearch has shown that ‘downward mobility’ – moving from a higher social or economic class to a lower one – is rarer than previously thought.
And dr. De Vries also thinks that upward movement across the divide has become increasingly rare over the past seventy years.
‘There was a period in the mid-20th century when there was a big expansion of professional jobs, and therefore room at the top,’ he told MailOnline.
‘You could allow many people to move on from disadvantaged backgrounds to professional jobs, without people from disadvantaged backgrounds having to move downstairs to make room.
‘But the number of professional jobs in the economy has been virtually fixed for a long time.
‘That means that if you want people from less privileged backgrounds to be able to get these jobs, there has to be some downward mobility – otherwise they will all go to people who have professional backgrounds themselves.’
Dr. De Vries said the findings are worrying because there is a “fundamental issue of fairness” – simply because coming from a privileged background “essentially should not guarantee you a good job”.
The research revealed not only substantially lower rates of downward mobility from the most privileged backgrounds, but also pronounced gender differences.
Men from privileged backgrounds were more likely to hold well-paid positions, for example in business or finance, while women from similar backgrounds were much more likely to pursue careers in teaching or creative professions.
Women from elite backgrounds often inherit their parents’ social status but not their financial advantage, while men tend to inherit both, he added.