Getting Access to More Opportunities Increases the Ability to Earn a Higher Income

The more chances someone has at something, the higher probability they have to learn from mistakes and ultimately become successful at it. Therefore, giving people more opportunities to be hired for a job gives them more chances to eventually succeed. Once a candidate is hired, they can do a good job, work their way up, and continue to earn an advantageous wage. That in turn can create generational wealth, setting up their children and grandchildren to earn more than they did. Generational wealth is one of the least talked about and most important factors in the American economy: even one generation of increased income can mean better education, reduced debt, and better job opportunities for the generation that follows. We can see the fruits of this correlation between more opportunities and higher income in several different case studies over American history. For instance, affirmative action policies can start a domino effect for marginalized people that . One study found that U.S. university students admitted based on affirmative action went on to earn a higher salaries thanks to that policy. A similar trend can be seen among people with disabilities. While people who are disabled remain among the highest groups of the unemployed, studies have measured the positive effects of the passage of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). While the economic benefits of the ADA require further research, one study found that since 1990 when the ADA was first passed, income poverty among people with disabilities has declined. The opposite can also be true. Too often, women and minority groups are given a single chance to succeed. At the first sign of any mistake, they are more likely to be punished and even fired than their white male counterparts. This phenomenon sets up a trend in which people from these groups see decreased opportunities. And the research bears this out. A study from Stanford and the University of Chicago found that women in wealth management, for instance, tend to be sanctioned far harsher than their male counterparts. The researchers even found that women were 56 percent more likely to get fired after a mistake than their male colleagues.