JULIET PORTILLO A cross country study on poverty reduction and human development in the Caribbean by Judy Baker states that approximately 38 percent of the total population in the Caribbean can be classified as poor. She further states that the more unequal the distribution of income in a country, the more difficult it is to reduce poverty for a given increase in in average income. High levels of income inequality can exacerbate political instability and reduce the incentives to invest. Income inequality has also been associated with delays in the execution of structural adjustment which in turn adversely affect growth. Gender inequality in the workplace is a global concern in that many women perform the same task as their male counterparts and still receive less pay. Clearly there is a disparity as relates to gender equality which needs to be addressed. There are many single parent women run households which suffer from a lack of income to properly manage their families.Unions continuously struggle against the state for wage increases for workers and better working conditions. When the wealth of a nation is not equally distributed a number of things occur but foremost is the issue of crime and violence. It is said that inequality breeds contempt.