New research shows that Government policies since 1987 have increased the income of the richest 10% of householders and widened the gap between this group and the rest of society.
The study was carried out by campaign group Social Justice Ireland, which has called on all political parties to explain how they would change this process.
Social Justice Ireland said that the top 10% of households receive nearly a quarter of total disposable income, which is an increase of 1.3% since 1987.
It says that the bottom 10% of households receive just over 2% of all disposable income.
Overall, the group said that the share of the top 10% is nearly 11 times the share of the bottom 10%.
The research also showed that more than 620,000 people, or 14% of the population, are at risk of poverty.
The group says this figure would be three times higher if it were not for social welfare payments.
Social Justice Ireland spokesman Fr Sean Healy said that resources were being taken from the poor to bailout bankers and senior bondholders and benefitting the rich.
He called on all political parties contesting the General Election to spell out how they intend to reverse this process in the coming years.
