Extending this back over the last 20 years, the fastest declines in real average hourly wage annualized change over 3 months:
-5.6% into July 2008
-5.5% into June 2022
-5.4% into May 2026
Omits COVID period Mar 2020 - June 2021 when compositional shifts distorted average hourly earnings changes.
Aaron Sojourner
Looking at change rates in wages versus consumer prices 3-month annualized, in the most recent data...
Wages (red) up at a 2.8% rate and prices up at 8.2% rate (blue). So real hourly wages falling at abt 5.4% annualized rate.
If continues, average hour'll buy 5.4% less than a year before
