For U.S. Men, 40 Years of Falling Income
Looking over the hedge to see how the neighbors are doing. Mostly, not so well.
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2013 is ending as it began, with inequality at the top of the U.S. political agenda. The minimum wage and the end of extended unemployment benefits are high in the headlines.
Amid the debate about inequality, there’s an underplayed point about the current economy: average workers have not only been earning less than those at the top. Many have been earning less, full stop. Seen over a period of three or four decades, the trend is striking. Take a look at the chart below of the decline in real earnings for U.S. men in three age groups — 25-34, 35-44, and 45-54.