The gap between productivity and a typical worker's compensation has increased dramatically since 1979: Productivity growth and hourly compensation growth, 1948–2019
| Year | Hourly compensation | Net productivity |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1949 | 5.8% | 1.6% |
| 1950 | 9.9% | 9.3% |
| 1951 | 10.9% | 12.2% |
| 1952 | 14.4% | 15.5% |
| 1953 | 20.2% | 19.4% |
| 1954 | 22.5% | 21.5% |
| 1955 | 27.4% | 26.4% |
| 1956 | 32.3% | 26.6% |
| 1957 | 35.0% | 30.0% |
| 1958 | 35.8% | 32.7% |
| 1959 | 39.6% | 37.6% |
| 1960 | 42.0% | 40.1% |
| 1961 | 44.2% | 44.4% |
| 1962 | 48.2% | 49.8% |
| 1963 | 50.3% | 55.0% |
| 1964 | 65.0% | 60.0% |
| 1965 | 69.2% | 64.9% |
| 1966 | 71.1% | 70.0% |
| 1967 | 73.4% | 72.0% |
| 1968 | 77.7% | 77.1% |
| 1969 | 80.9% | 77.9% |
| 1970 | 83.3% | 80.4% |
| 1971 | 87.9% | 87.1% |
| 1972 | 97.2% | 92.2% |
| 1973 | 95.4% | 97.0% |
| 1974 | 90.8% | 93.8% |
| 1975 | 90.4% | 98.1% |
| 1976 | 92.2% | 103.6% |
| 1977 | 95.4% | 106.1% |
| 1978 | 97.7% | 108.3% |
| 1979 | 95.0% | 108.1% |
| 1980 | 89.8% | 106.8% |
| 1981 | 88.6% | 110.5% |
| 1982 | 89.1% | 108.4% |
| 1983 | 90.0% | 114.5% |
| 1984 | 88.5% | 120.2% |
| 1985 | 88.0% | 123.7% |
| 1986 | 89.6% | 128.3% |
| 1987 | 87.6% | 128.8% |
| 1988 | 86.9% | 132.0% |
| 1989 | 87.4% | 134.1% |
| 1990 | 86.2% | 137.0% |
| 1991 | 86.1% | 138.5% |
| 1992 | 87.8% | 147.5% |
| 1993 | 88.2% | 148.5% |
| 1994 | 88.8% | 150.6% |
| 1995 | 88.0% | 151.6% |
| 1996 | 88.4% | 156.3% |
| 1997 | 90.7% | 160.8% |
| 1998 | 95.5% | 166.3% |
| 1999 | 98.4% | 173.5% |
| 2000 | 99.6% | 179.5% |
| 2001 | 102.5% | 183.8% |
| 2002 | 106.6% | 191.6% |
| 2003 | 108.7% | 201.3% |
| 2004 | 107.8% | 209.4% |
| 2005 | 107.0% | 215.4% |
| 2006 | 107.3% | 217.7% |
| 2007 | 109.4% | 219.8% |
| 2008 | 109.4% | 221.5% |
| 2009 | 117.8% | 228.8% |
| 2010 | 119.7% | 238.3% |
| 2011 | 116.8% | 238.3% |
| 2012 | 114.7% | 239.6% |
| 2013 | 116.9% | 241.0% |
| 2014 | 117.5% | 243.0% |
| 2015 | 121.2% | 246.5% |
| 2016 | 123.3% | 247.3% |
| 2017 | 123.6% | 250.6% |
| 2018 | 125.2% | 254.5% |
| 2019 | 128.5% | 258.4% |
Notes: Data are for compensation (wages and benefits) of production/nonsupervisory workers in the private sector and net productivity of the total economy. “Net productivity” is the growth of output of goods and services less depreciation per hour worked.
Source: EPI analysis of unpublished Total Economy Productivity data from Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Labor Productivity and Costs program, wage data from the BLS Current Employment Statistics, BLS Employment Cost Trends, BLS Consumer Price Index, and Bureau of Economic Analysis National Income and Product Accounts
Updated from Figure A in Raising America’s Pay: Why It’s Our Central Economic Policy Challenge (Bivens et al. 2014)
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