June 4, 2021
Average hourly earnings climbed 0.5% in May to $30.33 after having jumped 0.7% in April. The year-over-year increase currently is 2.0% but the year-over-year change is significantly distorted by the big jump in earnings in April of last year caused by the initial round of stimulus checks. A more accurate assessment of what is going on is by looking at the increase in hourly earnings in the past three months which is 4.4%.
Average weekly earnings rose 0.5% in May to $1,058.52 after having risen 0.7% in April. Weekly earnings have risen 2.6% in the past year but, like average hourly earnings, the best gauge of what is going on is the 3-month average increase which equals 7.9%.
Stephen Slifer
NumberNomics
Charleston, SC
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