[the invisib1e hand]

You meant “Rate,” Jim.

[In veno, veritas]

I would think that most economists would realize that the least productive (maybe the most recently hired people) tend to get fired first. Ergo, what seems to be a rising real wage (and increased productivity). One of the largest problems in macro econ is that labor gets treated as homogeneous when in reality, were quite different. Homogeneous labor does help us create simple models, though.

[oblomov]

The minimum wage hike contributed both to unemployment and to wage inflation.

[kabar]

We also had a minimum wage increase. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 per hour effective July 24, 2009, the third raise in three years. In July 2008, the minimum wage increased to $6.55 per hour. And in the Summer of 2007, it went to $5.85 from $5.15.

[bitterohiogunclinger]

I know it’s only anecdotal evidence, but every company I’ve interacted with in the last 18 months has had wage cuts, furloughs and large scale layoffs. The only wages growing seem to be those being supported by taxpayers.

[mulligan]

Yes, this may be true, but what is happening in the public sector? Would bet the increase is even larger.

[CharlesWayneCT]

I don’t think it is surprising. I also don’t think you can read anything into this, not without a LOT of analysis.

See, people are being laid off. If more people below the median income are laid off than people above the median income, the median income will INCREASE as unemployment gets worse.

When employment starts rising, you will see the median income drop. If a republican is in the white house, the lefties will say this is a bad thing. But it is expected. When people get jobs back, they tend to be lower-paying jobs, below the median, which means the median income will drop.

For example, last month 150,000 teenagers lost their jobs. Most of them were probably making minimum wage, and most probably were fired because of the minimum wage increase.

But since they are gone from the average, the median income would go up.