[expat_panama]

Something his point misses here is that he's talking average and not median and many argue that we're worse off because we're less equal these days. He did touch on it later. Something he didn't mention though is that these numbers may be underestimating the pay raise becuase they don't count the big chunk of the population that have simply gone cash/off the economy.

[Bryanw92]

We need new indicators. The way we do business has changed so much since 2000 that the old CPI, unemployment rate, and even the definition of a job are not the same as they were in the mid-20th century when all these indicators were meaningful.

[a fool in paradise]

My pay is less than half my old job and even less than entry level of 20 years ago. No raise in the future and an earlier job I had saw a 1/3 hourly pay cut.

F the Obamaconomy.

No raise would even maintain standard of living.

AND I am bleeding hundreds every month paying for mandated medical coverage.

[Justa]

Yup they counted aggregate wages rather than median or per capita. So the growth of CEO and upper management salaries offset the flat wages of almost everyone else. Then add in actual inflation rather than the BS CPI and from my calculation wages have been falling since 2006.

[expat_panama]

Good morning to ya and the hits keep comin'!  Yesterday's close saw 'mild losses' and the reason stocks took a 'breather' is all Yellen's fault for saying that rates will come back up sometime during the life of the known universe.   Gold also dipped, it went down to $1,102 but it's since come back up to $1,110.30.

Futures are mixed/off all around as the week winds down and forget Yellen, today we're getting a regular doc deluge:

7:30 AM Challenger Job Cuts
8:30 AM Initial Claims
8:30 AM Continuing Claims
8:30 AM Productivity-Prel
8:30 AM Unit Labor Costs-Prel
10:30 AM Natural Gas Inventories

Elsewhere:

• FOREX-Dollar builds on rally as Fed prepares ground for December lift off

• Will Left's Inequality Obsession Be Its Downfall? - Jim Pethokoukis, Week

• December rate hike priced in? Maybe, experts say

• Don't Buy the Gloom, This Is No Zombie Economy - Brian Hamilton, USAT

• Rare Market Trend May Vindicate Bulls - Anora Mahmudova, MarketWatch

• Nowhere Close To A Global Recession - A. Evans-Pritchard, Daily Telegraph

[raybbr]

Take out the public sector unions and see where wages stand.

[chrisser]

So apparently the plan is to repeat the “happy days are here again” BS mantra - like they’ve been doing since 2008 - long enough that the sucky economy becomes the new normal and nobody remembers how much better things were prior to the ascension of the magic minority.

[TexasFreeper2009]

The real missing money is the extra compensation people are receiving in the form of benefits now.

Your company healthcare plan isn't counted
Your company contributions to your retirement plan isn't counted.
In fact, no benefits are counted.

My wife works at a college and we get free tuition for our kids as one of her benefits. That one benefit is a hidden non taxable part of her salary that is worth an estimated 1 million easy for us.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

Do these numbers include the public dole as “pay”? That is an ever increasing chunk of income for more people.

How could there have been a six point overnight jump in real income at the beginning of ‘09? That simply could not happen. It suggests govt bean counters changed methodology to make The King look good. Or did everybody else get a huge bump and not tell me?

[Chode]

While unemployment has dropped to 5.1

i stopped reading right there

[N. Theknow]

Nearly 1/3 of adults are unemployed and have quit looking for a job and the unemployment numbers are 5.1%....BS!

[PTBAA]

It would be interesting to see the average wage normalized for labor participation rate included for the private sector (no govt sector jobs)and excluding welfare payments. That would give a truer median wage paid to working age Americans in the wealth-generating part of our economy. If this was done, I believe the result would be frightening.

[central_va]

Technology is making us poorer.

Back in the day TV was free, radio was free and your "communications" bill was for a one land line. Hardware consisted of a phone or two so durable they lasted decades.

Now there is the data, phone and cable bills plus cellular. Phones need to be upgraded every couple of years same with computers and software. All of this adds up do hundreds of dollars each month.

Salaries haven't kept up with the expenses of the latest technology.

[1Old Pro]

Public employees are getting raises, incredible defined benefit pensions, limited contributions to their healthcare.

The private sector pays for this by not receiving wage hikes and higher taxes to fund the bloated poublic payroll and retirees.

[yuleeyahoo]

I have not had a pay raise in six years. My health insurance has increased, so has food and energy. To top it all off, the FED has decreased the value of the dollar.

I really don’t see how things are rosy.

[Marie]

We’re fine... Nothing to see here... As you were, people.

[aimhigh]

Meanwhile, LA teachers are getting ready to strike for a 10% raise over the next three years.