4 ms·

Inequality is falling, not rising, due mainly to increasing incomes at the bottom. http://www.maxroser.com/economic-world-history-in-one-chart/ http://www.maxr

Inequality is falling, not rising, due mainly to increasing incomes at the bottom. http://www.maxroser.com/economic-world-history-in-one-chart/ http://www.maxroser.com/economic-world-history-in-one-chart/ Wages within the US are in decline because of a shift to non-wage benefits. Worker compensation has done nothing but increase, there are just a bunch of laws (e.g. Obamacare) making it optimal for companies not to increase wages. https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/COMPRNFB https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/COMPRNFB The same trend towards within-country inequality can be seen in Europe, so any US-specific explanation is simply incorrect.

crdoconnor 10y ago
>Inequality is falling, not rising, due mainly to increasing incomes at the bottom. When you're not cherry picking data, not so much: https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kW362RyS95U/Tz7u6cqfuTI/AAAAAAAAARw/SidNSQHZSIg/s1600/Ginicoefworld_0001.jpg https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kW362RyS95U/Tz7u6cqfuTI/AAAAAAAAA... >Wages within the US are in decline because of a shift to non-wage benefits. Median/below median wages are in decline in the US, period. Healthcare, education and housing costs have also gone up massively (with no commensurate increase in quality). >there are just a bunch of laws (e.g. Obamacare) making it optimal for companies not to increase wages. There is absolutely no sane economic explanation why Obamacare would prevent companies from raising wages.
- matstroller 10y ago
  > When you're not cherry picking data, not so much: It's hard to see why "one country, one datapoint" would be more relevant than weighing all persons equally. > There is absolutely no sane economic explanation why Obamacare would prevent companies from raising wages. Of course it doesn't prevent that. It simply makes more convenient to raise non-monetary compensation.
- yummyfajitas 10y ago
  Median/below median wages are in decline in the US, period. Healthcare,... It's completely nonsensical to adjust wages for the cost of healthcare when healthcare is primarily paid by non-wage benefits. It's also nonsensical to ignore total comp and focus on wages, unless of course you are cherrypicking. Matstroller has effectively addressed your other issues, so I feel no need to. Note also that Branko Milanovic - the source of your graph - explicitly says that global income inequality is decreasing in his book. From a book review: "Milanovic, like Bourguignon, stresses one encouraging fact. While inequality is rising within most countries, notably the high-income ones, global inequality of incomes, though huge, has been falling, particularly since 2000." http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13603aa2-0185-11e6-ac98-3c15a1aa2e62.html#axzz48qeN6skc http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13603aa2-0185-11e6-ac98-3c15a1aa2e...
  - burfog 10y ago
    Of course you have to count healthcare. It's a payment that the employer makes on behalf of the employee. You should also count company housing, company cars, an eat-all-you-want cafeteria, employee discounts, employer-paid gym membership or on-site gym, etc.

crdoconnor 10y ago

>Inequality is falling, not rising, due mainly to increasing incomes at the bottom. When you're not cherry picking data, not so much: https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kW362RyS95U/Tz7u6cqfuTI/AAAAAAAAARw/SidNSQHZSIg/s1600/Ginicoefworld_0001.jpg https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kW362RyS95U/Tz7u6cqfuTI/AAAAAAAAA... >Wages within the US are in decline because of a shift to non-wage benefits. Median/below median wages are in decline in the US, period. Healthcare, education and housing costs have also gone up massively (with no commensurate increase in quality). >there are just a bunch of laws (e.g. Obamacare) making it optimal for companies not to increase wages. There is absolutely no sane economic explanation why Obamacare would prevent companies from raising wages.

matstroller 10y ago
> When you're not cherry picking data, not so much: It's hard to see why "one country, one datapoint" would be more relevant than weighing all persons equally. > There is absolutely no sane economic explanation why Obamacare would prevent companies from raising wages. Of course it doesn't prevent that. It simply makes more convenient to raise non-monetary compensation.
yummyfajitas 10y ago
Median/below median wages are in decline in the US, period. Healthcare,... It's completely nonsensical to adjust wages for the cost of healthcare when healthcare is primarily paid by non-wage benefits. It's also nonsensical to ignore total comp and focus on wages, unless of course you are cherrypicking. Matstroller has effectively addressed your other issues, so I feel no need to. Note also that Branko Milanovic - the source of your graph - explicitly says that global income inequality is decreasing in his book. From a book review: "Milanovic, like Bourguignon, stresses one encouraging fact. While inequality is rising within most countries, notably the high-income ones, global inequality of incomes, though huge, has been falling, particularly since 2000." http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13603aa2-0185-11e6-ac98-3c15a1aa2e62.html#axzz48qeN6skc http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/13603aa2-0185-11e6-ac98-3c15a1aa2e...
- burfog 10y ago
  Of course you have to count healthcare. It's a payment that the employer makes on behalf of the employee. You should also count company housing, company cars, an eat-all-you-want cafeteria, employee discounts, employer-paid gym membership or on-site gym, etc.