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The real median household income is up over 43% since 1990. It's up 62% for the bottom 20%.[1] It's popular to claim that wages have gone nowhere for ~40 years

The real median household income is up over 43% since 1990. It's up 62% for the bottom 20%.[1] It's popular to claim that wages have gone nowhere for ~40 years, it's never supported by the actual data. The premise requires that one ignores the cost of health coverage in the US that is commonly paid for or heavily subsidized by an employer (the employee would have to pay far higher taxes for that otherwise, given the per capita healthcare cost in the US is now ~$11,000 -- $33,000 for a family of three). It ignores pretty much every benefit that employees receive today, that did not exist in the early 1970s, including 401k matching. If companies weren't paying for healthcare benefits, the employees would see their taxes skyrocket. That's a dramatic, obvious, direct wage benefit. In socialized systems such as are common in Europe, the companies do not pay nearly so much for healthcare coverage, instead individuals pay far higher personal taxes, while the average corporate income tax rate is low. https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-05-15/wage-stagnation-was-mostly-a-myth https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-05-15/wage-s...

peisistratos 7y ago
> actual data The data is available from the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics https://www.bls.gov https://www.bls.gov . The Economist's gloomy figures were right, but are gloomier if pushed back a few years as 1979 was a nadir any how. > health The US is off the charts in terms of health costs compared to other industrialized countries, and big business has arranged it so it is the only industrialized country with people not under health coverage. > 401k US Workers used to have guaranteed pensions, the 401k was a backward step, not some new benefit Plus the fact that Google workers have all these things, and some other workers may have some if these things doesn't modify that wages have fallen. The US has skyrocketing health care compared to everyone else, with some unconvered unlike every other industrialized countries, and guaranteed pensions no longer exist - not great arguments for an improvement. People are not stupid, they know things are not better, despite think tank commissars trying to present ways that they are.
- toastbox2 7y ago
  Your English grammar is pretty bad - you are obviously not from US. Please don't speak as if you are an American. You create opinions without any facts to back them up.
- stallmanite 7y ago
  I can’t reply directly to his comment for some reason but please disregard the other poster complaining about your grammar. Your grammar is fine, perhaps the only change is “skyrocketing healthcare” should be “skyrocketing health care costs”. One can assume that the poster can’t engage with your points rationally and resorted to name calling / xenophobia.

peisistratos 7y ago

> actual data The data is available from the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics https://www.bls.gov https://www.bls.gov . The Economist's gloomy figures were right, but are gloomier if pushed back a few years as 1979 was a nadir any how. > health The US is off the charts in terms of health costs compared to other industrialized countries, and big business has arranged it so it is the only industrialized country with people not under health coverage. > 401k US Workers used to have guaranteed pensions, the 401k was a backward step, not some new benefit Plus the fact that Google workers have all these things, and some other workers may have some if these things doesn't modify that wages have fallen. The US has skyrocketing health care compared to everyone else, with some unconvered unlike every other industrialized countries, and guaranteed pensions no longer exist - not great arguments for an improvement. People are not stupid, they know things are not better, despite think tank commissars trying to present ways that they are.

toastbox2 7y ago
Your English grammar is pretty bad - you are obviously not from US. Please don't speak as if you are an American. You create opinions without any facts to back them up.
stallmanite 7y ago
I can’t reply directly to his comment for some reason but please disregard the other poster complaining about your grammar. Your grammar is fine, perhaps the only change is “skyrocketing healthcare” should be “skyrocketing health care costs”. One can assume that the poster can’t engage with your points rationally and resorted to name calling / xenophobia.