I own a machine shop in Houston. In 1980, our best machinists were making $20-$25 an hour using manual machines. In 2019 (pre-pandemic), they were still makin

I own a machine shop in Houston. In 1980, our best machinists were making $20-$25 an hour using manual machines. In 2019 (pre-pandemic), they were still making $25 an hour while being much more productive on CNC machines. Forget real wages - they were making the same nominal wages after 40 years.