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Real average hourly earnings decreased 2.6 percent from February 2021 to February 2022

March 16, 2022

Real average hourly earnings—that is, earnings that have been adjusted for changes in consumer prices—decreased 2.6 percent from February 2021 to February 2022. The change in real average hourly earnings combined with a 0.3 percent increase in the average workweek resulted in a 2.3-percent decrease in real average weekly earnings over this period.

 12-month percent changes in real average hourly and weekly earnings and average weekly hours for all private employees, February 2021 to February 2022
Month Real hourly earnings Average weekly hours Real weekly earnings

Feb 2021

3.4% 0.6% 4.0%

Mar 2021

1.7 2.3 4.1

Apr 2021

-3.4 2.0 -1.4

May 2021

-2.7 0.6 -2.1

Jun 2021

-1.3 0.6 -0.7

Jul 2021

-1.0 0.6 -0.4

Aug 2021

-0.9 0.0 -0.8

Sep 2021

-0.5 0.0 -0.6

Oct 2021

-0.8 -0.3 -1.1

Nov 2021

-1.4 0.0 -1.4

Dec 2021

-2.1 0.3 -1.8

Jan 2022

-1.8 -1.1 -3.0

Feb 2022

-2.6 0.3 -2.3

February 2022 is the eleventh consecutive month of over-the-year decreases in real average hourly earnings; the last increase was 1.7 percent in March 2021.

These data are from the Current Employment Statistics survey and are seasonally adjusted. Earnings for the most recent 2 months are preliminary. For more information, see "Real Earnings — February 2022." The Consumer Price Index is used to adjust earnings for inflation.

SUGGESTED CITATION

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, The Economics Daily, Real average hourly earnings decreased 2.6 percent from February 2021 to February 2022 at https://www.bls.gov/opub/ted/2022/real-average-hourly-earnings-decreased-2-6-percent-from-february-2021-to-february-2022.htm (visited December 08, 2024).

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