Four percent sounds like progress. It sounds like momentum. It sounds like the kind of number that should put a little extra bounce in your step when payday hits. And yet, across the country, many families look at their paychecks and still feel like they’re running in place.
Recent federal data shows that average hourly earnings have risen at almost a 4 percent annual pace. On paper, that marks solid wage growth compared to the sluggish increases workers endured for much of the 2010s. Employers continue to compete for talent in many sectors, and that competition has pushed pay higher. But if paychecks have grown, why doesn’t daily life feel easier?
