Real Wage Growth (YoY)
+0.5%
· Apr 2026
econ
scout
1980 Recession · Jan 1980 – Jul 1980
1981-82 Recession · Jul 1981 – Nov 1982
1990-91 Recession · Jul 1990 – Mar 1991
2001 Recession · Mar 2001 – Nov 2001
Global Financial Crisis · Dec 2007 – Jun 2009
COVID-19 Recession · Feb 2020 – Apr 2020
-5%
0%
5%
1980
1990
2000
2010
2020
+0.5%
Real Wage Growth (YoY) — one value per year; US recessions are shaded on the chart.
Year
Real Wage Growth (YoY)
1980
-3.4%
1981
-1.0%
1982
+0.3%
1983
-0.3%
1984
+1.3%
1985
+1.3%
1986
+3.4%
1987
-0.9%
1988
-1.2%
1989
-0.6%
1990
-3.1%
1991
+0.3%
1992
-0.3%
1993
+2.2%
1994
-1.6%
1995
-0.3%
1996
+0.0%
1997
+0.3%
1998
+4.5%
1999
+2.1%
2000
-0.3%
2001
+1.8%
2002
-1.2%
2003
+0.3%
2004
+0.0%
2005
-1.5%
2006
+1.5%
2007
-1.5%
2008
+2.4%
2009
+1.2%
2010
-0.9%
2011
-1.8%
2012
-0.6%
2013
+0.3%
2014
+0.6%
2015
+2.7%
2016
+1.2%
2017
-1.1%
2018
+2.9%
2019
+2.0%
2020
+3.9%
2021
-4.0%
2022
+0.3%
2023
+1.9%
2024
+1.4%
2025
+1.3%
2026
+0.5%
Source: FRED · LES1252881600Q · econscout.com