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Each series on one shared axis, in its shared unit — raw levels, not rebased.

Pay vs Productivity Labor Productivity
Pay vs ProductivityLabor Productivity Same scale · Index 2017=100
1948-49 Recession1953-54 Recession1957-58 Recession1960-61 Recession1969-70 Recession1973-75 Recession1980 Recession1981-82 Recession1990-91 Recession2001 RecessionGlobal Financial CrisisCOVID-19 Recession40608010012014016019501960197019801990200020102020Same-scale levels · r = -0.98 over the overlap — correlation is not causation · econscout.com

Raw levels on a shared axis (the series share one unit). pay_productivity_gap, productivity · read from cache, latest-revised.

  • Pay vs Productivity

    Worker pay relative to output per hour, indexed to 100 at 2017.

    Real hourly compensation divided by output per hour, indexed to 100 at the 2017 base.

  • Labor Productivity

    Output produced per hour worked, as an index.

    Nonfarm business sector real output per hour of all persons, indexed to 2017=100.

Each measured on its own terms — compare the lenses, not just the lines. Full lessons → Learn

r = -0.98 very strong correlation · 317 overlapping months

…and that proves nothing. Two lines moving together is not one moving the other. Almost any pair of trending economic series correlates highly — they share the same long climb of growth, prices, and population, or it is chance. r measures co-movement over this exact window, never cause. Change the range or swap a series and watch r move. Why correlation isn’t causation →