We hear all the time of the increasing gap between the very rich and the very poor. I think that instead it should be the increase in the gap between the very rich and everyone else.
As MyDD notes, executive's pay jumped 21.9 percent. For normal Americans, the pay (adjusted for inflation) jumped...zero. Not really a jump or an increase.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, non-supervisory wages (which represent about 80% of the population) increased from $15.88 in January 2005 to $16.35 in December of 2005 for an increase of 2.95%. Over the same period, the inflation figure increase from 190.7 to 196.8 for an increase of 3.1%. So using the BLS numbers gives non-supervisory employees a net decrease of .15 in wages and using the UA Today figure gives the average American an increase o [sic] 0.
The post in MyDD was prompted by a USA Today article. The USA Today article boasted a 25 percent increase for executives and a 3.1 percent increase for non-executives. Of course, the USA Today did not adjust for inflation, so their numbers were skewed upwards.
The unemployment rate fell - which means that there are more jobs out there, so more options. So the companies should be paying their people more. But they aren't. Why should the executives feel they should pay the workers more - if their pay increases 20 percent + a year, what do they care if normal workers get the shaft?
And just an update: the minimum wage still hasn't been increased since September 1, 1997. The longest time for the federal minimum wage to stay at the same rate since it was enacted in 1938 was nine years and three months (Jan 1, 1981 to April 1, 1990). If the minimum wage is not increased by December 1, the record will be broken.
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