Productivity, Wages, and Corporate Profits

Looking at the Data for Productivity-Wage Gap
Looking at the Data for Corporate Profits
Productivity, Wages, and Corporate Profits: 1947-2012

Looking at the Data for Productivity-Wage Gap

There has been much discussion of the so-called productivity-wage or productivity-pay gap over the years. Googling those terms point to a number of "scholarly articles" at this link such as this working paper by Anna M. Stansbury and Lawrence H. Summers. There's also a number of articles that claim it to be a "myth" such as this one from the American Enterprise Institute.

As a first step, it's useful to look at an updated graph of the data. Fortunately, it's possible to generate an updated version of the productivity-wage gap on the Federal Reserve website via the following steps:

  1. Go to https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series
  2. After "Search for:", enter "Nonfarm Business Real hourly compensation" (without the quotes).
  3. Click Search.
  4. Click "2 other formats".
  5. Select "Quarterly, Index 2017=100, Seasonally Adjusted" (this is series COMPRNFB).
  6. Click EDIT GRAPH button.
  7. For Units, select "Index (Scale vlaue to 100 for chosen date)".
  8. For date, enter 1947-01-01
  9. Click ADD LINE at the top of the edit panel (if this is hidden by a banner, close the banner and reclick EDIT GRAPH, if necessary).
  10. After "Add data series to graph:", enter "Nonfarm Business Labor Productivity" (without the quotes).
  11. Select "Nonfarm Business Sector: Labor Productivity (Output per Hour) for All Workers, Quarterly Index 2017=100, Seasonally Adjusted (this is series OPHNFB)".
  12. Click "Add data series" button.
  13. For Units, select "Index (Scale vlaue to 100 for chosen date)".
  14. For date, enter 1947-01-01
  15. Click the X in the upper right to close the edit panel.

This should result in the following graph:

Wages versus Productivity (Wage gap)

The graph shows that the so-called productivity-wage gap appeared to have begun sometime during the seventies. Many papers have suggested that some adjustments to this data would be advisable. Several of those adjustements are looked at in a 2022 paper from the Economic Policy Institute and can be seen by clicking on the red "Click here for more on the data adjustments" link near the end of the paper. Following is the final graph in that section which shows the results of a number of the adjustements:

Adjustments to Productivity-Wage Gap

Prior to the above graph is the following statement regarding the last adjustment shown:

Our second pay adjustment accounts for trends in nonwage compensation. If the value of health care and other nonwage benefits provided by employers grew more rapidly than wages, then looking only at hourly earnings could disguise how rising productivity may have boosted living standards for the vast majority. As Figure F shows, once we account for the value of benefits (including the effect of rapid inflation in health care), one sees that the overall trends are not materially changed. Perhaps surprisingly, the era that saw measures of total compensation rise noticeably faster than wages is the era before 1979.

In summary, the EPI paper suggests that the solid blue line and solid red line show the most reasonable estimate of the productivity-wage gap.

Looking at the Data for Corporate Profits

Following the above discussion of adjustments to the data is a section titled "How much of the productivity–pay gap is driven by inequality?". It starts with the following paragraph:

Beginning with the August 2021 update, the entire gap in EPI’s productivity–pay figure is associated with rising inequality—inequality among wage earners and the rising share of overall income going to owners of capital rather than to workers for their labor. However, since researchers and analysts may still be interested in factors that account for various parts of the wedge between our measure of pay and other measures of productivity, we decompose these gaps further.

This seems to relate to a related comparison between Wages and Corporate Profits that is sometimes looked at. It's similarly possible to generate an updated version of this comparison on the Federal Reserve website via the following steps:

  1. Go to https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/WASCUR
  2. Click EDIT GRAPH button.
  3. After "You can begin by adding a series to combine with your existing series", enter "Gross Domestic Product" (without the quotes).
  4. Select "Gross Domestic Product from the select list and click Add button.
  5. After "Formula:", type "100 * a / b" (without the quotes).
  6. Click Apply button.
  7. Click ADD LINE at the top of the edit panel (if this is hidden by a banner, close the banner and reclick EDIT GRAPH, if necessary).
  8. After "Add data series to graph:" enter "Corporate Profits" and select "Corporate Profits After Tax (without IVA and CCAdj)".
  9. Click "Add data series" button.
  10. After "You can begin by adding a series to combine with your existing series", enter "Gross Domestic Product" (without the quotes).
  11. Select "Gross Domestic Product from the select list and click Add button.
  12. After "Formula:", type "40 + 100 * a / b" (without the quotes).
  13. Click Apply button.
  14. Click the X in the upper right to close the edit panel.

This should result in the following graph:

Wages versus Productivity (Wage gap)

It should be noted that 40 is added to the Corporate Profits after Tax to make it more easily comparable to Compensation for Employees. As can be seen, this comparison seemed to be fairly stable until about 2001 although compensation for employees was a bit higher than coporate profits until the late seventies. After 2001, however, corporate profits grew to be much higher though the difference temporarily narrowed during the financial crisis.


Productivity, Wages, and Corporate Profits: 1947-2012

Following are graphs and data previously generated for 1947 through the 3rd quarter of 2012:

Wages and Corporate Profits: 1947-2012 Wages versus Productivity (Wage gap): 1947-2012


           WAGES, CORPORATE PROFITS, AND PRODUCTIVITY

            Billions of dollars    Index (2005=100)    $Billions
            -------------------  --------------------  ---------
                                                 Real
             Wages &  Corporate      Labor     Hourly      Gross
              Salary    Profits    Produc-    Compen-   Domestic
   Date     Accruals  After Tax     tivity     sation    Product
---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------
 1/1/1947      119.7       21.2     26.831     36.620      237.2
 4/1/1947      121.5       20.0     27.486     36.714      240.4
 7/1/1947      123.4       19.8     26.712     36.711      244.5
10/1/1947      127.8       21.7     27.813     36.590      254.3
 1/1/1948      131.4       22.9     27.938     36.736      260.3
 4/1/1948      133.2       24.1     27.916     36.679      267.3
 7/1/1948      138.1       23.8     27.955     36.863      273.8
10/1/1948      139.5       23.0     28.101     37.687      275.1
 1/1/1949      137.0       21.0     28.391     38.228      269.9
 4/1/1949      134.6       18.6     28.685     38.163      266.2
 7/1/1949      133.9       19.2     29.386     38.658      267.6
10/1/1949      133.4       18.8     29.211     38.732      265.2
 1/1/1950      137.1       19.3     30.220     39.851      275.2
 4/1/1950      142.9       23.1     30.563     40.278      284.5
 7/1/1950      150.8       28.0     31.254     40.314      301.9
10/1/1950      158.3       30.8     31.303     40.627      313.3
 1/1/1951      165.5       25.6     31.371     39.983      329.0
 4/1/1951      170.8       21.8     31.282     40.371      336.6
 7/1/1951      173.8       19.9     31.997     40.991      343.5
10/1/1951      176.2       21.6     32.067     40.962      347.9
 1/1/1952      181.2       20.9     32.202     41.377      351.2
 4/1/1952      182.4       20.0     32.147     41.604      352.1
 7/1/1952      185.7       20.2     31.998     41.692      358.5
10/1/1952      193.3       22.2     32.617     42.710      371.4
 1/1/1953      196.9       22.9     32.870     43.337      378.4
 4/1/1953      200.1       22.8     32.961     43.748      382.0
 7/1/1953      200.3       22.3     33.117     44.019      381.1
10/1/1953      198.7       17.5     32.973     44.329      375.9
 1/1/1954      196.4       20.1     33.027     44.613      375.2
 4/1/1954      196.0       20.8     33.276     44.734      376.0
 7/1/1954      196.3       22.1     33.873     45.206      380.8
10/1/1954      200.4       23.8     34.282     45.787      389.4
 1/1/1955      204.2       27.0     34.932     46.077      402.6
 4/1/1955      210.3       27.4     35.029     46.617      410.9
 7/1/1955      214.7       28.0     35.164     47.157      419.4
10/1/1955      219.5       29.1     35.039     47.589      426.0
 1/1/1956      223.3       28.2     34.586     48.325      428.3
 4/1/1956      227.5       28.9     34.727     48.937      434.2
 7/1/1956      230.0       27.6     34.722     49.185      439.2
10/1/1956      235.4       29.2     35.087     49.580      448.1
 1/1/1957      238.3       29.5     35.492     49.885      457.2
 4/1/1957      239.6       28.2     35.362     49.956      459.2
 7/1/1957      241.8       27.6     35.870     50.170      466.4
10/1/1957      240.1       25.3     35.980     50.600      461.5
 1/1/1958      237.4       21.6     35.452     50.197      453.9
 4/1/1958      236.9       22.0     36.136     50.278      458.0
 7/1/1958      242.6       24.5     36.827     51.009      471.7
10/1/1958      248.4       27.9     37.444     51.481      485.0
 1/1/1959      254.0       29.8     37.538     51.821      495.5
 4/1/1959      260.6       32.5     38.024     52.257      508.5
 7/1/1959      260.9       29.2     37.996     52.338      509.3
10/1/1959      263.9       28.6     37.917     52.528      513.2
 1/1/1960      270.8       31.5     38.805     53.587      527.0
 4/1/1960      273.4       29.2     38.259     53.581      526.2
 7/1/1960      274.0       27.9     38.333     53.856      529.0
10/1/1960      273.3       26.8     37.854     53.743      523.7
 1/1/1961      273.8       26.2     38.311     54.115      528.0
 4/1/1961      277.6       27.6     39.411     54.897      539.0
 7/1/1961      282.3       29.3     39.935     55.090      549.5
10/1/1961      288.4       31.6     40.327     55.403      562.6
 1/1/1962      293.3       32.2     40.998     56.084      576.1
 4/1/1962      298.7       32.2     40.947     56.239      583.2
 7/1/1962      301.2       33.2     41.469     56.468      590.0
10/1/1962      304.2       34.0     41.747     56.861      593.3
 1/1/1963      308.0       33.6     41.991     57.230      602.5
 4/1/1963      312.4       35.5     42.398     57.420      611.2
 7/1/1963      316.8       36.4     43.261     57.656      623.9
10/1/1963      322.2       37.4     43.294     58.161      633.5
 1/1/1964      328.2       40.6     43.724     57.883      649.6
 4/1/1964      334.8       40.5     44.001     58.426      658.9
 7/1/1964      341.4       41.6     44.340     59.061      670.5
10/1/1964      346.7       41.0     43.902     59.227      675.6
 1/1/1965      352.8       46.8     44.537     59.278      695.7
 4/1/1965      358.9       48.5     44.800     59.295      708.1
 7/1/1965      366.2       49.1     45.596     59.737      725.2
10/1/1965      377.1       51.9     46.456     60.302      747.5
 1/1/1966      385.8       53.1     47.092     60.789      770.8
 4/1/1966      395.9       53.3     46.781     61.195      779.9
 7/1/1966      406.1       52.9     46.845     61.535      793.1
10/1/1966      413.5       51.9     47.162     61.865      806.9
 1/1/1967      418.8       49.6     47.534     62.505      817.8
 4/1/1967      423.6       49.6     47.710     63.157      822.3
 7/1/1967      432.0       50.6     47.879     63.409      837.0
10/1/1967      441.6       52.9     48.031     63.620      852.7
 1/1/1968      454.2       51.5     49.109     64.778      879.8
 4/1/1968      465.9       52.6     49.581     65.229      904.1
 7/1/1968      478.3       52.8     49.546     65.432      919.3
10/1/1968      489.4       54.3     49.451     65.920      936.2
 1/1/1969      499.1       53.8     49.846     65.974      960.9
 4/1/1969      511.4       52.1     49.439     65.993      976.1
 7/1/1969      526.4       50.4     49.480     66.268      996.3
10/1/1969      536.5       49.4     49.260     66.543     1004.5
 1/1/1970      545.1       46.9     49.404     66.711     1017.1
 4/1/1970      549.1       46.6     50.162     66.891     1033.1
 7/1/1970      555.7       47.3     50.934     67.343     1050.5
10/1/1970      556.3       44.3     50.499     67.097     1052.7
 1/1/1971      570.2       50.8     52.003     67.888     1098.1
 4/1/1971      580.3       52.9     52.173     68.325     1118.8
 7/1/1971      588.8       56.6     52.636     68.625     1139.1
10/1/1971      599.0       58.6     52.194     68.655     1151.4
 1/1/1972      618.0       62.6     52.879     69.759     1190.1
 4/1/1972      630.5       63.3     53.987     70.219     1225.6
 7/1/1972      642.4       66.0     54.312     70.641     1249.3
10/1/1972      664.3       71.6     54.745     71.360     1286.6
 1/1/1973      683.4       82.3     55.999     72.117     1335.1
 4/1/1973      700.1       84.3     56.050     71.743     1371.5
 7/1/1973      716.2       84.9     55.528     71.717     1390.7
10/1/1973      735.4       88.5     55.170     71.474     1431.8
 1/1/1974      748.2       93.2     55.058     71.067     1446.5
 4/1/1974      765.3       95.4     54.915     71.039     1484.8
 7/1/1974      783.1      101.3     54.338     71.074     1513.7
10/1/1974      792.5       89.9     54.840     70.726     1552.8
 1/1/1975      791.9       79.7     55.277     71.189     1569.4
 4/1/1975      800.4       85.7     56.191     71.757     1605.0
 7/1/1975      821.3      102.0     56.845     71.614     1662.4
10/1/1975      845.8      108.1     56.856     71.607     1713.9
 1/1/1976      871.2      113.0     57.688     72.356     1771.9
 4/1/1976      889.4      114.4     58.233     73.214     1804.2
 7/1/1976      908.4      115.3     58.310     73.647     1837.7
10/1/1976      929.9      115.1     58.454     74.134     1884.5
 1/1/1977      950.0      126.7     58.759     74.069     1938.5
 4/1/1977      980.9      135.5     59.051     74.243     2005.2
 7/1/1977     1007.5      141.3     59.655     74.673     2066.0
10/1/1977     1038.2      140.8     58.857     74.933     2110.8
 1/1/1978     1064.2      144.1     58.887     76.405     2149.1
 4/1/1978     1106.0      160.6     60.061     75.582     2274.7
 7/1/1978     1137.1      165.2     60.044     75.406     2335.2
10/1/1978     1175.0      175.2     60.397     75.636     2416.0
 1/1/1979     1208.4      176.2     59.806     76.106     2463.3
 4/1/1979     1234.0      183.0     59.631     75.773     2526.4
 7/1/1979     1268.2      186.8     59.557     75.475     2599.7
10/1/1979     1302.7      182.5     59.480     75.468     2659.4
 1/1/1980     1334.9      182.8     59.707     75.244     2724.1
 4/1/1980     1351.0      153.7     59.012     75.334     2728.0
 7/1/1980     1376.6      162.1     59.235     75.459     2785.2
10/1/1980     1431.2      166.9     59.874     75.643     2915.3
 1/1/1981     1469.1      168.7     60.834     75.519     3051.4
 4/1/1981     1496.2      155.4     60.018     75.473     3084.3
 7/1/1981     1528.7      158.9     60.549     75.633     3177.0
10/1/1981     1551.5      154.5     59.780     75.418     3194.7
 1/1/1982     1567.2      134.0     59.384     76.390     3184.9
 4/1/1982     1580.9      135.5     59.509     76.233     3240.9
 7/1/1982     1596.1      131.7     59.607     76.125     3274.4
10/1/1982     1605.9      127.3     60.126     76.277     3312.5
 1/1/1983     1623.1      131.0     60.862     76.542     3381.0
 4/1/1983     1655.1      151.3     62.266     76.299     3482.2
 7/1/1983     1691.8      162.9     62.815     75.974     3587.1
10/1/1983     1740.1      168.2     63.110     76.054     3688.1
 1/1/1984     1785.2      176.0     63.082     75.932     3807.4
 4/1/1984     1828.2      176.3     63.470     75.953     3906.3
 7/1/1984     1866.7      166.2     63.740     76.384     3976.0
10/1/1984     1899.5      165.8     63.828     76.278     4034.0
 1/1/1985     1933.8      153.5     63.940     76.518     4117.2
 4/1/1985     1963.2      154.2     64.108     76.439     4175.7
 7/1/1985     1996.1      160.0     64.957     77.022     4258.3
10/1/1985     2037.1      164.6     65.260     77.634     4318.7
 1/1/1986     2063.5      132.4     66.087     78.252     4382.4
 4/1/1986     2081.8      133.2     66.582     79.428     4423.2
 7/1/1986     2111.7      135.9     66.871     79.876     4491.3
10/1/1986     2152.2      143.6     66.692     80.363     4543.3
 1/1/1987     2193.7      158.5     66.264     79.845     4611.1
 4/1/1987     2230.1      188.4     66.716     79.549     4686.7
 7/1/1987     2270.6      205.9     66.703     79.614     4764.5
10/1/1987     2330.7      217.8     67.320     79.861     4883.1
 1/1/1988     2367.2      232.9     67.497     80.717     4948.6
 4/1/1988     2422.2      250.4     67.729     80.807     5059.3
 7/1/1988     2462.7      249.6     67.898     80.875     5142.8
10/1/1988     2507.1      260.2     68.277     80.643     5251.0
 1/1/1989     2542.0      253.9     67.969     80.061     5360.3
 4/1/1989     2563.3      246.2     68.215     79.072     5453.6
 7/1/1989     2591.6      237.3     68.619     79.115     5532.9
10/1/1989     2635.3      240.1     68.685     79.492     5581.7
 1/1/1990     2686.8      254.4     69.204     79.764     5708.1
 4/1/1990     2735.9      268.8     69.780     80.748     5797.4
 7/1/1990     2768.7      271.9     70.071     80.690     5850.6
10/1/1990     2773.4      269.9     69.461     80.176     5846.0
 1/1/1991     2776.0      279.3     69.627     80.436     5880.2
 4/1/1991     2801.2      282.9     70.667     81.622     5962.0
 7/1/1991     2826.5      288.7     71.099     82.040     6033.7
10/1/1991     2854.2      296.3     71.427     82.364     6092.5
 1/1/1992     2903.4      316.2     72.620     83.481     6190.7
 4/1/1992     2942.8      334.2     73.153     83.600     6295.2
 7/1/1992     2976.1      321.6     73.886     84.351     6389.7
10/1/1992     3008.8      330.9     74.445     83.990     6493.6
 1/1/1993     3034.6      329.3     73.903     83.712     6544.5
 4/1/1993     3067.4      342.7     73.583     83.438     6622.7
 7/1/1993     3100.3      352.6     73.870     83.449     6688.3
10/1/1993     3129.9      367.4     74.388     83.234     6813.8
 1/1/1994     3186.2      387.9     74.794     83.964     6916.3
 4/1/1994     3229.3      396.2     74.728     83.391     7044.3
 7/1/1994     3262.7      414.0     74.287     82.709     7131.8
10/1/1994     3315.6      425.4     74.972     82.805     7248.2
 1/1/1995     3377.0      442.0     74.720     82.941     7307.7
 4/1/1995     3411.6      466.2     74.836     82.758     7355.8
 7/1/1995     3454.6      474.9     74.939     82.863     7452.5
10/1/1995     3494.4      482.7     75.505     83.242     7542.5
 1/1/1996     3529.5      505.5     76.163     83.379     7638.2
 4/1/1996     3594.2      508.0     77.011     83.455     7800.0
 7/1/1996     3650.2      504.9     77.258     83.612     7892.7
10/1/1996     3706.2      518.7     77.306     83.289     8023.0
 1/1/1997     3774.2      533.3     77.033     83.358     8137.0
 4/1/1997     3832.3      551.6     77.935     83.828     8276.8
 7/1/1997     3900.5      571.4     78.588     84.286     8409.9
10/1/1997     3987.6      569.0     78.895     85.353     8505.7
 1/1/1998     4075.2      483.2     79.345     86.863     8600.6
 4/1/1998     4145.2      478.2     79.832     87.791     8698.6
 7/1/1998     4216.2      474.6     80.910     88.775     8847.2
10/1/1998     4287.1      462.1     81.538     88.737     9027.5
 1/1/1999     4375.5      499.0     82.325     89.919     9148.6
 4/1/1999     4417.9      520.1     82.396     89.463     9252.6
 7/1/1999     4479.5      523.4     83.077     89.518     9405.1
10/1/1999     4587.8      544.4     84.505     90.748     9607.7
 1/1/2000     4755.0      520.6     84.188     93.225     9709.5
 4/1/2000     4781.9      514.0     86.092     92.808     9949.1
 7/1/2000     4874.4      508.1     86.105     93.880    10017.5
10/1/2000     4899.5      486.8     86.955     93.784    10129.8
 1/1/2001     4988.1      524.0     86.670     95.014    10165.1
 4/1/2001     4961.4      547.1     88.234     94.644    10301.3
 7/1/2001     4932.4      496.2     88.777     94.698    10305.2
10/1/2001     4926.8      470.4     90.033     95.746    10373.1
 1/1/2002     4963.6      505.0     91.944     96.403    10498.7
 4/1/2002     5003.0      548.4     92.053     96.559    10601.9
 7/1/2002     5006.3      589.8     92.920     96.566    10701.7
10/1/2002     5016.4      648.8     92.866     96.432    10766.9
 1/1/2003     5061.0      627.1     93.710     97.003    10887.4
 4/1/2003     5123.5      621.2     94.983     98.817    11011.6
 7/1/2003     5184.6      663.2     97.165     99.438    11255.1
10/1/2003     5249.4      727.4     97.532     99.886    11414.8
 1/1/2004     5275.9      859.7     97.675     98.558    11589.9
 4/1/2004     5363.6      911.5     98.467     99.193    11762.9
 7/1/2004     5468.9      960.5     98.631    100.103    11936.3
10/1/2004     5534.4      961.5     98.764     99.822    12123.9
 1/1/2005     5584.2     1176.0     99.779    100.139    12361.8
 4/1/2005     5651.7     1196.0     99.574    100.107    12500.0
 7/1/2005     5758.3     1238.3    100.342    100.025    12728.6
10/1/2005     5829.7     1300.8    100.303     99.697    12901.4
 1/1/2006     5958.9     1354.6    100.924    100.472    13161.4
 4/1/2006     6018.6     1344.7    101.031    100.028    13330.4
 7/1/2006     6075.4     1368.5    100.478     99.379    13432.8
10/1/2006     6227.6     1330.0    101.146    102.142    13584.2
 1/1/2007     6328.1     1264.4    101.085    102.082    13758.5
 4/1/2007     6382.8     1315.6    101.943    101.312    13976.8
 7/1/2007     6427.6     1284.1    103.151    101.379    14126.2
10/1/2007     6523.4     1307.5    103.648    101.713    14253.2
 1/1/2008     6600.5     1188.3    102.967    102.060    14273.9
 4/1/2008     6554.9     1208.3    103.583    100.480    14415.5
 7/1/2008     6550.6     1163.3    103.369     99.769    14395.1
10/1/2008     6477.4      643.7    102.488    102.681    14081.7
 1/1/2009     6299.1     1010.3    103.859    102.502    13923.4
 4/1/2009     6278.2     1087.4    105.585    103.688    13885.4
 7/1/2009     6252.2     1231.9    106.924    103.269    13952.2
10/1/2009     6271.9     1354.9    108.227    102.735    14133.6
 1/1/2010     6298.7     1434.1    108.946    102.863    14270.3
 4/1/2010     6394.6     1405.1    108.803    103.642    14413.5
 7/1/2010     6449.7     1465.1    109.688    103.740    14576.0
10/1/2010     6475.2     1467.6    110.204    103.101    14735.9
 1/1/2011     6618.5     1402.5    109.660    104.214    14814.9
 4/1/2011     6656.2     1454.5    109.983    103.050    15003.6
 7/1/2011     6678.1     1477.3    110.139    102.253    15163.2
10/1/2011     6692.4     1566.1    110.889    101.755    15321.0
 1/1/2012     6825.9     1670.9    110.741    102.583    15478.3
 4/1/2012     6849.2     1664.9    111.252    102.726    15585.6
 7/1/2012     6881.7     1742.0    112.044    102.371    15811.0

----------------------------------------------------------------
           WAGES, CORPORATE PROFITS, AND PRODUCTIVITY

              Percent of GDP       Index (1947=100)
           --------------------  --------------------
                                                 Real    Produc-
             Wages &  Corporate      Labor     Hourly   tivity /
              Salary    Profits    Produc-    Compen-    Compen-
   Date     Accruals  After Tax     tivity     sation     sation
---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------
 1/1/1947       50.5        8.9      100.0      100.0      1.000
 4/1/1947       50.5        8.3      102.4      100.3      1.022
 7/1/1947       50.5        8.1       99.6      100.2      0.993
10/1/1947       50.3        8.5      103.7       99.9      1.037
 1/1/1948       50.5        8.8      104.1      100.3      1.038
 4/1/1948       49.8        9.0      104.0      100.2      1.039
 7/1/1948       50.4        8.7      104.2      100.7      1.035
10/1/1948       50.7        8.4      104.7      102.9      1.018
 1/1/1949       50.8        7.8      105.8      104.4      1.014
 4/1/1949       50.6        7.0      106.9      104.2      1.026
 7/1/1949       50.0        7.2      109.5      105.6      1.037
10/1/1949       50.3        7.1      108.9      105.8      1.029
 1/1/1950       49.8        7.0      112.6      108.8      1.035
 4/1/1950       50.2        8.1      113.9      110.0      1.036
 7/1/1950       50.0        9.3      116.5      110.1      1.058
10/1/1950       50.5        9.8      116.7      110.9      1.052
 1/1/1951       50.3        7.8      116.9      109.2      1.071
 4/1/1951       50.7        6.5      116.6      110.2      1.058
 7/1/1951       50.6        5.8      119.3      111.9      1.065
10/1/1951       50.6        6.2      119.5      111.9      1.068
 1/1/1952       51.6        6.0      120.0      113.0      1.062
 4/1/1952       51.8        5.7      119.8      113.6      1.055
 7/1/1952       51.8        5.6      119.3      113.9      1.047
10/1/1952       52.0        6.0      121.6      116.6      1.042
 1/1/1953       52.0        6.1      122.5      118.3      1.035
 4/1/1953       52.4        6.0      122.8      119.5      1.028
 7/1/1953       52.6        5.9      123.4      120.2      1.027
10/1/1953       52.9        4.7      122.9      121.1      1.015
 1/1/1954       52.3        5.4      123.1      121.8      1.010
 4/1/1954       52.1        5.5      124.0      122.2      1.015
 7/1/1954       51.5        5.8      126.2      123.4      1.023
10/1/1954       51.5        6.1      127.8      125.0      1.022
 1/1/1955       50.7        6.7      130.2      125.8      1.035
 4/1/1955       51.2        6.7      130.6      127.3      1.026
 7/1/1955       51.2        6.7      131.1      128.8      1.018
10/1/1955       51.5        6.8      130.6      130.0      1.005
 1/1/1956       52.1        6.6      128.9      132.0      0.977
 4/1/1956       52.4        6.7      129.4      133.6      0.969
 7/1/1956       52.4        6.3      129.4      134.3      0.964
10/1/1956       52.5        6.5      130.8      135.4      0.966
 1/1/1957       52.1        6.5      132.3      136.2      0.971
 4/1/1957       52.2        6.1      131.8      136.4      0.966
 7/1/1957       51.8        5.9      133.7      137.0      0.976
10/1/1957       52.0        5.5      134.1      138.2      0.970
 1/1/1958       52.3        4.8      132.1      137.1      0.964
 4/1/1958       51.7        4.8      134.7      137.3      0.981
 7/1/1958       51.4        5.2      137.3      139.3      0.985
10/1/1958       51.2        5.8      139.6      140.6      0.993
 1/1/1959       51.3        6.0      139.9      141.5      0.989
 4/1/1959       51.2        6.4      141.7      142.7      0.993
 7/1/1959       51.2        5.7      141.6      142.9      0.991
10/1/1959       51.4        5.6      141.3      143.4      0.985
 1/1/1960       51.4        6.0      144.6      146.3      0.988
 4/1/1960       52.0        5.5      142.6      146.3      0.975
 7/1/1960       51.8        5.3      142.9      147.1      0.971
10/1/1960       52.2        5.1      141.1      146.8      0.961
 1/1/1961       51.9        5.0      142.8      147.8      0.966
 4/1/1961       51.5        5.1      146.9      149.9      0.980
 7/1/1961       51.4        5.3      148.8      150.4      0.989
10/1/1961       51.3        5.6      150.3      151.3      0.993
 1/1/1962       50.9        5.6      152.8      153.2      0.998
 4/1/1962       51.2        5.5      152.6      153.6      0.994
 7/1/1962       51.1        5.6      154.6      154.2      1.002
10/1/1962       51.3        5.7      155.6      155.3      1.002
 1/1/1963       51.1        5.6      156.5      156.3      1.001
 4/1/1963       51.1        5.8      158.0      156.8      1.008
 7/1/1963       50.8        5.8      161.2      157.4      1.024
10/1/1963       50.9        5.9      161.4      158.8      1.016
 1/1/1964       50.5        6.3      163.0      158.1      1.031
 4/1/1964       50.8        6.1      164.0      159.5      1.028
 7/1/1964       50.9        6.2      165.3      161.3      1.025
10/1/1964       51.3        6.1      163.6      161.7      1.012
 1/1/1965       50.7        6.7      166.0      161.9      1.025
 4/1/1965       50.7        6.8      167.0      161.9      1.031
 7/1/1965       50.5        6.8      169.9      163.1      1.042
10/1/1965       50.4        6.9      173.1      164.7      1.051
 1/1/1966       50.1        6.9      175.5      166.0      1.057
 4/1/1966       50.8        6.8      174.4      167.1      1.043
 7/1/1966       51.2        6.7      174.6      168.0      1.039
10/1/1966       51.2        6.4      175.8      168.9      1.040
 1/1/1967       51.2        6.1      177.2      170.7      1.038
 4/1/1967       51.5        6.0      177.8      172.5      1.031
 7/1/1967       51.6        6.0      178.4      173.2      1.031
10/1/1967       51.8        6.2      179.0      173.7      1.030
 1/1/1968       51.6        5.9      183.0      176.9      1.035
 4/1/1968       51.5        5.8      184.8      178.1      1.037
 7/1/1968       52.0        5.7      184.7      178.7      1.033
10/1/1968       52.3        5.8      184.3      180.0      1.024
 1/1/1969       51.9        5.6      185.8      180.2      1.031
 4/1/1969       52.4        5.3      184.3      180.2      1.022
 7/1/1969       52.8        5.1      184.4      181.0      1.019
10/1/1969       53.4        4.9      183.6      181.7      1.010
 1/1/1970       53.6        4.6      184.1      182.2      1.011
 4/1/1970       53.2        4.5      187.0      182.7      1.024
 7/1/1970       52.9        4.5      189.8      183.9      1.032
10/1/1970       52.8        4.2      188.2      183.2      1.027
 1/1/1971       51.9        4.6      193.8      185.4      1.045
 4/1/1971       51.9        4.7      194.5      186.6      1.042
 7/1/1971       51.7        5.0      196.2      187.4      1.047
10/1/1971       52.0        5.1      194.5      187.5      1.038
 1/1/1972       51.9        5.3      197.1      190.5      1.035
 4/1/1972       51.4        5.2      201.2      191.8      1.049
 7/1/1972       51.4        5.3      202.4      192.9      1.049
10/1/1972       51.6        5.6      204.0      194.9      1.047
 1/1/1973       51.2        6.2      208.7      196.9      1.060
 4/1/1973       51.0        6.1      208.9      195.9      1.066
 7/1/1973       51.5        6.1      207.0      195.8      1.057
10/1/1973       51.4        6.2      205.6      195.2      1.054
 1/1/1974       51.7        6.4      205.2      194.1      1.057
 4/1/1974       51.5        6.4      204.7      194.0      1.055
 7/1/1974       51.7        6.7      202.5      194.1      1.043
10/1/1974       51.0        5.8      204.4      193.1      1.058
 1/1/1975       50.5        5.1      206.0      194.4      1.060
 4/1/1975       49.9        5.3      209.4      196.0      1.069
 7/1/1975       49.4        6.1      211.9      195.6      1.083
10/1/1975       49.3        6.3      211.9      195.5      1.084
 1/1/1976       49.2        6.4      215.0      197.6      1.088
 4/1/1976       49.3        6.3      217.0      199.9      1.086
 7/1/1976       49.4        6.3      217.3      201.1      1.081
10/1/1976       49.3        6.1      217.9      202.4      1.076
 1/1/1977       49.0        6.5      219.0      202.3      1.083
 4/1/1977       48.9        6.8      220.1      202.7      1.086
 7/1/1977       48.8        6.8      222.3      203.9      1.090
10/1/1977       49.2        6.7      219.4      204.6      1.072
 1/1/1978       49.5        6.7      219.5      208.6      1.052
 4/1/1978       48.6        7.1      223.8      206.4      1.085
 7/1/1978       48.7        7.1      223.8      205.9      1.087
10/1/1978       48.6        7.3      225.1      206.5      1.090
 1/1/1979       49.1        7.2      222.9      207.8      1.073
 4/1/1979       48.8        7.2      222.2      206.9      1.074
 7/1/1979       48.8        7.2      222.0      206.1      1.077
10/1/1979       49.0        6.9      221.7      206.1      1.076
 1/1/1980       49.0        6.7      222.5      205.5      1.083
 4/1/1980       49.5        5.6      219.9      205.7      1.069
 7/1/1980       49.4        5.8      220.8      206.1      1.071
10/1/1980       49.1        5.7      223.2      206.6      1.080
 1/1/1981       48.1        5.5      226.7      206.2      1.099
 4/1/1981       48.5        5.0      223.7      206.1      1.085
 7/1/1981       48.1        5.0      225.7      206.5      1.093
10/1/1981       48.6        4.8      222.8      205.9      1.082
 1/1/1982       49.2        4.2      221.3      208.6      1.061
 4/1/1982       48.8        4.2      221.8      208.2      1.065
 7/1/1982       48.7        4.0      222.2      207.9      1.069
10/1/1982       48.5        3.8      224.1      208.3      1.076
 1/1/1983       48.0        3.9      226.8      209.0      1.085
 4/1/1983       47.5        4.3      232.1      208.4      1.114
 7/1/1983       47.2        4.5      234.1      207.5      1.128
10/1/1983       47.2        4.6      235.2      207.7      1.133
 1/1/1984       46.9        4.6      235.1      207.4      1.134
 4/1/1984       46.8        4.5      236.6      207.4      1.141
 7/1/1984       46.9        4.2      237.6      208.6      1.139
10/1/1984       47.1        4.1      237.9      208.3      1.142
 1/1/1985       47.0        3.7      238.3      209.0      1.140
 4/1/1985       47.0        3.7      238.9      208.7      1.145
 7/1/1985       46.9        3.8      242.1      210.3      1.151
10/1/1985       47.2        3.8      243.2      212.0      1.147
 1/1/1986       47.1        3.0      246.3      213.7      1.153
 4/1/1986       47.1        3.0      248.2      216.9      1.144
 7/1/1986       47.0        3.0      249.2      218.1      1.143
10/1/1986       47.4        3.2      248.6      219.5      1.133
 1/1/1987       47.6        3.4      247.0      218.0      1.133
 4/1/1987       47.6        4.0      248.7      217.2      1.145
 7/1/1987       47.7        4.3      248.6      217.4      1.144
10/1/1987       47.7        4.5      250.9      218.1      1.151
 1/1/1988       47.8        4.7      251.6      220.4      1.141
 4/1/1988       47.9        4.9      252.4      220.7      1.144
 7/1/1988       47.9        4.9      253.1      220.8      1.146
10/1/1988       47.7        5.0      254.5      220.2      1.156
 1/1/1989       47.4        4.7      253.3      218.6      1.159
 4/1/1989       47.0        4.5      254.2      215.9      1.177
 7/1/1989       46.8        4.3      255.7      216.0      1.184
10/1/1989       47.2        4.3      256.0      217.1      1.179
 1/1/1990       47.1        4.5      257.9      217.8      1.184
 4/1/1990       47.2        4.6      260.1      220.5      1.179
 7/1/1990       47.3        4.6      261.2      220.3      1.185
10/1/1990       47.4        4.6      258.9      218.9      1.182
 1/1/1991       47.2        4.7      259.5      219.7      1.181
 4/1/1991       47.0        4.7      263.4      222.9      1.182
 7/1/1991       46.8        4.8      265.0      224.0      1.183
10/1/1991       46.8        4.9      266.2      224.9      1.184
 1/1/1992       46.9        5.1      270.7      228.0      1.187
 4/1/1992       46.7        5.3      272.6      228.3      1.194
 7/1/1992       46.6        5.0      275.4      230.3      1.196
10/1/1992       46.3        5.1      277.5      229.4      1.210
 1/1/1993       46.4        5.0      275.4      228.6      1.205
 4/1/1993       46.3        5.2      274.2      227.8      1.204
 7/1/1993       46.4        5.3      275.3      227.9      1.208
10/1/1993       45.9        5.4      277.2      227.3      1.220
 1/1/1994       46.1        5.6      278.8      229.3      1.216
 4/1/1994       45.8        5.6      278.5      227.7      1.223
 7/1/1994       45.7        5.8      276.9      225.9      1.226
10/1/1994       45.7        5.9      279.4      226.1      1.236
 1/1/1995       46.2        6.0      278.5      226.5      1.230
 4/1/1995       46.4        6.3      278.9      226.0      1.234
 7/1/1995       46.4        6.4      279.3      226.3      1.234
10/1/1995       46.3        6.4      281.4      227.3      1.238
 1/1/1996       46.2        6.6      283.9      227.7      1.247
 4/1/1996       46.1        6.5      287.0      227.9      1.259
 7/1/1996       46.2        6.4      287.9      228.3      1.261
10/1/1996       46.2        6.5      288.1      227.4      1.267
 1/1/1997       46.4        6.6      287.1      227.6      1.261
 4/1/1997       46.3        6.7      290.5      228.9      1.269
 7/1/1997       46.4        6.8      292.9      230.2      1.273
10/1/1997       46.9        6.7      294.0      233.1      1.262
 1/1/1998       47.4        5.6      295.7      237.2      1.247
 4/1/1998       47.7        5.5      297.5      239.7      1.241
 7/1/1998       47.7        5.4      301.6      242.4      1.244
10/1/1998       47.5        5.1      303.9      242.3      1.254
 1/1/1999       47.8        5.5      306.8      245.5      1.250
 4/1/1999       47.7        5.6      307.1      244.3      1.257
 7/1/1999       47.6        5.6      309.6      244.5      1.267
10/1/1999       47.8        5.7      315.0      247.8      1.271
 1/1/2000       49.0        5.4      313.8      254.6      1.233
 4/1/2000       48.1        5.2      320.9      253.4      1.266
 7/1/2000       48.7        5.1      320.9      256.4      1.252
10/1/2000       48.4        4.8      324.1      256.1      1.265
 1/1/2001       49.1        5.2      323.0      259.5      1.245
 4/1/2001       48.2        5.3      328.9      258.4      1.272
 7/1/2001       47.9        4.8      330.9      258.6      1.280
10/1/2001       47.5        4.5      335.6      261.5      1.283
 1/1/2002       47.3        4.8      342.7      263.3      1.302
 4/1/2002       47.2        5.2      343.1      263.7      1.301
 7/1/2002       46.8        5.5      346.3      263.7      1.313
10/1/2002       46.6        6.0      346.1      263.3      1.314
 1/1/2003       46.5        5.8      349.3      264.9      1.319
 4/1/2003       46.5        5.6      354.0      269.8      1.312
 7/1/2003       46.1        5.9      362.1      271.5      1.334
10/1/2003       46.0        6.4      363.5      272.8      1.333
 1/1/2004       45.5        7.4      364.0      269.1      1.353
 4/1/2004       45.6        7.7      367.0      270.9      1.355
 7/1/2004       45.8        8.0      367.6      273.4      1.345
10/1/2004       45.6        7.9      368.1      272.6      1.350
 1/1/2005       45.2        9.5      371.9      273.5      1.360
 4/1/2005       45.2        9.6      371.1      273.4      1.358
 7/1/2005       45.2        9.7      374.0      273.1      1.369
10/1/2005       45.2       10.1      373.8      272.2      1.373
 1/1/2006       45.3       10.3      376.1      274.4      1.371
 4/1/2006       45.1       10.1      376.5      273.2      1.379
 7/1/2006       45.2       10.2      374.5      271.4      1.380
10/1/2006       45.8        9.8      377.0      278.9      1.352
 1/1/2007       46.0        9.2      376.7      278.8      1.352
 4/1/2007       45.7        9.4      379.9      276.7      1.373
 7/1/2007       45.5        9.1      384.4      276.8      1.389
10/1/2007       45.8        9.2      386.3      277.8      1.391
 1/1/2008       46.2        8.3      383.8      278.7      1.377
 4/1/2008       45.5        8.4      386.1      274.4      1.407
 7/1/2008       45.5        8.1      385.3      272.4      1.414
10/1/2008       46.0        4.6      382.0      280.4      1.362
 1/1/2009       45.2        7.3      387.1      279.9      1.383
 4/1/2009       45.2        7.8      393.5      283.1      1.390
 7/1/2009       44.8        8.8      398.5      282.0      1.413
10/1/2009       44.4        9.6      403.4      280.5      1.438
 1/1/2010       44.1       10.0      406.0      280.9      1.446
 4/1/2010       44.4        9.7      405.5      283.0      1.433
 7/1/2010       44.2       10.1      408.8      283.3      1.443
10/1/2010       43.9       10.0      410.7      281.5      1.459
 1/1/2011       44.7        9.5      408.7      284.6      1.436
 4/1/2011       44.4        9.7      409.9      281.4      1.457
 7/1/2011       44.0        9.7      410.5      279.2      1.470
10/1/2011       43.7       10.2      413.3      277.9      1.487
 1/1/2012       44.1       10.8      412.7      280.1      1.473
 4/1/2012       43.9       10.7      414.6      280.5      1.478
 7/1/2012       43.5       11.0      417.6      279.5      1.494

              Annual Average       Annualized Change (percent)
           --------------------  -------------------------------
                                                 Real    Produc-
             Wages &  Corporate      Labor     Hourly   tivity /
              Salary    Profits    Produc-    Compen-    Compen-
    Years   Accruals  After Tax     tivity     sation     sation
---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------
    1950s      51.54       6.26       2.53       3.01      -0.46
    1960s      51.37       5.90       2.44       2.21       0.22
    1970s      50.52       5.99       1.91       1.21       0.69
    1980s      47.75       4.40       1.49       0.59       0.90
    1990s      46.72       5.59       1.98       1.57       0.40
    2000s      46.26       7.39       2.61       0.99       1.61
  2010-12      44.09      10.13       1.13      -0.19       1.32

              Annual Average       Annualized Change (percent)
           --------------------  -------------------------------
                                                 Real    Produc-
             Wages &  Corporate      Labor     Hourly   tivity /
              Salary    Profits    Produc-    Compen-    Compen-
    Years*  Accruals  After Tax     tivity     sation     sation
---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------  ---------
1947-1973      51.42       6.18       2.73       2.53       0.20
1973-1979      49.66       6.50       1.26       0.91       0.35
1979-1990      47.74       4.47       1.42       0.55       0.86
1990-2000      46.83       5.64       2.27       1.58       0.68
2000-2012      45.62       8.15       2.18       0.75       1.42

* These time spans are those used in a January 2011 Monthly Labor Review article.
  All values are for 10/1 of the given year except 1947 (1/1) and 2012 (7/1).
  This was chosen because it best aligns with the NBER business cycle peaks.

Column  Series Id    Description
------  -----------  -----------
     2  WASCUR       Compensation of Employees: Wages & Salary Accruals
     3  CP           Corporate Profits After Tax
     4  PRS85006093  Nonfarm Business Labor productivity (output per hour)
     5  PRS85006153  Nonfarm Business Real hourly compensation
     6  GDP          Gross Domestic Product

Source: http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/WASCUR/
        http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/CP/
        http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/srgate (enter PRS85006093)
        http://data.bls.gov/cgi-bin/srgate (enter PRS85006153)
        http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/GDP/

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