The amount of money most workers want now to accept a job reached a record high this year, a sign that inflation is alive and well at least in the labor market.
According to the latest New York Federal Reserve employment survey released Monday, the average “reservation wage,” or the minimum acceptable salary offer to switch jobs, rose to $78,645 during the second quarter of 2023.
That’s an increase of about 8% from just a year ago and is the highest level ever in a data series that goes back to the beginning of 2014. Over the past three years, which entails the Covid era, the level has risen more than 22%. The number is significant in that wages increasingly have been recognized as a driving force in inflation. While goods prices have abated since pushing overall inflation to its highest level in more than 40 years in mid-2022, other factors continue to keep it well above the Fed’s targeted rate of 2%.
The New York Fed data is consistent with an Atlanta Fed tracker, which shows wages overall rising at a 6% annual rate but job switchers seeing 7% gains.
Employers have been trying to keep pace with the wage demands, pushing the average full-time offer up to $69,475, a 14% surge in the past year. The actual expected annual salary rose to $67,416, a gain of more than $7,000 from a year ago and also a new high.
Though there was a gap between the wage workers wanted and what was offered, satisfaction with compensation and upward mobility increased across the board.
With markets on edge over what the Fed’s next policy step will be, more signs of a tight labor market raise the likelihood that policymakers will keep interest rates higher for longer. At their July meeting, officials noted that wages “were still rising at rates above levels assessed to be consistent with the sustained achievement” of the 2% inflation goal, minutes from the meeting said.
Monday’s survey results also showed some other mixed patterns in the labor market.
Job seekers, or those who have looked for work in the previous four weeks, declined to 19.4% from 24.7% a year ago. That came as job openings fell by 738,000 to 9.58 million, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The likelihood of switching jobs fell, dropping to 10.6% from 11% a year ago, while expectations of being offered a new job also declined, to 18.7% from 21.1%.
“Goods prices have abated…” The fuck they have. Also stop blaming inflation on wage increase. Most of it was caused by opportunistic greed of those aforementioned ‘goods prices’.
My groceries for 3 people for one week was 250. That would have been 89 bucks before Covid.
Yup, and my friend working at Kroger sure as shit didn’t get a raise
Maybe they mean the shareholders’ “wages”.
Ah, a typo! They meant “good prices have abated”, never to be seen again. Ever.
No no, you see the price stopped going up, they just sell you half of what the product used to be now…I mean 1/3rd…I mean 1/10th…
‘Goods’ as in ‘not food or rent’.
Median rent right now is $2k. Rule of thumb is 1/3 or less of income spent on housing. So that’s $6k a month. With comes out to 72k a year, pretty close.
All these articles act like workers have become so uppity and demanding but all they want is to live reasonably.
72k per year… before tax. I make $85k per year in Colorado, but only take home ~61k (~$2550 per pay check, 24 paychecks per year)
All of our issues right now circle back to housing prices.
Not really, groceries are expensive af too
Every industry is causing inflation via greed rn
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Considering that Elon musk has made $208 billion dollars in the last 7 years that might have something to do with it.
That’s enough money to give every single adult 18 years of age or older in America $1,000 and he would still have at least $40 billion left over, not to mention the 11 billion dollars he started with.
Yeah but that’s HIS money that HE worked HARD for!
/S
I can’t fault a guy for doing (208,000,000,000/7 = 29.71 billion a year / ($7.25*2000 hrs a year * 50 years = $725,000 a lifetime) = 40,979 minimum wage earner’s entire lifetime earnings worth of work a year for 7 straight years on average, can I?
Haven’t read the article but the snippet says it’s the “amount to get someone to switch jobs.” I’m assuming this only applies to a small segment of the population but this news outlet is writing it as if McDonalds employees are demanding $80k salaries.
Yes, or say if workers keep demanding, inflation will rise as if we’re not asking for more literally just trying to keep up. Between rent, insurance, transportation, and groceries, we went from saving a ton every month and are now paycheck to paycheck.
My husband asked for 75 recently at an interview and was scoffed at and offered 60. We can’t budget enough to survive on that in our area. We want to be able to go to the doctor once in a while.
$2k a month?
Here I am charging $675 a month. Damn! I should raise my rent. I’m kidding. I’m able to cover the house bills. No reason to raise the rent. But damn! $2 k wow!
If you actually are a landowner, I would be careful saying that on lemmy. Lots of communists around these parts
What’s old is new again. New red scare, same as the old red scare.
Fear mongering about an other you don’t understand is as American as apple pie. 😑
Or just use it as block bait, when they rage at you, block block block
Capitalists believe they can own some land.
Communists believe they already own all of it.
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Nice and plump, they should be taxed at a higher rate. Make Exxon repave the broken streets.
We should punitively fine big oil out of existence. The industry needs to be put into managed decline anyways, may as well do it at bankruptcy court
Stop saying this. That means jack shit since that will clearly go up with inflation.
Corporate profit margins are at record highs. This shows greed. They knew there was an expectation of higher inflation so took advantage of it by increasing prices even when their costs did not increase.
“That’s an increase of about 8% from last year.”
Or as I like to say 1% less than yearly inflation.
I’m in my thirties begging for more than 28,000/y
Seriously I should probably kill myself or become a martyr.
If you’re poor living paycheck to paycheck you essentially just exist to pay tax for war and death. …maybe a few roads if you’re in a predominantly wealthy area.
So for real… It’s more humble and respectable to kill myself then work to pay others to kill other people for me so I can have the “freedom” to be a slave for the war machine. The other choice is claw at and rape other people’s lives working the American game to get rich until I am able to ignore that the modern worlds still run on slavery and manipulation. no good options.
That’s why the youth are hungry to get at all the crooks. Politicians, mob criminals, CEO etc… They all represent the same evil and same tactics.
No one cares if you’re a street kinping or Jeff bezos. You are the enemy Of humanity full stop.
I just want to say, you’re not alone. Inflation is still charging ahead, groceries are expensive, daycare is expensive, and the news keeps saying it’s our fault. It’s not. You should get more than 28k. I don’t think anyone working full time should be below 50k plus benefits. If you are having a hard time making ends meet and feeling that pressure it changes how you see the world and how you see other people. It almost drove me mad.
I hope you find some support to get through the rough patch. Hang in there bro, we’re rooting for you too.
There’s no rough patch, man. This is it. This is the new reality.
The only thing stopping this train is outright revolt, and I don’t see that happening any time soon. Although, the more people get pushed to their limits, the more likely it becomes.
That’s why the powers that be are inflaming the two political sides against each other, so we have the second north vs south (figuratively) revolution instead of the more appropriate French Revolution.
Seems like getting a different job would be a lot easier than starting a violent revolt.
Like, that’s $14 an hr. Any call center will hire you at more than that. If you just actually go to work every day and try even remotely, you’ll be a supervisor in 6 months. Most of them won’t even drug test you.
Or like, you know, vote for a higher min wage and encourage others to do that too.
Just seems like a solvable problem to me. Violence being an inevitable outcome seems like a big stretch
🙏
Please do not become a martyr, there are tons of people that do this every day and unfortunately due to our shitty planet, their cries for help are dampened even after their passing.
I know life seems like it may suck really bad, believe me, I’ve been there, several times. Just hang in there, there is always an opportunity out of this shithole.
Life isn’t about money either, I myself have spent most of my life in poverty having to fight for what I’ve had. Think about the possessions you’d leave behind that money cannot buy. Friends, family, pets, memories. You can’t take what you physically own with you, but you can’t take those things either.
If you need someone to talk to, I am here for you. If you are in distress, please PLEASE seek professional help. I and many others love you and are very proud of you, and even if we do not know you and have never met, we would feel deep regret and sorrow for your loss.
I appreciate it 🙏
No problem, any decent human being should be willing to offer an ear. If you have anything that needs to be said, my messages are always open. Stay safe friend!
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You do get to play a me up man ship.
Your unnecessary details indicate a deep bitterness with several facets.
Person you are responding to wants to die and this is what you feel is an appropriate response.
You spread your misery because you want the world to feel your pain. Karma is at play.
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Why would you say this to someone contemplating suicide?
I am sorry for your situation, I truly am, but you don’t know what they are going through either. You did not do anything to help the situation, only exacerbate it. No shame.
Both these dudes are unwell, why are you expecting some sort of decorum from one of em?
So I’m supposed to tolerate one person who is unwell attacking someone who is contemplating suicide?
“Suck it up, kid, it could be worse” helps no one, it only makes the situation worse. All that person hears is that it can get worse.
I’ve been in this situation in my life, I know exactly how it is. You cannot think clearly, but that does not give you the go ahead to try and make someone else’s pain seem trivial compared to your own. If I heard what that guy said to the person above when I was at my lowest, the taste of a barrel would have probably been the last thing I experienced before I ended my own life.
I’m not disabled, I’ve experienced much worse. I’ve had my life utterly destroyed in front of my very eyes. Imagine watching everything you know come to an end and as much as you’ve wanted to trade your own life for theirs, you cannot. I’ve watched childhood friends that I’ve known for twenty years die from fentanyl overdose, I’ve watched one of my closest and most special family members get hit by a bus, all while I barely had a pot to piss in. Unlike that guy, I didn’t have family to bail my ass out of a shitty situation. Had to do it on my own. The very thing that saved my life, was a random guy online that did the very thing that I’m trying to at least attempt to provide to the other person. Thanks to that guy, my life didn’t end with a swiss roll filled with lead.
I would never have tried to lessen someone else’s pain in the situation of that person above the guy we are talking about. Yeah, it sucks that you got hit by some jackass because you were in a shitty position, guess what?
it could be worse…
How do you think that makes him feel? That did nothing for me, and it did sure as shit nothing for him except possibly make him seethe, tough luck dude. Sorry he is so bitter, but yep, could be worse couldn’t it? Like that’s going to matter if the other guy just decides to eat lead or meet pavement.
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I am not pushing my morals on you, please do not make that mistake. Once again, I am sorry for the situation you are going through, I know I have said it many times but I really am being genuine, but there is a distinction between pushing morals and preventing needless destruction. Not everyone reacts to statements like that the same way. We have no idea how fragile the state that he is in. Most people do not even speak about it, I never told anyone about it until right when I was about to do it, and it was basically a manifesto telling this world how much I hated it and how everyone can go fuck themselves. Someone replied and I owe my life to them. I didn’t say people don’t feel alone, I said people are not alone. At my lowest point in life, I definitely felt alone, but I wasn’t, I understand what you meant.
I agree with a lot of what you said, just be more mindful. Like I said, I hate doing this because I know how you guys are feeling because I have also been there, but we all can strive to do better. Maybe I should have been more understanding of your situation, I am sorry if what I said seemed like an attack but your statement came off very blunt to me.
I am sorry for what I said and did, and I hope you can forgive me, I just didn’t want to see someone else hurt themselves. If you need someone to talk to then I am here for you as well. I will listen.
This whole situation made me feel like shit and totally fucking ruined my day. That other guy deleted his comments. What he did was not right, but I really hope he is okay.
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Because that was not the intention behind your message, you made intentions very clear in the first word;
try
Nobody is alone, but what you said did not convey that message, your message was about “it could be worse, look what I’m going through”
I am truly sorry for your circumstances, and I hope your situation gets better, I really and truly do, but you need to either work on your communication skills, or you need to do some soul searching. I HATE doing this dude, it really fucking kills me because all I want is to at least the small ray of sunshine in everyone who I meets’ lives, but you really need to hear this.
People in need don’t need a why, they don’t need a comparison. People in need, need support.
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My wife and I average $69k/year each and we’re doing…just okay-ish. We can pay our mortgage (bought 12 years ago, couldn’t afford our house if we bought it today), one nice 5 year-old car, some student loan debt, bills, some entertainment and eating out occasionally, some tech like tablets and phones so they aren’t over five years old. But we can’t pay for house repairs, a major card breakdown/repair, or any vacation that is more than a day’s drive away. We can probably restructure our finances to do be a little better off, but for the life of me, I don’t know how family that is making less than $80k gets by, let alone $30k, or even less.
There are a lot of optimizations you can do. For example, when I didn’t make a lot of money, all of my entertainment was free. My credit card points would fly me to a cheap location like South East Asia where the prices are actually lower.
I also got bank bonuses although that was more relevant when my bank wasn’t paying me 5% for just keeping the money there.
My stocks also pay me dividends, and I saved enough for the majority of them to be in a taxable account.
How much money did you have in the bank to justify the bank paying bonuses? How’d you get the money to buy stocks?
You only need $15,000 for the bonuses
I got money to buy stocks when I worked and lived with my dad. Of course, not everyone has this option, but not everyone lives in SF bay area so the expenses can be low in other places
Honey, most people never have $15k in the bank at any point in their lives. Congratulations, you are a lucky kid who makes good money!
People who have $138K household income do, who is the person I replied to
Talk about being out of touch.
Well, you see, the secret to being frugal with your money is to have enough money to just live of the interest and the dividends! Stupid poor people, just optimize your money by having more of it and you’re all set!
The person I’m replying to makes $69K
In what world is he poor?
How are they out of touch when they’re giving advice to someone bringing home $140k a year? These are some solid strategies for maximizing your earnings when you have that kind of income but find yourself just doing okay budget wise.
My income was exactly $70,000 before tax, basically the same as the person I’m replying to
What’s adding to the problem is that more and more companies are outsourcing even basic internal functions to contractors so they don’t have to pay for 401ks and benefits.
It’s getting harder and harder to find full time employment and companies simply will not hire or pretend they are hiring by offering shit jobs with shitty pay and pretending they hired someone followed by listing the same job 3 weeks later.
Eat the rich.
No mention of corporate greed, I note. Most people aren’t looking to get wealthy, they just want someplace to live not horribly far from work, a reliable way to get to work, to eat moderately decent food, pay our bills, and have a little fun. Corporations are raising prices on all of those, then they complain when we just want to stop treading water.
You nailed it. Most folks just wanna get by without worrying about if they’ll still have a roof over their head in a month. Little things to make life just a bit easier. A shorter commute. A car that doesn’t guzzle gas getting to work. Some time off to rest and relax so they can come back stronger.
But no. We’re worked ‘til we die.
Remote work addresses like, every single one of those things. Strongly recommend it.
Remote work just isn’t feasible for some jobs. Hard to be a carpenter and work remotely.
It’s not for me. It’s not for everyone. I’ve tried.
“The number is significant in that
wageshousing prices increasingly have been recognized as a driving force in inflation.”FTFY
My wife and I together make about $85k a year. We struggle, no doubt. Not as much as we could, but to say we’ll be able to retire in 35 years is a joke. We’ve never been able to save. Not because we don’t want to or haven’t tried, but shit is just so god damned expensive.
Must be all that avocado toast
“I don’t work for free I am barely giving a fuck away”
- RTJ
Not just pretty words.
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I feel that working 50+ hours weeks just to hit 50k with the overtime. Still have to budget fairly well to save anything.
i bet no matter how high the minimum wage is, unless government make a law to ilegalize price gauging , we can have 1 trillion / year and landlord will increase the price accordingly, you need a law to punish such illegal price manipulation at first place before raising national min wage
Companies should be grateful it’s only $80k
Hopefully workers can get it.
There’s no way I’d change jobs for less than 6 figures.
I’m currently sitting on a soft offer to take on a manager role at my old job. The offer was $92k, I’m pushing for 100k. If not, I’ll keep my happy ass as an independent contractor. The only reason I’m willing to take the pay cut is for a work-life balance, and benefits.
