June 21, 2004 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Real earnings drop in May 2004

Real average weekly earnings decreased by 0.4 percent from April to May after seasonal adjustment.

Composition of change in real average weekly earnings of production or nonsupervisory workers on private nonfarm payrolls, May 2004
[Chart data—TXT]

A 0.3-percent increase in average hourly earnings was more than offset by a 0.7-percent rise in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). Average weekly hours were unchanged.

Average weekly earnings rose by 2.5 percent, seasonally adjusted, from May 2003 to May 2004. After deflation by the CPI-W, average weekly earnings declined by 0.5 percent.

These earnings data are from the Current Employment Statistics Program. These data are for production and nonsupervisory workers in private nonfarm establishments. Earnings data are preliminary and subject to revision. Find out more in "Real Earnings in May 2004" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 04-1070.