Real Earnings report, February Reports 2023

The BLS has released the latest Real Earnings Report.

All employees

Real average hourly earnings for all employees decreased 0.2 percent from December to January, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This result stems from an increase of 0.3 percent in average hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.5 percent in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U).

Real average weekly earnings increased 0.7 percent over the month due to the change in real average hourly earnings combined with a 0.9-percent increase in the average workweek.  

Real average hourly earnings decreased 1.8 percent, seasonally adjusted, from January 2022 to January 2023. The change in real average hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.3 percent in the average workweek resulted in a 1.5-percent decrease in real average weekly earnings over this period.

Treading water is the best way to describe the earnings report. The hourly rate is -3¢ lower than February 2020, with the weekly earnings at $2.45 more.

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I use February 2020, as the baseline. Everything thereafter was distorted by the type of jobs available, etc. 

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Real Earnings are adjusted for inflation. The question remains... what is the inflation outlook?