BLS Employment Cost Index rose 1.1% in 1st Qtr: bls.gov/news.release/e…
This is completely in line with wage increases just over 4% in past several months - which, if productivity stays strong, is NOT inflationary

See my new The Brookings Institution brief on how Biden and Trump would address major workforce challenges (skills/good jobs, shrinking workforce, AI dislocations): brookings.edu/articles/3-cri…

Helping the City Colleges of Chicago improve their workforce development programs: air.org/sites/default/…

Here is my new Forbes column on the BLS March Jobs Report:
forbes.com/sites/harryhol…

BLS jobs rpt: bls.gov/news.release/e…
Blockbuster payroll growth at 303K; wage increases 4.2% annualized, stay on recent path. Labor force part grows (mostly for men) to 62.7. Huge payroll growth continues and labor force keeps up (thx to immigration) while wage growth moderate

I share this view. William Julius Wilson got a lot right about structural economic and social factors that hurt Blacks - unfortunate that he is not in vogue. And racism matters but its effects are often overstated; DEI can be over the top.

Here is a friendly debate with my mentor, Richard Freeman, about the extent to which good times in the labor market will last: wsj.com/economy/jobs/w… Hi productivity will help, but I am still a bit more pessimistic than he is.

My monthly Forbes column on the jobs report:forbes.com/sites/harryhol…
Overall, the numbers are more moderate than the headline payroll number suggests.

In the past 12 months, Biden's approval has dropped by 5 pp: projects.fivethirtyeight.com/biden-approval…
Trump's has risen by the same amount: projects.fivethirtyeight.com/biden-approval…
Not yet time to panic, but its getting closer...

As a kid, my chore on my dad's chicken farm was to weigh and sort eggs into the size categories (jumbo, extra large, large, medium...): washingtonpost.com/food/2024/02/2… Glad the Wash Post and Aaron Hutcherson is covering this important issue!

Uptick in productivity can generate real wage growth, esp. in tight labor market: nytimes.com/2024/02/14/bus…

Suozzi victory shows that Dems can win in purple districts, even when immigration is top issue: washingtonpost.com/politics/2024/…
Senate Dems and Biden can hopefully do the same

what's going on with the ever-shrinking workweek? Avg weekly hours are down to 34.1, about what it was at bottom of covid recession.
(note: y-axis in chart doesn't start at zero)

Important and insightful work on work from home and the motherhood penalty in the labor market by Emma Harrington (Emma Harrington)and Matt Kahn (@mattkahn1966)

Here is my monthly Forbes column on the very strong BLS employment report for Jan '24: forbes.com/sites/harryhol…

BLS report: Huge payroll bump of 353K, and Dec revised up to 333K. Hourly wages also up 6.6% annualized, 5.6% last 2 mts. But weekly hours and earnings down a bit. With very hi productivity growth, still not too concerned about wage inflation: bls.gov/news.release/e…

Another excellent productivity report: bls.gov/news.release/p…
Productivity rose 2.7% over the year over the year, and labor costs rose just 2.3%. High productivity is helping to pay for higher wages and creating real wage gains while inflation moderates.

The House action on the Child Tax Credit is a very small step in the right direction, which we should welcome while working for more: washingtonpost.com/business/2024/…