March 2021 Real Earnings — 2021-04-13

Real average hourly earnings for all employees decreased 0.8 percent from February to March, seasonally adjusted, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. This result stems from a decrease of 0.1 percent in average hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.6 percent in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U). Real average weekly earnings increased 0.1 percent over the month due to the decrease in real average hourly earnings being more than offset by an increase of 0.9 percent in the average workweek. Real average hourly earnings increased 1.5 percent, seasonally adjusted, from March 2020 to March 2021. The change in real average hourly earnings combined with an increase of 2.3 percent in the average workweek resulted in a 3.9-percent increase in real average weekly earnings over this period. Real average hourly earnings for production and nonsupervisory employees decreased 0.6 percent from February to March, seasonally adjusted.