Regardless of the politics, the evidence simply does not connect widespread economic difficulties to “trade with China” or competition with “cheap labor.” The evidence also fails to support the widely repeated claim that the typical American worker’s real wages have not budged in decades. Although there is no single “right” way to measure income growth for the past few decades, the reality is that most of the measures show the typical worker is much better off. Essentially, out of every 10 possible ways to measure income growth from the 1970s to 2019, 9 confirm that income has grown steadily and healthily. Virtually any way we look at it, the average worker is better off now than in the 1970s – much better off, in fact.
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Regardless of the politics, the evidence simply does not connect widespread economic difficulties to “trade with China” or competition with “cheap labor.” The evidence also fails to support the widely repeated claim that the typical American worker’s real wages have not budged in decades. Although there is no single “right” way to measure income growth for the past few decades, the reality is that most of the measures show the typical worker is much better off. Essentially, out of every 10 possible ways to measure income growth from the 1970s to 2019, 9 confirm that income has grown steadily and healthily. Virtually any way we look at it, the average worker is better off now than in the 1970s – much better off, in fact.
