Figure B2
The 95th percentile continues to pull away from middle- and low-wage workers: Cumulative change in real hourly wages of white workers, by wage percentile, 1979–2020
| year | 10th | 50th | 95th |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1980 | -6.5% | -0.3% | -0.1% |
| 1981 | -7.9% | -2.7% | -1.5% |
| 1982 | -11.4% | -1.1% | 3.7% |
| 1983 | -14.2% | -1.9% | 4.8% |
| 1984 | -15.6% | -0.7% | 6.6% |
| 1985 | -16.6% | -1.0% | 9.2% |
| 1986 | -15.9% | 1.9% | 12.3% |
| 1987 | -15.7% | 1.7% | 17.0% |
| 1988 | -15.7% | 2.2% | 24.9% |
| 1989 | -16.3% | 1.9% | 10.3% |
| 1990 | -14.5% | 2.1% | 14.0% |
| 1991 | -13.3% | 3.7% | 10.6% |
| 1992 | -11.4% | 2.2% | 9.9% |
| 1993 | -12.2% | 0.7% | 11.5% |
| 1994 | -13.1% | -0.5% | 16.7% |
| 1995 | -13.8% | 1.1% | 15.9% |
| 1996 | -14.2% | 2.1% | 17.4% |
| 1997 | -10.6% | 3.9% | 19.4% |
| 1998 | -5.4% | 7.6% | 23.0% |
| 1999 | -5.0% | 9.2% | 27.1% |
| 2000 | -2.8% | 10.5% | 29.4% |
| 2001 | 0.4% | 13.8% | 34.1% |
| 2002 | 1.1% | 14.8% | 37.0% |
| 2003 | -0.2% | 15.6% | 36.9% |
| 2004 | -1.8% | 16.1% | 38.3% |
| 2005 | -2.7% | 13.3% | 38.4% |
| 2006 | -2.7% | 13.5% | 40.0% |
| 2007 | -0.5% | 14.1% | 42.7% |
| 2008 | -2.5% | 14.8% | 40.7% |
| 2009 | -1.6% | 17.0% | 46.1% |
| 2010 | -1.9% | 16.1% | 47.1% |
| 2011 | -3.3% | 13.8% | 45.1% |
| 2012 | -3.9% | 14.5% | 49.1% |
| 2013 | -3.5% | 13.8% | 52.6% |
| 2014 | -1.9% | 13.8% | 50.1% |
| 2015 | -0.1% | 17.0% | 59.2% |
| 2016 | 3.5% | 18.0% | 60.6% |
| 2017 | 5.9% | 19.5% | 65.6% |
| 2018 | 4.7% | 20.0% | 76.7% |
| 2019 | 7.7% | 22.2% | 85.4% |
| 2020 | 16.3% | 30.1% | 127.0% |
Notes: Shaded areas denote recessions. The xth-percentile wage is the wage at which x% of wage earners earn less and (100−x)% earn more.
Source: Economic Policy Institute Current Population Survey Extracts, Version 1.0.15, (2021), https://microdata.epi.org.
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