WLWT: Wages and inflation increasing nationwide
UC economics professor Michael Jones says companies have been raising pay for years
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, wages were up 1.5% in the third quarter of this year, an increase of 4.2% from this time in 2020.
In a recent conversation with WLWT's Courtis Fuller, Michael Jones, an associate professor of economics at the University of Cincinnati's Carl H. Lindner College of Business, said the trend of corporations raising their internal minimum wage is not a fresh development but started with Amazon in 2018. Jones noted other companies had to match these measures to attract the same talent.
“Now if you are a smaller company, like a restaurant, in which labor costs make up a large percentage of your business, this is making it very difficult to compete,” Jones said.
Jones also said inflation is outpacing wage increases, leading to purchasing power being lower than it was a year ago.
Featured image: UC economics professor Michael Jones. Screenshot courtesy of WLWT video.
Impact Lives Here
The University of Cincinnati is leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. Our faculty, staff and students are saving lives, changing outcomes and bending the future in our city's direction. Next Lives Here.
Related Stories
Upstream river flooding becoming more common
January 3, 2025
WVXU talks to UC Assistant Professor Dongmei Feng about her new study in Nature examining water flow in the world's rivers. She found that flooding is becoming more common in upstream sections of rivers.
UC partners with Cincinnati Public Schools on $3.75M initiative
January 3, 2025
A partnership between the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS), Central State University in Ohio (CSU) and local mental health agencies has been formed to address the growing mental health needs of K-12 students in the region. The program is federally funded by a $3.75M grant from the Department of Education.
UC grad wins fitness prize in Miss America prelims
January 2, 2025
UC College of Arts and Sciences graduate Stephanie Finoti won the fitness preliminary of the Miss America scholarship pageant.