The Blubber

The past three years have seen an average annual inflation rate of 5.6%, the highest three-year average since the early 1980s recession.

With this in mind, we analyzed data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), and Redfin to see how salaries have kept up with inflation over the last five years and to project future financial trends if current conditions persist.

Key findings:

• 97% of occupations have seen salaries fail to keep up with inflation over the past five years.
• On average, salaries have decreased by 8.2% in the last five years.
• Jobs in sanitation and environmental conservation have experienced the largest salary cuts, with an average decrease of 10.4%.
• Despite falling salaries, house prices have increased by an average of 56% over the same period.

Future Earnings Projection:
The table below shows data for each occupation, including:

• Current median salary: Based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Outlook Handbook.
• Five-year median salary change, adjusted for inflation: Using historical inflation rates from 2013-2023 as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Consumer Price Index to measure changes in purchasing power over the last decade.
• Projected median salary in 2028: Forecasts based on past salary data, inflation rates, and housing costs to estimate future earnings and purchasing power up to 2033.

Agriculture and Food Production:

• Salaries in agriculture and food production have fallen by an average of 7.4% over the past five years.
• Agriculture and food scientists have been particularly hard hit, facing a salary decrease of 9.24% in the last five years.