Comments for It's So Hard to Get Good Help at http://www.cepr.net , comment 1 to 1 out of 1 comments http://www.cepr.net Sun, 26 May 2013 01:19:44 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.3 http://www.cepr.net/index.php/blogs/cepr-blog/its-so-hard-to-get-good-help#comment-14939 Dean is absolutely right. I went ahead and deflated the earnings data with the core PCE deflator. Here’s what we get: http://img607.imageshack.us/img607/8682/realmfgearnings.png So earnings growth the in manufacturing sector is actually negative in inflation-adjusted terms right now. That doesn’t bode too well for the whole skills-shortage argument. Maybe in the late-1990s, when real earnings in the manufacturing sector were increasing close to 2 percent in year-over-year terms, that argument would fly, but it’s beyond nonsensical at this point – which means that we will probably continue to hear this argument for the foreseeable future from the likes of the WAPO, WSJ, etc… - JSeydl Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:10:11 +0100