Income Apportionment (Pie)
Smallest slice on record
Historical Record Low Detected
At 53.1%, worker compensation share is matching the 79-year low reported by NBC News and BLS post-WWII tracking data.
Capital / Profit Share
46.9%
Non-labor income & corporate gross operating surplus
Decoupling Compensation Gap
$4,250
Annual wage lag per median full-time worker
BLS Historical Reference Benchmarks:
- 1970s Peak: Labor reached ~64.5% of total gross economic output.
- 1990–2005 Average: Maintained ~59.8% stability before sharp secular decline.
- Current Period (BLS / NBC News): Tumbled to ~53.1% – 53.8% (lowest in 79 yrs).
Economic Model Drivers
53.4%
Direct baseline proportion of gross output paid in compensation.
+2.8%
Economic output produced per worker hour.
+0.4%
Inflation-adjusted take-home wages + employer benefits.
14.2%
Post-pandemic sustained corporate profit margins as a share of sales.
3.1%
Price index eating into wage adjustments versus nominal profit gains.
Decoupling Mechanics: When Productivity Growth (+2.8%) outpaces Real Wage Growth (+0.4%), the surplus is absorbed by corporate markups and capital return, pulling worker slice down to and leaving an estimated $4,250 annual divergence.