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Workers' share hit record lows on key measures. Pay has still grown.

BLS and gross-income measures are at lows. National income isn't quite. "Share of capital" is wrong, and a smaller share needn't mean smaller pay.

View from the GalleryUpdated Nov 6, 202638 sources

Update,

BLS released third-quarter data on Nov. 5. The nonfarm business labor share was 53.0%, the lowest in the series, and the annual update raised Q2 from 52.8% to 53.3%3,4. Since 2000's average, real hourly compensation is up 25.6% and output per hour 68.3%, by our calculation23,22. Real hourly compensation rose 1.0% over four quarters, so we removed the line that it had stalled3.

Unusual Whales · @unusual_whales · on XThe post we're checking
Workers’ share of America’s income is at a record low, per FORTUNE
Screenshot of the post on X. Shown for commentary.
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Workers’ share of America’s income is at a record low, per FORTUNE
Posted Sep 7, 2026201.9K views, 3,009 likes and 414 reposts on X as of Nov. 3See the original

The bottom line

BLS and gross-income measures hit record lows in the latest quarters, back to 1947. Employee pay's share of national income was lower in 1948 and 1950, unless proprietors count. "Share of capital" is wrong. Real hourly compensation, benefits included, is up 25.6% since 2000 by our calculation, and rose 1.0% over the past year. How much is accounting remains disputed.

BLS's labor share is at its lowest since 1947

45%50%55%60%65%70%1947195219571962196719721977198219871992199720022007201220172022Q1 1947: 65.5%Q3 2000: 63.3%2020 spike: 58.9%Q3 2026: 53.0%

Percent of output, as published. Includes BLS's estimate of proprietors' pay.

Quarterly, dated to each quarter's first month. BLS nonfarm business labor share through 2020 as published17. From 2021 on, our conversion of the revised index4, with Q3 from3. BEA employee compensation as a share of gross domestic income, by our calculation6,7. Both are gross of depreciation.
Show the numbers
MonthBLS: nonfarm businessBEA: share of income
Jan. 194765.5%53.7%
April 194764.6%53.7%
July 194765.7%53.6%
Oct. 194764.8%53.4%
Jan. 194864.9%52.9%
April 194864.8%51.9%
July 194864.8%52.6%
Oct. 194864.3%52.6%
Jan. 194964.5%53.3%
April 194964.6%53.4%
July 194963.4%53.0%
Oct. 194963.7%53.4%
Jan. 195063.0%52.9%
April 195063.4%53.0%
July 195062.6%52.8%
Oct. 195062.7%53.3%
Jan. 195162.4%53.7%
April 195163.2%54.3%
July 195162.1%54.2%
Oct. 195162.7%54.1%
Jan. 195263.0%55.1%
April 195263.5%55.1%
July 195263.9%55.1%
Oct. 195263.7%55.3%
Jan. 195363.8%55.3%
April 195364.0%55.7%
July 195364.1%55.9%
Oct. 195364.9%56.5%
Jan. 195465.1%55.7%
April 195464.6%55.5%
July 195464.1%55.0%
Oct. 195463.7%54.8%
Jan. 195562.6%54.2%
April 195562.7%54.4%
July 195563.0%54.6%
Oct. 195563.2%54.7%
Jan. 195664.3%55.1%
April 195664.9%55.3%
July 195665.0%55.2%
Oct. 195665.0%55.3%
Jan. 195764.5%55.3%
April 195765.0%55.3%
July 195764.6%55.3%
Oct. 195765.1%55.6%
Jan. 195865.8%55.5%
April 195865.0%55.1%
July 195864.9%55.1%
Oct. 195863.8%54.6%
Jan. 195964.1%54.9%
April 195963.9%54.6%
July 195963.9%54.9%
Oct. 195964.4%55.0%
Jan. 196064.2%55.1%
April 196065.5%55.6%
July 196065.2%55.5%
Oct. 196066.2%55.6%
Jan. 196165.9%55.5%
April 196164.9%55.2%
July 196164.3%55.1%
Oct. 196164.2%54.8%
Jan. 196263.9%54.9%
April 196264.3%55.2%
July 196263.6%55.0%
Oct. 196263.8%54.8%
Jan. 196363.9%54.9%
April 196363.7%54.8%
July 196362.8%54.8%
Oct. 196363.2%54.8%
Jan. 196462.4%54.7%
April 196462.6%54.9%
July 196462.5%55.0%
Oct. 196463.4%55.1%
Jan. 196562.5%54.6%
April 196562.5%54.6%
July 196561.7%54.7%
Oct. 196561.3%54.8%
Jan. 196661.4%54.9%
April 196662.1%55.5%
July 196662.3%55.9%
Oct. 196662.1%56.0%
Jan. 196762.1%56.2%
April 196762.5%56.2%
July 196762.5%56.2%
Oct. 196762.6%56.3%
Jan. 196862.2%56.5%
April 196862.0%56.5%
July 196862.6%56.7%
Oct. 196863.1%56.8%
Jan. 196962.7%56.9%
April 196963.5%57.2%
July 196964.0%57.7%
Oct. 196964.9%58.2%
Jan. 197065.1%58.7%
April 197064.2%58.4%
July 197064.0%58.2%
Oct. 197064.2%58.1%
Jan. 197163.0%57.8%
April 197163.0%57.7%
July 197162.7%57.5%
Oct. 197163.4%57.3%
Jan. 197263.4%57.8%
April 197262.7%57.8%
July 197262.8%57.4%
Oct. 197263.0%57.0%
Jan. 197362.9%57.3%
April 197363.0%57.4%
July 197363.9%57.3%
Oct. 197364.1%57.1%
Jan. 197464.3%57.6%
April 197463.8%57.8%
July 197464.4%57.8%
Oct. 197463.6%57.7%
Jan. 197563.0%57.4%
April 197562.4%56.9%
July 197561.8%56.2%
Oct. 197561.8%56.3%
Jan. 197661.4%56.3%
April 197661.3%56.5%
July 197661.6%56.6%
Oct. 197661.6%56.8%
Jan. 197761.5%56.8%
April 197761.5%56.5%
July 197761.2%56.4%
Oct. 197762.0%56.5%
Jan. 197862.9%56.9%
April 197861.6%56.3%
July 197861.6%56.5%
Oct. 197861.5%56.6%
Jan. 197962.6%56.9%
April 197962.4%57.0%
July 197962.6%57.4%
Oct. 197963.0%57.5%
Jan. 198062.8%57.8%
April 198063.4%58.3%
July 198063.8%57.7%
Oct. 198063.4%56.9%
Jan. 198162.1%56.8%
April 198162.7%56.8%
July 198162.2%56.2%
Oct. 198162.8%56.6%
Jan. 198263.9%57.0%
April 198263.6%56.6%
July 198263.7%56.7%
Oct. 198263.4%56.7%
Jan. 198362.9%56.6%
April 198361.9%56.3%
July 198361.0%56.2%
Oct. 198361.1%56.0%
Jan. 198461.4%55.5%
April 198461.1%55.4%
July 198461.2%55.5%
Oct. 198461.3%55.5%
Jan. 198561.2%55.4%
April 198561.3%55.6%
July 198560.9%55.6%
Oct. 198561.7%56.1%
Jan. 198661.5%56.2%
April 198661.7%56.4%
July 198662.1%56.6%
Oct. 198662.8%57.0%
Jan. 198763.1%56.9%
April 198762.7%56.6%
July 198762.9%56.3%
Oct. 198762.8%56.6%
Jan. 198863.2%56.4%
April 198863.3%56.5%
July 198863.1%56.3%
Oct. 198862.7%56.2%
Jan. 198962.6%56.1%
April 198961.9%56.2%
July 198961.7%56.3%
Oct. 198962.2%56.8%
Jan. 199062.3%56.8%
April 199062.4%56.9%
July 199062.5%57.1%
Oct. 199063.1%57.1%
Jan. 199162.7%56.8%
April 199162.5%56.8%
July 199162.3%56.9%
Oct. 199162.6%57.2%
Jan. 199262.9%57.3%
April 199262.7%57.3%
July 199262.5%57.4%
Oct. 199262.0%57.3%
Jan. 199361.7%57.3%
April 199362.1%57.1%
July 199361.7%57.1%
Oct. 199361.6%56.5%
Jan. 199460.8%56.3%
April 199461.0%56.3%
July 199461.0%56.0%
Oct. 199460.5%55.8%
Jan. 199560.6%55.9%
April 199560.5%55.8%
July 199560.7%55.5%
Oct. 199560.7%55.5%
Jan. 199660.7%55.2%
April 199660.5%55.1%
July 199660.5%55.2%
Oct. 199660.5%55.0%
Jan. 199761.0%55.0%
April 199760.4%55.0%
July 199760.3%54.8%
Oct. 199761.0%55.1%
Jan. 199861.6%55.6%
April 199862.0%55.6%
July 199862.0%55.6%
Oct. 199861.9%55.8%
Jan. 199962.1%55.8%
April 199961.9%55.9%
July 199961.7%56.0%
Oct. 199961.7%56.2%
Jan. 200063.8%56.7%
April 200062.4%56.4%
July 200063.3%56.6%
Oct. 200062.8%56.7%
Jan. 200164.2%56.7%
April 200163.1%56.4%
July 200162.8%56.3%
Oct. 200162.4%56.7%
Jan. 200261.4%56.1%
April 200261.6%56.0%
July 200261.3%55.8%
Oct. 200261.3%55.4%
Jan. 200360.8%55.3%
April 200360.9%55.5%
July 200360.3%55.4%
Oct. 200360.4%55.5%
Jan. 200459.9%55.0%
April 200460.1%55.0%
July 200460.5%55.1%
Oct. 200459.9%54.8%
Jan. 200559.2%54.4%
April 200559.2%54.1%
July 200558.9%54.1%
Oct. 200558.8%53.5%
Jan. 200659.1%53.6%
April 200658.7%53.2%
July 200658.7%53.1%
Oct. 200659.2%53.7%
Jan. 200759.9%54.5%
April 200759.3%54.1%
July 200758.8%54.6%
Oct. 200759.0%55.0%
Jan. 200859.8%55.4%
April 200858.9%55.2%
July 200858.9%55.0%
Oct. 200860.0%55.9%
Jan. 200957.7%54.6%
April 200958.2%54.8%
July 200957.7%54.4%
Oct. 200957.1%53.7%
Jan. 201056.2%53.1%
April 201056.4%53.3%
July 201056.3%52.8%
Oct. 201056.0%52.7%
Jan. 201157.2%53.2%
April 201156.3%52.7%
July 201156.6%52.8%
Oct. 201155.3%52.0%
Jan. 201256.1%52.0%
April 201255.8%52.0%
July 201255.7%52.4%
Oct. 201257.2%52.7%
Jan. 201355.9%52.3%
April 201356.3%52.4%
July 201355.5%52.2%
Oct. 201355.1%52.2%
Jan. 201456.5%52.7%
April 201455.6%52.0%
July 201455.1%51.8%
Oct. 201456.0%52.2%
Jan. 201556.3%52.6%
April 201556.2%52.6%
July 201556.3%52.9%
Oct. 201556.6%53.1%
Jan. 201656.5%53.0%
April 201656.2%53.2%
July 201656.1%53.2%
Oct. 201656.1%53.3%
Jan. 201756.3%53.2%
April 201756.6%53.3%
July 201756.5%53.5%
Oct. 201756.6%53.5%
Jan. 201856.4%53.4%
April 201856.3%53.3%
July 201856.4%53.2%
Oct. 201856.5%53.1%
Jan. 201957.3%53.5%
April 201956.6%53.4%
July 201955.9%53.2%
Oct. 201956.3%53.4%
Jan. 202057.7%54.2%
April 202058.9%55.9%
July 202056.5%54.4%
Oct. 202058.1%54.0%
Jan. 202156.8%53.4%
April 202156.7%53.2%
July 202156.9%53.0%
Oct. 202156.2%52.6%
Jan. 202256.0%52.1%
April 202255.1%51.4%
July 202255.5%51.6%
Oct. 202254.8%51.6%
Jan. 202354.6%51.4%
April 202354.8%51.6%
July 202354.6%51.6%
Oct. 202354.4%51.3%
Jan. 202454.6%51.4%
April 202454.4%51.4%
July 202454.5%51.5%
Oct. 202454.4%51.3%
Jan. 202554.7%51.3%
April 202554.3%51.0%
July 202553.8%50.7%
Oct. 202554.0%50.5%
Jan. 202654.0%50.5%
April 202653.3%50.0%
July 202653.0%–

The claims

What the post says or clearly implies, checked one by one. How verdicts work

1

Workers' share of America's income is at a record low.

Missing context

BLS's nonfarm share (Q3) and BEA's gross-income share (Q2) are at record lows. Employee pay's share of national income isn't: it was lower in 1948 and 1950, by our calculation, unless proprietors count.

The post echoes a Sept. 4 Fortune headline1,2. BLS put the nonfarm share at 53.0% in Q3, "the lowest level in the series"3. Q2 was revised from 52.8% to 53.3%4. Nonfinancial corporate hit its low in Q25. Employee pay was 50.0% of gross domestic income, the quarterly low since 19476,7. Annually, 49.2% of GDP in 1929 is below Q2's 50.3%8,9,6.

Goldman economists attribute about 40% of the 7.5-point drop since the 1990s to measurement10. The Tax Foundation, netting out depreciation and taxes and counting no proprietors' income, gets 68.3% of net income against about 69% in the late 1940s, and calls that a round trip11. Mike Konczal, counting half or all of proprietors' income as labor, calls now "the single lowest reading in the entire 1947-2026 series"12.

On national income, as in Robert Reich's chart, employee pay was 59.7% in Q2, above all of 1948 and 1950 (low: 58.2%). His "since records began" needs a qualifier. With proprietors counted as Konczal does, today is the low, by our calculation13,14,15,16.

2

U.S. workers took home their "smallest share of capital" (a different Fortune headline).

Wrong

Labor share is a slice of output, as the same article's text says. Capital gets part of the rest. The wording isn't in the post. A different Fortune headline uses it.

BLS defines labor share as "the fraction of economic output that accrues to workers as compensation"17. The headline sits on a Fortune story dated Oct. 31, a version of which ran in January. Its text says "economic output" too, though it says "salary and wages" where BLS also counts benefits and pensions18,17.

Others use loose wording too. Robert Reich wrote "smallest share of the nation's wealth" on Sept. 3, but this data doesn't measure wealth19. Bloomberg's headline called it a share of GDP20. The BLS sector covers about 75% of output21.

Half of gross income isn't all capital's take either. Depreciation is nearly 17 cents on the dollar and production and import taxes 7 cents, by the Tax Foundation's count, before later revisions11.

3

A falling share "has got to be either falling earnings or falling numbers of people."

Wrong

A share can fall while pay and hours both rise, if output grows faster. Since 2000 the share fell about 10 points while real hourly compensation rose 25.6% and hours 11.4%, by our calculation. Pay rose 1.0% last year.

Texas A&M economist Raymond Robertson told Fortune this, and that productivity keeps rising18. His sentence assumes a fixed pie. It grew. From 2000's average to Q3 2026, output per hour rose 68.3% and real hourly compensation 25.6%, by our calculation22,23. Part of that gap is price indexes, since BLS's real pay uses consumer prices3,21. With output prices for both, pay rose 41.3%, by our calculation24,25. Hours worked rose 11.4%, by our calculation26. Compensation averages in highly paid CEOs21. Median full-time weekly pay, after inflation, rose 13.1% through Q2, to $378 in 1982–84 dollars, then fell to $370 in Q3, by our calculation27.

Real hourly compensation rose at a 1.1% annual rate in Q3 after falling 1.9% in Q2 (revised from 3.3%), and rose 1.0% over four quarters3. It is back to about its early-2021 level, 1.5% below its spring 2020 high, by our calculation23. Piper Sandler's Donald Schneider argued Oct. 21 that the second-quarter share drop, as first reported, came from the oil shock and was unlikely to last28.

Real pay rose as the share fell. Output per hour rose much faster

9011013015017019020002002200420062008201020122014201620182020202220242026

BLS index rebased to 2000's average = 100.

Nonfarm business, rebased by us to 2000's average = 100, quarterly, dated to each quarter's first month23,22. Output uses output prices and pay uses consumer prices, which widens the gap. Compensation includes benefits.
Show the numbers
MonthReal hourly compensationOutput per hour
Jan. 200099.998.3
April 200099.4100.3
July 2000100.4100.2
Oct. 2000100.3101.2
Jan. 2001101.5100.7
April 2001101.2102.4
July 2001101.1103
Oct. 2001102.1104.3
Jan. 2002102.2106.5
April 2002102.3106.6
July 2002102.3107.4
Oct. 2002101.9107.3
Jan. 2003101.5108.4
April 2003103.4109.8
July 2003104.2112.2
Oct. 2003105.3113.3
Jan. 2004104.2112.9
April 2004105.4114.1
July 2004106.6114.6
Oct. 2004105.9115.2
Jan. 2005106116.4
April 2005106116.3
July 2005105.8117.1
Oct. 2005105.4117.1
Jan. 2006106.9117.9
April 2006106.1117.8
July 2006105.4117.5
Oct. 2006107.5118.3
Jan. 2007108.9118.7
April 2007107.6119.1
July 2007107.4120.1
Oct. 2007107.4121.1
Jan. 2008107.2120.3
April 2008106121.7
July 2008105.5122
Oct. 2008109.4121.3
Jan. 2009107.2122.7
April 2009109.4125.5
July 2009109.4127.5
Oct. 2009109129.2
Jan. 2010107.8129.4
April 2010109.1129.8
July 2010109.4130.7
Oct. 2010108.9131.1
Jan. 2011109.8130.1
April 2011107.6130.2
July 2011107.8129.9
Oct. 2011105.7130.6
Jan. 2012107.6131.2
April 2012107.9131.9
July 2012107.4131.5
Oct. 2012109.4131
Jan. 2013107.4131.7
April 2013108.2131.3
July 2013107.3132.3
Oct. 2013107.8133.5
Jan. 2014109.2132.4
April 2014108133.3
July 2014108.3134.4
Oct. 2014109.7134
Jan. 2015111.7134.8
April 2015111.9135.4
July 2015112.2135.8
Oct. 2015111.9135
Jan. 2016112135.5
April 2016111.6135.6
July 2016111.6136.1
Oct. 2016112.1137
Jan. 2017112.4137.2
April 2017113137.3
July 2017113.9138.4
Oct. 2017114.5139.4
Jan. 2018114.2139.9
April 2018114.2139.9
July 2018114.8140.3
Oct. 2018114.7140.1
Jan. 2019117.2141.2
April 2019116.3142.1
July 2019116143.7
Oct. 2019117.1145.1
Jan. 2020119.5144.5
April 2020127.6151.5
July 2020124.3153.9
Oct. 2020126.5152.6
Jan. 2021125.4154.1
April 2021125154.5
July 2021124.7153.5
Oct. 2021123.6154.3
Jan. 2022121.6152.4
April 2022118.9151.3
July 2022119.4151.3
Oct. 2022118.4152.1
Jan. 2023118.4152.6
April 2023119.5153.9
July 2023120.3155.8
Oct. 2023120.9157.4
Jan. 2024121.5157.8
April 2024121.9159.2
July 2024122.9160.6
Oct. 2024123.1161.4
Jan. 2025123.5161.4
April 2025123.9163.1
July 2025124.4164.9
Oct. 2025125.4165.4
Jan. 2026125.9166
April 2026125.3166.8
July 2026125.6168.3
4

Corporate profits' share is "the highest it's been since 1950" (Robert Reich, Sept. 7).

Checks out

It holds. Total profits reached 17.2% of national income in Q2 2026, a clear series high by our calculation. Of the versions we checked, only one leaves 1950–51 higher, and it mixes foreign profits with domestic income.

Total profits with BEA's adjustments, over national income, the kind of measure in Reich's chart, hit 17.19% in Q2 and 16.15% in Q1, against a prior high of 15.96% in 2021, by our calculation13,29,15. A similar line circulated in September, citing a May figure of 12.1% of income30. BEA's domestic measure gives 12.71% for Q2 against 12.66% in late 1950, by our calculation31,7. On that measure, Q1's 11.87% sat just below Q2 2021's 11.88%, so it holds only with Q2.

Total before-tax profits without those adjustments, including income from abroad, were 15.61% of gross domestic income in Q2 against 16.67% in late 1950. Over national income, which counts income from abroad, they hit 18.66% against 18.60%, a series high, by our calculation32,7,15. A chart posted by Schneider shows petroleum at roughly $125 billion in Q2. Domestic profits rose $356 billion, a different series, so about a third is a rough comparison, by our calculation28,31. BEA publishes Q3 profits on Nov. 2533.

The real disagreement

Facts can't settle this part, so we don't rule on it.

Should policy try to shift more of output toward workers, or focus on raising pay and leave the split to technology and markets?

The numbers don't answer this. Economists offer offshoring, automation, large firms, weaker bargaining and tax accounting as causes, and they weigh them differently34,35,36,10.

Rebuild workers' bargaining power

Workers produce far more than their pay reflects, and the gap is a matter of power that policy can change.

Anna Stansbury and Lawrence Summers argue that declining worker power explains a falling labor share, slow wages and high profits together, and fits the evidence better than rising firm market power does. Their data tie reduced worker power to lower wages and higher profit shares36. Goldman's economists count about 60% of the drop as real, with weaker bargaining among the causes10.

The accounting fixes don't make it go away. Konczal's preferred measure, the net share at nonfinancial corporations, has no proprietors to argue about, and it has fallen further since COVID and again since January 202512. Even using output prices for both, output per hour is up 68.3% since 2000 and pay 41.3%, by our calculation22,24,25. Rising pay doesn't settle fairness when the people producing the gains keep a shrinking part of them. "This is why we must build back worker power," Reich writes13.

Raise output and pay, not the split

The share is a poor target. Much of the fall is accounting, and much of the rest reflects productive firms and housing.

The headline overstates any transfer. A third of the corporate share's fall from 1978 to 2017 reflects business income moving into pass-throughs after the 1986 tax law, according to Smith and coauthors37. Matthew Rognlie finds capital's long-run rise comes mostly from housing, which has "relatively broad ownership," and says to "keep an eye on housing costs"38. Over a third of the pay-productivity gap since 2000 comes from using different price indexes, by our calculation22,23,24,25.

Autor and coauthors tie the fall to activity moving toward highly productive "superstar" firms35. Elsby, Hobijn and Şahin found the headline overstates the fall by a third, through how self-employment is estimated, and that falling union membership isn't a major cause34. Supporters say pay growth and housing costs are better targets, and that lifting the share by slowing productive firms could leave workers with a larger slice of a smaller pie.

Where they agree

  • The Tax Foundation's authors agree unambiguous capital income has risen, from about 13% of net income in the late 1940s to 22.6% today, so the fight is over how much, and when11,12.

What would change minds

  • Better data splitting proprietors' income into pay and profit would narrow the widest measurement dispute21,12.
  • Whether the share recovers as the oil shock fades would show how much of the 2026 drop is temporary. Q3 set a further low3.
  • Evidence on whether stronger bargaining lifts the share without slowing productivity would move both camps.

Sources

Every source was opened and read. Advocacy groups are labeled as such.

Show all 38 sources
  1. 1
    Workers' share of America's income is at a record low, per FORTUNE
    Unusual Whales on X2026-09-07Primary document
  2. 2
    Workers' share of America's income is at a record low before the AI boom even begins
    Fortune2026-09-04JournalismHeadline shortened. It opens with a quote: "I don't think there's a floor."
  3. 3
    Productivity and Costs, Third Quarter 2026, Preliminary
    U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics2026-11-05Primary document
  4. 4
    Nonfarm Business Sector: Labor Share for All Workers
    BLS via FRED2026-11-05DataIndex 2017=100. Percents are our conversion: index times 0.56505, rounded to 0.1, which reproduces BLS's published 53.0% for Q3.
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
    Gross Domestic Income
    BEA via FRED2026-09-30Data
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
    Goldman says the economy is rewarding capital ownership over labor
    Fortune via Yahoo Finance2026-09-16JournalismReports a Goldman Sachs note we didn't see directly
  11. 11
    Capital Is Not Taking Half of America's Income, and Other Myths About the "Labor Share"
    Tax Foundation2026-09-03Advocacy / think tankFree-market think tank
  12. 12
    I Disagree With The Tax Foundation, Labor Share is Collapsing
    Mike Konczal's newsletter2026-09-17Advocacy / think tankEconomic Security Project policy VP, former National Economic Council chief economist
  13. 13
    See this chart? Workers' share of the nation's income is at the lowest it's been
    Robert Reich on X2026-09-07Advocacy / think tankEconomist who argues for stronger unions. 75.8K views as of Nov. 3
  14. 14
    National Income: Compensation of Employees, Paid
    Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (BEA data)Data
  15. 15
    National Income
    BEA via FREDData
  16. 16
    Proprietors' Income with IVA and CCAdj
    Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (BEA data)Data
  17. 17
    Labor share at its lowest level, 52.8 percent, in second quarter 2026
    U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics2026-09-15DataFull quarterly table from 1947
  18. 18
    U.S workers just took home their smallest share of capital since at least 1947, and the lowest ever recorded
    Fortune2026-10-31JournalismA version of this story ran on Jan. 13, 2026, per Fortune
  19. 19
    American workers are taking home their smallest share of the nation's wealth since 1947
    Robert Reich on X2026-09-03Advocacy / think tankEconomist who argues for stronger unions
  20. 20
  21. 21
    Estimating the U.S. labor share
    Monthly Labor Review, BLS2017-02ResearchGiandrea and Sprague, BLS economists
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
    Turns out last quarter's unusual sharp decrease in labor share is driven by petroleum
    Donald Schneider on X2026-10-21Advocacy / think tankDeputy head of U.S. policy at Piper Sandler, former chief economist for House Ways and Means Republicans, per his bio. The comparison is our reading of his chart.
  29. 29
    Corporate Profits with IVA and CCAdj
    Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (BEA data)Data
  30. 30
    All the Wages Go To Your Masters
    Lawyers, Guns & Money2026-09-09Advocacy / think tankLeft-leaning blog, quoting a Prospect article
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
    Release Schedule
    U.S. Bureau of Economic AnalysisPrimary document
  34. 34
    The Decline of the U.S. Labor Share
    Brookings Papers on Economic Activity2013ResearchElsby, Hobijn and Şahin
  35. 35
    The Fall of the Labor Share and the Rise of Superstar Firms
    NBER2017ResearchAutor, Dorn, Katz, Patterson and Van Reenen
  36. 36
    The Declining Worker Power Hypothesis
    NBER2020ResearchStansbury and Summers
  37. 37
    The Rise of Pass-Throughs and the Decline of the Labor Share
    NBER2021ResearchSmith, Yagan, Zidar and Zwick
  38. 38
    Deciphering the Fall and Rise in the Net Capital Share
    Brookings Papers on Economic Activity2015Research

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