Real wages continue to recover

Real wages are now growing in virtually all OECD countries. However, they remain below the levels seen in early 2021 – just before the post-pandemic inflation surge – in around two thirds of them. The wages of the lowest-paid workers have proved more resilient: the real statutory minimum wage was higher in January 2025 than in January 2021 in virtually all of the 30 OECD countries with a national minimum wage. As real wages continue to recover, unit profits continue to lose the ground gained during the post-pandemic inflation surge. This reflects the catching-up of purchasing power by wages, and should not be seen as a warning sign of price wage spirals.