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A new report shows Ohio workers are earning more money but many don’t realize it due to inflation

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (Statehouse News Bureau) — There’s good news for working Ohioans – at least when you look at a new report on wages and the economy. They are earning more. But the bad news is working Ohioans might not realize it.

An employee at Cafe Amici takes a customer's order.
An employee at Cafe Amici takes a customer’s order. [Kendall Crawford | Statehouse News Bureau]
Each year the progressive-leaning group Policy Matters, puts out its annual State of Working Ohio report. And executive director Hannah Halbert said there’s good news in this year’s report, at least at first glance.

“On paper, 2023 is one of the best-looking years for Ohio workers in recent memory,” Halbert said. “So we had wage growth at the median of the typical worker so the person there at the median wage in Ohio actually saw wage growth.”

According to the report, Ohio’s median earning in 2023 was $23.95. That’s an increase of $1.55 (7%) over the annual median wage in 2022. And the report said it’s the largest annual increase since data collection began in 1979.

The report also showed workers in the bottom 20% who were paid just above the minimum wage made the most income gains.

Still, Halbert said the report showed even though Ohioans are getting more money in their paychecks, they did face the challenge of rising inflation.

But a conservative group notes many people, especially those on the lowest rungs of the economic latter, aren’t feeling it.

“We literally had the worst inflation that we’ve seen in practically a generation, really since the late 70’s and the early 80’s. So that is, you can’t really underestimate how important and profound that is,” said Greg Lawson, a research fellow at the Buckeye Institute.

Lawson and Halbert agree that inflation hit low income families hard because it affected things like food and housing. But the good news is Lawson and Hannah said inflation appears to be stabilizing right now. And they both think job growth is likely to continue to happen. Lawson said with new economy, tech related types jobs coming into Ohio, many workers, even those without college degrees, will be able to get well-paying jobs.

The report also noted wages grew and outpaced inflation and unemployment hit a record low of 3.3%. But it said pay is still too low, the jobless rate has been rising, there are still gender and racial pay gaps, and state tax cuts have helped the wealthy and corporate interests to create what it calls a “rigged economy.”