The Sconi

Washington Post columnist Heather Long laments the 8.3% inflation rise for the month ending August 2022 is just more of the same, setting the stage for the financial struggle facing taxpayers across the country.

"Average hourly pay in America **adjusted for inflation** is -2.8% in the past year,” Long posted on Twitter. “Inflation has been eating up wage gains since April 2021 and shows little sign of significant easing."

Earlier this month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for the year ending August 2022, with data showing an 8.3% all items annual increase or a 0.1% jump from the month prior on a seasonally adjusted basis. Topping the list of largest contributors were rises in the indexes for shelter, food and medical care.

In addition, BLS reports the real average hourly earnings for all employees declined 2.8%, seasonally adjusted, from August 2021 to August 2022. The change in real average hourly earnings combined with a decrease of 0.6% in the average workweek combined for a 3.4% decrease in real average weekly earnings over the last 12 months.

At the same time, food prices jumped another 0.8% in August and are up 11.4% over last year. For the month, take-home grocery prices increased 0.7% and by 13.5% in the past 12 months. The index for shelter climbed 0.7% over the last month and 6.2% in the last year. On the medical care front, the index rose 0.7% in August after a 0.4% jump the month before.

Here in Wisconsin, with wage inflation at 3.4% in August, the state’s average household income has taken a -$3,112 year-over-year loss, dropping the state's current average household income down from $91,538 to $88,426 a year.

More recently, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee took to Twitter to weigh in on the suddenly alarming CPI number, reasoning "8.3% inflation means your salary is about 1/12 gone. If you make same pay as last year, higher prices robbed you a full month of your pay. If you buy same things this year as last year, inflation is trying to pay for it with 11 months’ worth of pay instead of 12 months’ worth.”