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Wage growth sluggish in June, but median base pay for recruiters rises 8.4%

July 06, 2017

US wage growth remained sluggish in June, according to data from Glassdoor. However, recruiters, as well as typical minimum wage jobs in the food services industry, posted the fastest wage growth.

The annual median base pay in the US edged up 1.7% year over year in June to $51,324, down from the 2.42% revised pay growth in May. The slowest pace recorded since March 2016, June’s wage growth marks a five-month downward trend since US pay growth peaked at 3.1% in January. And for the first time in three years, inflation, at 1.9%, outpaced wage growth in the US; the last time the cost of living was rising faster than wages was in July 2014, according to Glassdoor data.

On the bright side, recruiters’ pay continues to rise quickly and saw the biggest year-over-year pay gains of the nearly 85 jobs tracked, up 8.4% in June to a median base pay of $51,585. “Companies rely more on recruiters to attract coveted talent as the US reaches full employment, and this puts their skills in high demand,” said Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist of Glassdoor.

Among the 10 metros tracked by Glassdoor, average pay growth was fastest in tech-heavy San Francisco in June, up 2.6% year over year to $68,119 annually, followed by Seattle and New York City, up 1.9% and 1.8%, respectively.

Houston posted the slowest average pay growth in June, up 0.5% to $54,365, followed by Atlanta and Washington, both up 0.9%.

“Overall, pay growth is slowing in the US,” Chamberlain said. “This remains a puzzle for economists because unemployment is setting new record lows in many cities. Looking at average US wage growth alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Few earn the median US salary, most employees earn a salary relevant to their specific job and city. While we see declining wage growth for jobs where automation is coming, we also see strong pay growth for certain in-demand jobs, as well as sustained high median pay gains for many retail, technology, healthcare and professional services jobs.”

The jobs in June with the biggest pay gains in the US are:

  1. Recruiter: up 8.4% to $51,585
  2. Barista: up 7.7% to $24,593
  3. Restaurant cook: up 7.2% to $29,025
  4. Claims adjuster: up 6.6% to $51,320
  5. Customer service manager: up 6.4% to $54,054
  6. Bank teller: up 6.2% to $28,870
  7. Warehouse associate: up 4.9% to $41,442
  8. Maintenance worker: up 4.8% to $44,018
  9. Pharmacy technician: up 4.5% to $30,696
  10. Delivery driver: up 4.3% to $38,660