Not since the Great Depression has so small a percentage of the United States’ income been generated by wages as now.

 

Last year, only 51% of personal income was derived from working salaries, the lowest since 1929, according to an analysis by USA Today. The problem stems from the lingering effects of the recession and the high number of unemployed.

 

Wages declined even more during the beginning of 2011, slipping to another historic low of 50.5% in February for personal income.

 

The newspaper also found Americans in 2010 relied more on government assistance than at any other time in the nation’s history. A record 18.3% of total personal income was a payment from the government last year for Social Security, Medicare, food stamps, unemployment benefits and other programs. To demonstrate just how high the rate is, government aid averaged about 12.5% annually from 1980 to 2000.

 

In 2010, New York led all states in relying on public assistance per resident, followed by West Virginia, Rhode Island, Maine and Pennsylvania.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Americans Depend More on Federal Aid Than Ever (by Dennis Cauchon, USA Today)

New Yorkers Lead Pack in Government Benefits (by Dennis Cauchon, USA Today)