WINNING THE WAR ON WAGES:

The above chart shows growth in hourly compensation since 1948 as compared with growth in productivity for non-supervisory employees in the private sector. Increased productivity -- output per worker per time period -- is what drives economic growth and raises living standards. The data was collected and analyzed by the Economic Policy Institute.

Note the break that occurs in the early 1970s. Since then growth has flattened out and diverged from productivity.

There is a slight increase in the late 1990s and, using the EPI measure, a slight increase in the last few years.

But the overall trend - about 40 years' worth - is quite flat. This period spans Democratic and Republican administrations and congresses, through good economic times and bad. In fact, the flatness of wage growth has persisted as a range of other economic measures have bounced up and down and moved in a variety of directions.

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