REICH: Low wages strangling U.S. economy

WE’RE officially into Christmas buying season, when American consumers determine the fate of American retailers and, indirectly, the U.S. economy. What’s often forgotten is that consumers are also workers, and if their pay doesn’t keep up, they can’t keep the economy going.

A half-century ago, America’s largest private-sector employer was General Motors, whose full-time workers earned an average hourly wage of around $50, in today’s dollars, including health and pension benefits.
Today, America’s largest employer is Walmart, whose average sales associate earns $8.81 an hour. And a third of Walmart’s employees work less than 28 hours per week and don’t qualify for benefits.

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