Over the past 40 years, the pace of Wall Street bonuses has grown about 10 times the pace of minimum wage, according to a press release from New York comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
Last year, the average bonus for a Wall Street employee last year was $184,000, a 10% increase from 2019. In addition, Wall Street traders had an average salary of $406,000 in 2019.
As the minimum wage has remained stagnant at $7.25 an hour for over a decade, Wall Street bonuses have grown 1,217% since 1985. According to the study, the minimum wage would be $44.12 per hour if the pace of minimum wage grew at the same pace as Wall Street bonuses.
"It's just another reminder that there's a total disconnect between what happens on Wall Street and what happens in people's everyday lives and in the real economy," said Sarah Anderson, director of the global economy program at the Institute for Policy Studies.
While the cost of living has increased by 20%, the price of housing and health care have increased even faster. According to a July study from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, today's workers must earn almost $20 an hour to afford a modest one-bedroom apartment.
Low-wage workers were impacted the most by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in a recession and double-digit unemployment, while Wall Street salaries and bonuses soared.
