Tag: wages

Stethoscope and wooden blocks shaped like people on a blue background

The rising cost of employer contributions to employer-sponsored health insurance (ESHI) can slow wage growth and erode the Social Security wage base.  Both these effects were evident in the decades before 2005, as ESHI increased as a share of compensation.  Fortunately, the ratio of ESHI contributions to compensation plateaued after 2005, stabilizing wages and halting…

United Auto Workers logo on the side of a brick building

How unusual is a 10-percent 401(k) contribution – with no required employee contribution? A reporter asked recently what I thought of the new 401(k) contribution rate in the United Auto Workers (UAW) agreement with Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis.  The companies have agreed to increase their 401(k) contributions from 6.4 percent 10 percent of pay…