While the global unemployment rate has decreased, wages have not improved. More jobs have become available, but they do not offer attractive wages. Many attribute the current situation to the long, slow recovery from the Great Recession. Others, however, blame power structures and corporate mistreatment of workers. While unions have lost influence, and technological advancements such as automation have replaced countless professions. Fueled by increased global connectivity, outsourcing has also replaced domestic jobs due to the significantly lower costs of labor in Asia and Latin America.
This trend is not exclusive to the United States. Many first-world countries including Britain, Japan, and Norway have all seen a failure to increase wages. The decline in union influence has contributed to a decrease in job quality, and temp work has increased in popularity. The mediocre wages have the potential to have a damaging effect on the economy, especially resulting from a decrease in productivity due to lack of incentives for underpaid workers.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/07/business/unemployment-wages-economy.html
I could feel this in reality as well, especially the underpaid, or the minimum wage workers. They seem less motivated and less willing to do better. Every country should overlook the situation and try to ameliorate the circumstances of the labor market.
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