Real Wages Fall in All Income Groups as Stimulus Plans Backfire

A family's stimulus check from the U.S. Treasury for the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) aid arrived in the mail in Milton, Massachusetts, U.S., on March 25, 2021. Brian Snyder/Reuters

Commentary

For years, we have read that it’s important for the Federal Reserve and the major central banks to push the limits of monetary policy to boost growth and jobs. Monetary policy stood at the forefront of all recovery plans. In 2008, quantitative easing seemed enormous, but the subsequent incremental plans have made that stimulus package virtually irrelevant.