Wage growth rebounds in US job postings, led by tech and finance

Wage growth picked up again in U.S. job openings tracked by Indeed following two years of steady declines, driven by high-income sectors such as software and finance.

Posted salaries rose 3.4% in August from a year earlier, marking the fourth straight month of acceleration, according to data from Indeed Hiring Lab. 

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"After declining steadily following an early 2022 peak, posted wage growth stopped declining by late spring 2024," Nick Bunker, Indeed Hiring Lab's North America economic research director, said in a blog post. "Now, with a couple more months of data, it's clear that annual wage growth hasn't just stabilized, but has modestly re-accelerated."

Wage growth is accelerating in ads for developers and finance workers even as employers in those industries have pulled back on hiring. Middle- and low-wage sectors also saw gains, albeit more modest.

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Overall, the Indeed data point to a healthy labor market, with competition pushing companies to raise wages to attract workers. 

Still, earnings growth has come a long way down from its peak a couple of years ago, when labor shortages were the most acute. 

After the Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the first time in four years this week, Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged that wage increases remain above what would be consistent over the long term with the central bank's 2% inflation rate target.

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"But they're very much coming down to what that sustainable level is. So we feel good about that," he said at a press conference following the rate cut announcement.