---
title: "Productivity-Pay Wedge"
slug: the-wedge
summary: "The productivity-pay wedge rose to 109.9 in Q2 2026"
category: "The Deal"
unit: index
frequency: quarterly
direction: higher_is_worse
latest_value: 109.9077
latest_period: "2026-Q2"
trend: rising
last_updated: "2026-09-03T00:00:00Z"
source: "Computed (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OPHNFB vs COMPRNFB data retrieved via FRED)"
source_url: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/OPHNFB
canonical_html: https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/
citation_apa: "Kilburn, R. (2026). Productivity-Pay Wedge [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/"
citation_chicago: "Kilburn, Ross. 2026. \"Productivity-Pay Wedge.\" American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/."
citation_mla: "Kilburn, Ross. \"Productivity-Pay Wedge.\" American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/."
---

# Productivity-Pay Wedge

Also tracked as The Wedge.

> The productivity-pay wedge rose to 109.9 in Q2 2026

## Current Reading

As of 2026-Q2, Productivity-Pay Wedge is **109.9** (rising — worsening for households).

BLS nonfarm business output per hour divided by real hourly compensation, 2017 = 100, computed by American Default Research, up from 107.4 a year earlier.

## What Changed

- The productivity-pay wedge rose to 109.9 in Q2 2026, from 108.6 in Q1 2026.
- Higher than a year earlier, when it was 107.4.
- The highest reading in the current, revised data, which start in 1947.
- Up five quarters in a row.

## Recent Values

| Period | Value |
|--------|-------|
| 2026-Q2 | 109.908 |
| 2026-Q1 | 108.614 |
| 2025-Q4 | 108.023 |
| 2025-Q3 | 107.921 |
| 2025-Q2 | 107.361 |
| 2025-Q1 | 106.141 |
| 2024-Q4 | 107.045 |
| 2024-Q3 | 106.964 |
| 2024-Q2 | 106.91 |
| 2024-Q1 | 106.47 |
| 2023-Q4 | 106.943 |
| 2023-Q3 | 106.506 |

## Historical Context

- Peak since 1947: **109.9** in Q2 2026
- Low since 1947: **61.5** in Q4 1960
- Pre-pandemic average (2015-01 – 2019-12): **100.1**
- Post-pandemic average (2020-01 – 2024-12): **103.6**

## Methodology

This indicator carries quarterly observations and is interpreted as higher values indicate worse household conditions. Source: Computed (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OPHNFB vs COMPRNFB data retrieved via FRED).
Automation: collected automatically on the daily refresh pipeline, with no hand entry.

## Source

Computed (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OPHNFB vs COMPRNFB data retrieved via FRED) — [https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/OPHNFB](https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/OPHNFB)

Data retrieved: 2026-09-03T00:00:00Z

## Related Indicators

- [the-split](https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-split/)

## Machine-Readable Endpoints

- HTML page: https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/
- JSON: https://americandefault.org/api/indicators/the-wedge.json
- CSV: https://americandefault.org/api/downloads/the-wedge.csv
- BibTeX: https://americandefault.org/citations/the-wedge.bib
- RIS: https://americandefault.org/citations/the-wedge.ris

## Citation

**APA 7th**

    Kilburn, R. (2026). Productivity-Pay Wedge [Data set]. American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/

**Chicago (author-date)**

    Kilburn, Ross. 2026. "Productivity-Pay Wedge." American Default Research. https://americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/.

**MLA 9th**

    Kilburn, Ross. "Productivity-Pay Wedge." American Default Research, 2026, americandefault.org/indicators/the-wedge/.

Use **American Default Research** as the institutional name in source lists, bibliographies, and press citations. **American Default** is the brand and URL form. **American Distress Index (ADI)** is the product name for the national composite score.