US Incomes Fell More After Recession Than During It

US incomes continued to fall after the 2007 recession was declared over—at an even steeper rate than during the recession, according to a recent analysis. Inflation-adjusted median household income fell 6.7% between June 2009 and June 2011. During the two-year recession, incomes fell 3.2%. The full four-year drop is the largest in several decades, reports the New York Times. Incomes continued to fall even as the economy grew stronger and unemployment fell slightly, according to an analysis of Census data.

A stronger economy was not reflected in overall wages as many people who lost work took other, lower paying jobs, pulling down the median income to close to $50,000. "As a labor economist, I do not think the recession has ended,” Princeton economics professor Henry Farber told the Times. “Job losers are having more trouble than ever before finding full-time jobs.” (More income stories.)