Latest / Wages and Prices with Fexingo: Cost of Living, Pay Raises, and Workers' Purchasing Power
Why Your Raise Is Growing Faster Than Childcare Costs for the First Time
In this episode of Wages and Prices with Fexingo, Lucas and Luna examine a surprising turn in the cost of childcare. For years, childcare costs have risen faster than wages, squeezing working parents. But new data shows that in 2026, average hourly earnings are growing at 4.2 percent year-over-year, while childcare inflation has slowed to just 2.8 percent — the first sustained gap in a decade. They dig into why: a shift in labor supply as daycare centers struggle to hire, state-level subsidies that are finally kicking in, and changing family preferences post-pandemic. Lucas shares a story…
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