OECD: New Zealand's Real Wages Fell Furthest Among Rich Nations

New Zealand had the worst real wage performance among 37 OECD countries over the past five years, the OECD Employment Outlook 2026 found. Real wages fell 6.4 percent below Q1 2021 levels — the steepest decline measured by the OECD's labour cost index, which accounts for workforce composition shifts. Other measures show less severe drops, economists said, but the finding will likely drive policy debate around labour costs and living standards.