Average hourly earnings for all employees on US private nonfarm payrolls rose by 15 cents, or 0.4%, over a month, to $36.24 in May 2025, up from a 0.2% increase in April and beating market forecasts of a 0.3% gain. It was the biggest increase in wages since January. In May, average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 12 cents, or 0.4%, to $31.18. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.9% in May, matching April's revised reading and surpassing market consensus of 3.7%.