ABSTRACT
As this edition goes to press, the economy is in an expansion and producing jobs at a rate consistent with earlier recoveries. Nevertheless, the economic problems of the 1980s continue to be felt. For example, despite growth in both gross domestic product and employment, median family income actually fell in 1993 (for the fourth year in a row), leaving incomes $2,737 below their 1989 level. It is highly uncharacteristic for the median income to fall this late in a recovery, and this development underscores the current disconnect between overall growth and the typical family's economic well-being. Moreover, the 1980s' trend in income inequality and the middle-class squeeze show signs of continuing, and even accelerating, in the 1990s.
