PremiumJenée TibshraenyWellington Business Editor·NZ Herald·10 Jul, 2026 05:00 PM5 mins to read‌Real wages are now about 1% below where they were last year. Photo / 123RFReal wages are now about 1% below where they were last year. Photo / 123RFWorking New Zealanders, who feel like they are going backwards financially, aren’t just imagining it.Real wages, or nominal wages adjusted for inflation, have been falling over the past five years.

The drop in New Zealand has been the most severe of 37 countries in the Organisation for Economic