Earnings Volatility among the Wealthy

From StatWiki

[edit] Earnings among people with the highest income are more volatile than average

In 2007, the first year of the recession, the top 0.01% of earners in the US saw incomes fall by an average of 12.7%, compared to 2.6% for all earners.

In the four years prior to the recession, the top 0.01% saw incomes rise by an annual rate of 13.9%, compared to 1.8% for everyone.

[edit] Earnings among the wealthy have become more volatile over time

Since 1982, income of the top 1% of earners as been approximately 2.4 times as volatile as the overall average. However, from 1947 to 1982, the top 1% saw 30% less volatility on average.

[edit] Source

The Wall Street Journal, Economic Ride Turns Bumpier for the Rich, 17 Sep 2010, which cites a paper by Jonathan Parker and Annette Vissing-Jorgensen, two Northwestern University economists, which was presented at a Brookings Institution conference on 17 Sep 2010.