Statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that wages have been flat for the last 18 months, and some are saying that that is due to employers cutting pay, but asking employees to work the same number of hours. Many states are asking public sector workers to accept pay cuts, and some private sector companies are instituting them as well. Albuquerque, the University of Hawaii, Vermont state troopers and some California teachers have all accepted pay cuts. Many of the pay cuts seem to be for unionized workers, who employees say receive more in compensation and benefits than they can afford. Some workers protest the pay cuts when their employer is profiting through the recession, but employers say it is necessary for them to survive.
See "More Workers Face Pay Cuts, Not Furloughs", Steven Greenhouse, The New York Times, August 3, 2010