comparisons are. There has been a widening gap between productivity and median incomes since the 1970s. The primary cause for the gap between productivity and income growth is the decline in per capita hours worked. Other causes include the rise in non-cash benefits as a share of worker compensation (which aren't counted in CPS income data), immigrants entering the labor force, statistical distortions including the use of different inflation adjusters by the BLS and CPS, productivity gains being skewed toward less labor-intensive sectors, income shifting from labor to capital, a skill gap-driven wage disparity, productivity being falsely inflated by hidden technology-driven depreciation increases and import price measurement problems, and/or a natural period of adjustment following an income surge during aberrational post-war circumstances. According to a 2018 study by the OECD, given that the unemployed and at-risk workers get almost no government support and are further set back by a very weak collective bargaining system, the U.S. has much higher income inequality and a larger percentage of low-income workers than almost any other developed nation. Household net worth and wealth inequality As of Q4 2017, total household net worth in the United States was a record $99trillion, an increase of $5.2trillion from 2016. This increase reflects both stock market and housing price gains. This measure has been setting records since Q4 2012. If divided evenly, the $99trillion represents an average of $782,000 per household (for about 126.2 million households) or $302,000 per person. However, median household net worth (i.e., half of the families above and below this level) was $97,300 in 2016. The bottom 25% of families had a median net worth of zero, while the 25th to 50th percentile had a median net worth of $40,000. Wealth inequality is more unequal than income inequality, with the top 1% households owning approximately 42% of the net worth in 2012, versus 24% in 1979. According to a September 2017 report by the Federal Reserve, wealth inequality is at record highs; the top 1% controlled 38.6% of the country's wealth in 2016. The Boston Consulting Group posited in June 2017 report that 1% of the Americans will control 70% of country's wealth by 2021. The top 10% wealthiest possess 80% of all financial assets. Wealth inequality in the U.S. is greater than in most developed countries other than Sweden. Inherited wealth may help explain why many Americans who have become rich may have