The improving U.S. jobs market has been marred by stubbornly slow growth in wages, but recent results from companies show the outlook for some workers may be brightening.

A wide range of companies have reported upward pressure on wages in the early months of the year, including asset-manager State Street Corp., coatings manufacturer PPG Industries Inc. and eatery operators Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. and Darden Restaurants Inc.

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