Highlights of Women's Earnings in 1998
Highlights of Women's Earnings in 1998
U.S. Department of Labor
Bureau of Labor Statistics
April 1999
Report 928
Introduction
In 1998, women earned about 76 percent as much as men did. The median
weekly earnings of female full-time wage and salary workers were $456 in 1998
compared to $598 for men. In 1979, when comparable earnings data were first
available, the female-to-male earnings ratio was about 63 percent.
For some demographic groups, the gender differences in earnings were quite
small in 1998; for others they were relatively larger. Among blacks and
Hispanics, for example, the earnings ratio was about 85 percent; for whites, the
ratio was about 76 percent. Young women and men (those under age 25) had fairly
similar earnings (young women's earnings were about 91 percent of men's);
however, women's earnings were much lower than men's in older age groups.
This report presents earnings data from the Current Population Survey
(CPS). The CPS is a national monthly survey of approximately 50,000 households
conducted by the Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The
earnings data are collected from one-fourth of the CPS monthly sample. For a
detailed description of the source of the data and an explanation of the
concepts and definitions used, please see the Technical Note included at the end
of this report.
Highlights
Following are some highlights about women's earnings.
Full-time workers
Median weekly earnings of female full-time wage and salary workers were
$456 in 1998. This was 76.3 percent of the $598 median for men. The proportion
was 62.5 percent in 1979, the first year for which comparable estimates are
available. (See tables 1 and 13.)
Among women, 45- to 54-year-olds had the highest earnings ($516), followed
by 35- to 44-year-olds ($498). Men's earnings also peaked among 45- to 54-year-
olds ($732). The difference between women's and men's earnings is relatively
large among older workers. For workers ages 45 to 54, women's earnings were
70.5 percent of men's; for 55- to 64-year-olds, the earnings ratio was 68.2
percent. In contrast, among workers 20 to 24 years old, women's earnings were
89.4 percent those of men. The earnings ratio for teenagers (16 to 19 years)
was 88.5 percent. (See table 1.)
Between 1979 and 1998, the women's-to-men's earnings ratio rose for
workers ages 20 to 64. Ratio increases among workers in the broad 20- to 54-
year age group were larger than for those ages 55 to 64. For example, the
earnings ratio among 35- to 44-year-olds increased from 58.3 percent in 1979 to
73.5 percent in 1998, while that for 55- to 64-year-olds went from 60.5 percent
to 68.2 percent. In contrast, the earnings ratios for teenagers and workers age
65 and over showed no definitive trend over the period. (See table 13.)
White workers of either gender earned more than their black or Hispanic
counterparts. The differences among women, however, were much smaller than
among men. White women's earnings ($468) were 17.0 percent higher than black
women's ($400), and 38.9 percent higher than those for Hispanic women ($337).
In contrast, white men's earnings ($615) were 31.4 percent higher than the
earnings of their black counterparts ($468) and 57.7 percent greater than those
of Hispanic men ($390). (See table 1.)
The earnings difference between women and men was widest for whites, with
white women earning 76.1 percent of what white men did. Among blacks, women
earned 85.4 percent of what men earned, and Hispanic women made 86.5 percent of
Hispanic men's earnings. (See table 1.)
Since 1979, inflation-adjusted earnings for white women have increased
15.6 percent, while black women's real earnings increased about half as much,
7.5 percent. (See table 14.)
Median weekly earnings for women age 25 and over without a high school
diploma have fallen since 1979 on an inflation-adjusted basis, while the
earnings for female college graduates have grown. In 1979, inflation-adjusted
weekly earnings of women without a high school diploma were $334, about 57.5
percent of those of female college graduates ($581). In 1998, women without
high school diplomas had earnings ($283) that were 40.0 percent of those of
female college graduates ($707). Among men, the disparity in earnings by
education widened even more. (See table 15.)
Female college graduates have fared better with regard to earnings growth
than their male counterparts. Earnings for women with college degrees increased
21.7 percent since 1979 on an inflation-adjusted basis. Real earnings of male
college graduates increased 7.7 percent over the same time period. (See table
15.)
Women employed full-time in professional specialty occupations earned $682
in 1998, more than women employed in any other major occupation category.
Within this occupation group, women working as physicians, pharmacists, and
lawyers had the highest median earnings. (See tables 2 and 3.)
Women's share of employment in occupations typified by high earnings has
grown. In 1998, 46.4 percent of full-time wage and salary workers in executive,
administrative, and managerial occupations were women, up from 34.2 percent in
1983, the first year for which comparable data are available. Over the same
period, women as a proportion of professional specialty workers rose from 46.8
percent to 51.6 percent. (See table 2.)
In contrast, there was relatively little change in women's share of full-
time wage and salary employment in the remaining major occupation groups. In
1983, women held 77.7 percent of administrative support occupations; in 1998,
they still held 76.3 percent of these jobs. Women represented 7.9 percent of
precision production, craft, and repair workers in 1983, about the same
proportion as in 1998. Men were about nine times as likely as women to be
employed in precision production, craft, and repair occupations (where earnings
are somewhat above the median), while women were four times as likely to work in
administrative support occupations (where pay is typically low). (See tables 2
and 3.)
Within each broad occupational category, women and men tend to work in
different specific occupations. In the professional specialty occupations,
where women earned the most, they were less likely than men to be employed in
some higher-paying occupations such as engineers, computer systems analysts, and
architects, and more likely to work in those with lower earnings, for example,
teachers (except college and university) and social workers. (See table 3.)
The ratio of female-to-male earnings varied widely by State. The
differences among the States reflect, in part, variations in the occupation,
industry, and age composition of State labor forces. In addition, sampling
error in the State estimates is considerably larger than it is for the national
data. (See table 4.)
Part-time workers
Women who worked part-time—that is, less than 35 hours per week—
represented 25.8 percent of all female wage and salary workers in 1998. In
contrast, 10.7 percent of men in wage and salary jobs worked part-time. (See
tables 5 and 6.)
Female part-time workers' median earnings were $161, 35.3 percent of the
median for women who worked full-time. At $146, earnings for male part-time
workers were 9.3 percent lower than female part-timers' earnings. Female part-
time workers tend to be older than their male counterparts. About two-thirds
were over 25 years old compared to less than half of male part-timers. (See
table 5.)
Unlike full-time workers, whose earnings increased for each successive 10-
year age group within the 25-to-54-year category, earnings for female part-
timers were essentially the same regardless of age. Female part-time workers
younger than 25 and age 55 and over earned less than those in the central age
groups. (See table 5.)
In contrast to full-time workers, earnings for both female and male part-
timers varied little by race or Hispanic origin. (See table 5.)
Workers paid by the hour
Women who worked at jobs in which they were paid by the hour had median
hourly earnings of $8.24 in 1998. Sixty-four percent of women employed in wage
and salary jobs were paid on an hourly basis. (See table 10.)
In 1998, about 8 percent of women who were paid hourly rates had hourly
earnings at or below the prevailing Federal minimum wage of $5.15. This
compares to approximately 5 percent of men in hourly-paid jobs. (See table 12.
See Technical Note for information about workers with earnings below the Federal
minimum wage.)
Among women paid hourly rates, the proportion earning the minimum wage or
less varies considerably by age. Those ages 16 to 19 years were the most likely
to have earnings at or below the minimum, while women 45 to 54 years old were
the least likely. (See table 12.)
Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
Characteristic of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers weekly error workers weekly error workers weekly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands) median thousands) median thousands) median
AGE
Total, 16 years and over.. 95,595 $523 $1 41,282 $456 $2 54,313 $598 $2 76.3
16 to 24 years.................. 11,046 319 1 4,721 305 2 6,325 334 3 91.3
16 to 19 years............... 2,211 268 2 922 249 3 1,288 281 3 88.5
20 to 24 years............... 8,836 339 2 3,799 319 2 5,037 357 3 89.4
25 years and over............... 84,549 572 1 36,561 485 1 47,988 639 2 75.9
25 to 34 years............... 25,555 502 2 10,800 451 2 14,756 544 4 83.0
35 to 44 years............... 28,156 597 2 11,971 498 2 16,185 677 4 73.5
45 to 54 years............... 21,023 620 3 9,579 516 3 11,444 732 4 70.5
55 to 64 years............... 8,666 592 4 3,753 476 5 4,914 699 7 68.2
65 years and over............ 1,149 405 9 459 350 10 689 482 23 72.6
RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN
White........................... 79,403 545 2 33,316 468 2 46,087 615 2 76.1
Black........................... 11,776 426 3 6,025 400 3 5,751 468 5 85.4
Hispanic origin................. 10,532 370 3 3,816 337 4 6,716 390 3 86.5
MARITAL STATUS
Never married................... 23,948 416 2 10,203 400 2 13,745 428 3 93.6
Married, spouse present......... 55,660 596 1 21,863 485 2 33,797 679 3 71.3
Other marital status............ 15,987 494 2 9,216 450 3 6,772 571 5 78.7
Divorced..................... 10,799 518 3 6,159 480 3 4,640 598 5 80.3
Separated.................... 3,740 424 5 1,907 390 5 1,833 490 8 79.6
Widowed...................... 1,448 424 9 1,150 402 7 298 543 42 74.1
UNION AFFILIATION(2)
Members of unions(3)............ 14,825 659 3 5,389 596 3 9,436 699 3 85.2
Represented by unions(4)........ 16,323 653 3 6,154 593 3 10,169 696 3 85.2
Not represented by a union...... 79,272 499 1 35,128 430 2 44,144 573 2 75.1
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Total, 25 years and over........ 84,549 572 1 36,561 485 1 47,988 639 2 75.9
Less than a high school
diploma...................... 8,576 337 3 2,874 283 2 5,702 383 3 73.7
High school graduates, no
college...................... 27,131 479 2 11,787 396 2 15,344 559 3 70.9
Some college or associate
degree....................... 23,210 558 3 10,744 476 2 12,466 643 4 74.0
College graduates, total...... 25,632 821 4 11,156 707 4 14,476 939 4 75.3
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
2 Differences in earnings levels between men and women with union affiliation reflect a variety of factors in addition to coverage
by a collective bargaining agreement, including the distribution of male and female employees by occupation, industry, firm size, or
geographic region.
3 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
4 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers who report no union
affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are
not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 2. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by occupation and sex, 1983 and 1998 annual averages
1983 1998
Number Women's Number Women's
Occupation of Women's Men's earnings of Women's Men's earnings
workers Percent median median as workers Percent median median as
(in women weekly weekly percent (in women weekly weekly percent
thousands) earnings earnings of thousands) earnings earnings of
men's(1) men's(1)
Total, 16 years and over............... 70,976 40.4 $252 $379 66.6 95,595 43.2 $456 $598 76.3
Managerial and professional specialty ....... 17,451 40.9 358 516 69.2 29,304 49.0 655 905 72.4
Executive, administrative, and managerial . 8,117 34.2 340 530 64.0 14,451 46.4 626 915 68.4
Professional specialty..................... 9,334 46.8 368 506 72.6 14,853 51.6 682 895 76.2
Technical, sales, and administrative support 21,641 62.5 247 386 64.0 27,372 61.9 419 606 69.2
Technicians and related support ........... 2,574 44.5 299 424 70.6 3,507 49.4 511 701 72.9
Sales occupations.......................... 6,313 39.0 205 389 52.7 9,636 45.0 372 622 59.8
Administrative support, including clerical. 12,755 77.7 249 362 68.7 14,229 76.3 418 518 80.7
Service occupations.......................... 7,321 49.2 173 256 67.8 10,592 50.0 296 389 76.1
Private household ......................... 278 96.0 116 (2) (3) 381 95.0 220 (2) (3)
Protective service ........................ 1,453 9.5 251 356 70.4 2,140 15.1 481 613 78.4
Service, except private household and
protective................................ 5,590 57.1 176 218 81.0 8,070 57.2 295 325 90.8
Precision production, craft, and repair ..... 9,963 7.9 256 387 66.1 11,691 8.1 408 587 69.5
Operators, fabricators, and laborers......... 13,319 26.2 205 308 66.5 15,082 23.3 327 456 71.6
Machine operators, assemblers, and
inspectors................................ 6,990 40.8 202 320 63.3 6,987 35.8 328 472 69.4
Transportation and material moving
occupations............................... 3,358 4.7 253 335 75.5 4,322 8.0 373 519 71.9
Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and
laborers.................................. 2,970 16.0 211 252 83.9 3,773 17.7 311 362 85.8
Farming, forestry, and fishing............... 1,280 11.2 169 201 84.2 1,555 14.0 272 307 88.6
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians displayed in this
table.
2 Data not shown where base is less than 50,000.
3 Data not shown where base for either the numerator or denominator is less than 50,000.
Table 3. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex, 1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
Occupation of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers weekly error workers weekly error workers weekly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands) median thousands) median thousands) median
Total, 16 years and over............... 95,595 $523 $1 41,282 $456 $2 54,313 $598 $2 76.3
Managerial and professional specialty........ 29,304 759 2 14,363 655 3 14,941 905 5 72.4
Executive, administrative, and managerial.. 14,451 755 3 6,705 626 3 7,746 915 7 68.4
Administrators and officials, public
administration............................ 588 823 20 286 663 21 302 957 22 69.3
Administrators, protective services...... 54 883 49 13 (2) (2) 42 (2) (2) (3)
Financial managers....................... 652 852 16 336 703 24 316 1,017 48 69.1
Personnel and labor relations managers... 152 823 44 97 747 59 55 947 35 78.8
Purchasing managers...................... 136 817 47 56 724 17 80 965 42 75.1
Managers, marketing, advertising, and
public
relations........................... 741 960 15 283 759 20 458 1,128 31 67.3
Administrators, education and related
fields.................................... 637 877 21 378 730 22 259 1,111 72 65.7
Managers, medicine and health............ 626 716 19 492 679 19 134 869 43 78.1
Managers, food serving and lodging
establishments...................... 962 509 7 424 434 13 538 591 11 73.5
Managers, properties and real estate..... 301 585 12 168 518 17 133 638 46 81.2
Management-related occupations........... 3,818 660 5 2,238 602 4 1,580 790 14 76.2
Accountants and auditors............... 1,303 674 11 780 618 7 523 821 23 75.3
Underwriters........................... 107 658 31 76 625 34 31 (2) (2) (3)
Other financial officers............... 642 703 19 347 591 11 295 901 27 65.7
Management analysts.................... 216 841 22 95 752 16 121 964 40 78.0
Personnel, training, and labor
relations specialists..................... 431 630 14 295 601 10 135 755 38 79.6
Buyers, wholesale and retail trade,
except
farm products...................... 162 612 13 77 590 13 85 647 28 91.2
Construction inspectors................ 63 742 29 6 (2) (2) 57 760 27 (3)
Inspectors and compliance officers,
except construction................ 220 741 23 74 714 43 145 756 29 94.5
Professional specialty..................... 14,853 763 3 7,658 682 4 7,195 895 6 76.2
Engineers, architects, and surveyors..... 2,043 988 11 215 827 27 1,828 1,007 11 82.1
Architects............................. 102 872 40 15 (2) (2) 87 893 59 (3)
Engineers.............................. 1,930 992 11 200 831 29 1,730 1,011 11 82.1
Aerospace engineers.................. 75 1,139 23 6 (2) (2) 68 1,150 22 (3)
Chemical engineers................... 68 1,023 52 12 (2) (2) 56 1,041 46 (3)
Civil engineers...................... 259 965 32 30 (2) (2) 229 1,001 33 (3)
Electrical and electronic engineers.. 605 1,059 19 51 931 44 554 1,067 19 87.2
Industrial engineers................. 248 889 25 41 (2) (2) 208 912 26 (3)
Mechanical engineers................. 313 998 27 18 (2) (2) 296 1,007 26 (3)
Mathematical and computer scientists..... 1,544 938 10 438 859 26 1,105 986 17 87.1
Computer systems analysts and
scientists................................ 1,281 952 12 341 890 14 941 996 17 89.4
Operations and systems researchers and
analysts.................................. 208 874 24 81 750 24 127 937 19 80.0
Natural scientists....................... 470 828 26 152 732 17 318 908 34 80.6
Chemists, except biochemists........... 129 884 56 45 (2) (2) 84 982 37 (3)
Biological and life scientists......... 91 739 28 34 (2) (2) 56 781 51 (3)
Medical scientists..................... 80 755 28 38 (2) (2) 41 (2) (2) (3)
Health diagnosing occupations............ 549 1,134 50 181 948 37 367 1,227 77 77.3
Physicians............................. 474 1,156 33 153 966 40 321 1,255 48 77.0
Health assessment and treating
occupations............................... 2,102 738 6 1,739 730 6 363 791 33 92.4
Registered nurses...................... 1,490 739 6 1,351 734 6 139 774 28 94.8
Pharmacists............................ 139 1,063 20 59 985 67 80 1,146 25 85.9
Dietitians............................. 58 582 64 47 (2) (2) 11 (2) (2) (3)
Therapists............................. 362 710 14 258 709 17 104 713 20 99.4
Respiratory therapists............... 83 618 23 46 (2) (2) 37 (2) (2) (3)
Physical therapists.................. 87 906 34 61 887 29 26 (2) (2) (3)
Speech therapists.................... 75 725 30 71 729 29 5 (2) (2) (3)
Physicians' assistants................. 53 611 30 24 (2) (2) 30 (2) (2) (3)
Teachers, college and university......... 578 907 23 211 769 15 366 998 48 77.1
Teachers, except college and university.. 3,974 671 6 2,952 644 6 1,022 746 9 86.4
Teachers, prekindergarten and
kindergarten.............................. 412 397 18 404 398 16 8 (2) (2) (3)
Teachers, elementary school............ 1,706 691 8 1,433 677 8 274 749 13 90.5
Teachers, secondary school............. 1,121 736 9 631 698 15 490 773 15 90.3
Teachers, special education............ 318 701 14 259 693 14 58 733 46 94.6
Counselors, educational and vocational... 192 695 47 131 689 43 61 725 218 94.9
Librarians, archivists, and curators..... 177 656 35 146 640 33 31 (2) (2) (3)
Librarians............................. 159 665 34 136 653 32 22 (2) (2) (3)
Social scientists and urban planners..... 286 758 19 141 661 17 145 878 34 75.3
Economists............................. 99 900 29 42 (2) (2) 57 991 43 (3)
Psychologists.......................... 143 679 32 78 621 21 65 740 32 83.9
Social, recreation, and religious workers 1,113 557 10 571 531 11 542 593 17 89.5
Social workers......................... 654 579 10 427 568 11 227 609 21 93.1
Recreation workers..................... 105 353 19 74 351 20 31 (2) (2) (3)
Clergy................................. 275 593 21 25 (2) (2) 250 603 25 (3)
Lawyers and judges....................... 562 1,218 76 193 956 40 370 1,348 40 70.9
Lawyers................................ 527 1,209 76 181 951 39 346 1,350 39 70.4
Writers, artists, entertainers, and
athletes.................................. 1,264 647 9 587 591 8 677 713 18 83.0
Technical writers...................... 63 810 26 36 (2) (2) 27 (2) (2) (3)
Designers.............................. 407 635 15 199 562 22 208 720 31 78.1
Actors and directors................... 88 733 26 35 (2) (2) 53 801 59 (3)
Painters, sculptors, craft artists, and
artist printmakers................. 99 562 55 47 (2) (2) 52 680 42 (3)
Photographers.......................... 51 526 77 15 (2) (2) 36 (2) (2) (3)
Editors and reporters.................. 215 723 34 95 616 17 120 812 95 75.8
Public relations specialists........... 127 707 66 77 680 87 49 (2) (2) (3)
Technical, sales, and administrative support. 27,372 477 2 16,933 419 1 10,439 606 3 69.2
Technicians and related support............ 3,507 599 4 1,734 511 4 1,773 701 9 72.9
Health technologists and technicians..... 1,296 502 6 1,017 486 5 279 588 15 82.7
Clinical laboratory technologists and
technicians............................... 281 566 25 216 549 37 65 585 26 93.8
Radiologic technicians................. 135 631 28 90 595 16 45 (2) (2) (3)
Licensed practical nurses.............. 289 473 9 276 470 7 14 (2) (2) (3)
Engineering and related technologists and
technicians.......................... 888 638 10 170 529 23 718 668 12 79.3
Electrical and electronic technicians.. 421 642 12 68 551 32 354 665 14 82.8
Drafting occupations................... 200 642 21 38 (2) (2) 162 675 22 (3)
Surveying and mapping technicians...... 66 668 63 8 (2) (2) 58 682 40 (3)
Science technicians...................... 241 557 18 92 463 16 149 623 24 74.4
Biological technicians................. 86 482 23 59 449 22 27 (2) (2) (3)
Chemical technicians................... 76 614 28 14 (2) (2) 61 688 44 (3)
Technicians, except health, engineering,
and
science.............................. 1,082 738 12 455 609 10 627 870 17 69.9
Airplane pilots and navigators......... 81 1,383 168 ± ± ± 81 1,381 175 ±
Computer programmers................... 554 843 16 157 715 30 397 884 18 80.9
Legal assistants....................... 308 578 14 249 581 13 58 561 69 103.6
Sales occupations.......................... 9,636 502 4 4,338 372 4 5,299 622 5 59.8
Supervisors and proprietors.............. 3,205 570 8 1,345 449 7 1,860 649 9 69.2
Sales representatives, finance and
business
services............................. 1,774 659 11 792 566 15 982 772 17 73.2
Insurance sales........................ 374 629 20 179 534 36 195 760 35 70.3
Real estate sales...................... 353 663 22 196 575 40 157 763 18 75.4
Securities and financial services sales 377 758 25 115 598 13 262 930 52 64.3
Advertising and related sales.......... 150 631 43 90 594 21 60 760 102 78.1
Sales occupations, other business
services.................................. 520 626 18 212 516 28 308 715 34 72.2
Sales representatives, commodities,
except retail............................. 1,287 728 11 317 603 16 970 765 12 78.9
Sales workers, retail and personal
services.................................. 3,347 312 3 1,865 272 2 1,483 412 7 66.1
Sales workers, motor vehicles and boats 285 587 18 30 (2) (2) 256 609 20 (3)
Sales workers, apparel................. 153 296 11 116 283 11 37 (2) (2) (3)
Sales workers, furniture and home
furnishings............................... 110 458 29 47 (2) (2) 63 509 22 (3)
Sales workers, radio, television,
hi-fi, and
appliances......................... 189 410 12 45 (2) (2) 144 431 22 (3)
Sales workers, hardware and building
supplies.................................. 211 434 19 42 (2) (2) 169 461 25 (3)
Sales workers, parts................... 144 390 15 15 (2) (2) 130 403 16 (3)
Sales workers, other commodities....... 670 311 5 411 287 5 258 388 17 74.0
Sales counter clerks................... 86 296 17 59 266 10 27 (2) (2) (3)
Cashiers............................... 1,350 267 2 1,015 259 2 335 302 6 85.7
Street and door-to-door sales workers.. 87 404 26 53 355 15 34 (2) (2) (3)
Administrative support, including clerical. 14,229 438 2 10,862 418 1 3,368 518 4 80.7
Supervisors.............................. 689 599 9 413 556 13 276 679 20 81.9
General office......................... 384 586 11 267 547 14 117 698 28 78.3
Financial records processing........... 87 616 20 72 590 18 15 (2) (2) (3)
Distribution, scheduling, and
adjusting clerks................... 199 620 23 66 551 66 133 640 26 86.2
Computer equipment operators............. 346 511 11 192 477 12 153 591 18 80.7
Computer operators..................... 343 513 11 192 478 12 151 595 18 80.3
Secretaries, stenographers, and typists.. 2,717 437 4 2,658 436 4 59 484 30 90.1
Secretaries............................ 2,234 431 5 2,199 430 4 35 (2) (2) (3)
Stenographers.......................... 64 456 21 61 456 20 3 (2) (2) (3)
Typists................................ 419 467 11 397 469 10 22 (2) (2) (3)
Information clerks....................... 1,328 367 4 1,186 363 3 142 453 32 80.1
Interviewers........................... 113 399 12 97 393 12 15 (2) (2) (3)
Hotel clerks........................... 84 311 8 64 312 8 20 (2) (2) (3)
Transportation ticket and reservation
agents.................................... 215 463 29 160 433 31 55 563 51 77.0
Receptionists.......................... 664 352 5 645 351 4 19 (2) (2) (3)
Records processing, except financial..... 742 417 7 592 416 7 150 419 12 99.4
Order clerks........................... 217 451 16 160 450 15 57 455 47 99.0
Personnel clerks, except payroll and
timekeeping............................... 65 491 18 54 487 15 11 (2) (2) (3)
Library clerks......................... 64 358 24 51 349 28 13 (2) (2) (3)
File clerks............................ 209 368 11 169 367 10 40 (2) (2) (3)
Records clerks......................... 174 440 17 147 436 16 27 (2) (2) (3)
Financial records processing............. 1,485 429 5 1,351 426 4 134 466 19 91.5
Bookkeepers, accounting, and auditing
clerks.................................... 1,078 428 6 987 426 5 91 455 20 93.5
Payroll and timekeeping clerks......... 130 476 13 117 474 13 13 (2) (2) (3)
Billing clerks......................... 153 413 10 131 409 10 22 (2) (2) (3)
Billing, posting, and calculating
machine operators......................... 84 415 21 81 409 18 3 (2) (2) (3)
Duplicating, mail and other office
machine
operators........................... 66 346 20 36 (2) (2) 29 (2) (2) (3)
Communications equipment operators....... 144 397 17 114 368 13 29 (2) (2) (3)
Telephone operators.................... 128 399 16 109 372 14 19 (2) (2) (3)
Mail and message distributing............ 858 603 9 309 542 18 549 633 14 85.6
Postal clerks, except mail carriers.... 308 640 14 140 617 17 168 668 22 92.3
Mail carriers, postal service.......... 316 681 9 87 613 18 230 699 10 87.7
Mail clerks, except postal service..... 138 372 13 63 332 14 75 443 35 75.0
Messengers............................. 95 392 23 19 (2) (2) 76 408 23 (3)
Material recording, scheduling, and
distributing
clerks............................... 1,717 446 7 738 414 6 980 476 8 86.9
Dispatchers............................ 218 479 11 105 403 15 113 516 13 78.0
Production coordinators................ 249 581 15 141 518 16 108 724 36 71.6
Traffic, shipping, and receiving clerks 562 408 7 164 385 14 398 416 8 92.4
Stock and inventory clerks............. 405 432 13 169 406 16 235 452 17 89.9
Expediters............................. 192 403 14 126 373 15 66 477 39 78.1
Adjusters and investigators.............. 1,572 470 6 1,161 445 6 411 567 18 78.4
Insurance adjusters, examiners, and
investigators............................. 420 522 12 297 487 10 124 671 23 72.6
Investigators and adjusters, except
insurance................................. 881 455 8 661 431 9 220 522 20 82.6
Eligibility clerks, social welfare..... 87 459 18 74 449 15 13 (2) (2) (3)
Bill and account collectors............ 183 433 12 129 411 12 53 494 40 83.2
Miscellaneous administrative support
occupations............................... 2,568 401 4 2,111 389 3 457 482 10 80.6
General office clerks.................. 526 400 8 422 392 7 104 453 32 86.4
Bank tellers........................... 291 330 7 265 329 7 25 (2) (2) (3)
Data-entry keyers...................... 572 418 7 467 409 7 106 470 24 87.1
Statistical clerks..................... 87 409 25 72 386 24 15 (2) (2) (3)
Teachers' aides........................ 353 307 6 326 304 6 27 (2) (2) (3)
Service occupations.......................... 10,592 327 2 5,301 296 1 5,291 389 4 76.1
Private household.......................... 381 223 6 362 220 5 19 (2) (2) (3)
Child care workers....................... 136 204 11 132 208 11 4 (2) (2) (3)
Cleaners and servants.................... 236 235 12 225 227 10 11 (2) (2) (3)
Protective service......................... 2,140 598 6 323 481 15 1,817 613 7 78.4
Supervisors.............................. 215 771 29 18 (2) (2) 198 786 42 (3)
Police and detectives.................. 117 853 55 11 (2) (2) 105 864 51 (3)
Guards................................. 54 506 32 6 (2) (2) 47 (2) (2) (3)
Firefighting and fire prevention......... 230 732 28 6 (2) (2) 224 731 27 (3)
Firefighting........................... 210 734 27 5 (2) (2) 205 731 27 (3)
Police and detectives.................... 1,050 646 10 168 583 17 882 662 11 88.1
Police and detectives, public service.. 602 723 13 72 633 23 530 738 13 85.7
Sheriffs, bailiffs, and other law
enforcement
officers........................... 164 594 14 27 (2) (2) 137 595 16 (3)
Correctional institution officers...... 284 557 24 69 509 23 215 571 22 89.3
Guards................................... 645 369 10 132 330 20 513 378 12 87.3
Guards and police, except public
services.................................. 611 375 11 116 347 20 495 382 12 90.8
Service occupations, except private
household and
protective............................ 8,070 307 1 4,616 295 2 3,455 325 3 90.8
Food preparation and service occupations. 3,032 288 2 1,451 271 3 1,581 303 3 89.4
Supervisors............................ 233 352 18 131 304 8 103 427 31 71.3
Bartenders............................. 178 336 12 96 293 22 83 379 20 77.4
Waiters and waitresses................. 575 300 6 416 282 6 159 343 12 82.1
Cooks, except short order.............. 1,250 289 3 419 259 4 831 305 4 85.1
Food counter, fountain and related
occupations............................... 100 242 7 59 241 9 40 (2) (2) (3)
Kitchen workers, food preparation...... 135 274 8 93 275 9 42 (2) (2) (3)
Waiters' and waitresses' assistants.... 233 267 6 115 265 8 119 268 8 99.0
Miscellaneous food preparation
occupations............................... 327 265 5 124 269 8 204 263 6 102.5
Health service occupations............... 1,718 318 3 1,500 315 3 218 342 10 92.2
Dental assistants...................... 153 369 13 151 369 11 3 (2) (2) (3)
Health aides, except nursing........... 234 346 10 189 335 11 45 (2) (2) (3)
Nursing aides, orderlies, and
attendants................................ 1,330 311 3 1,160 308 3 170 330 12 93.4
Cleaning and building service occupations 2,234 319 2 856 288 3 1,378 358 6 80.4
Supervisors............................ 157 401 11 62 348 15 95 457 29 76.3
Maids and housemen..................... 453 277 5 357 272 4 96 305 13 89.0
Janitors and cleaners.................. 1,567 327 5 435 292 5 1,132 355 7 82.4
Pest control........................... 54 358 22 2 (2) (2) 52 356 23 (3)
Personal service occupations............. 1,086 311 4 809 301 4 278 368 14 81.8
Supervisors............................ 65 503 39 33 (2) (2) 32 (2) (2) (3)
Hairdressers and cosmetologists........ 289 313 7 259 313 6 31 (2) (2) (3)
Attendants, amusement and recreation
facilities................................ 111 321 13 48 (2) (2) 63 382 34 (3)
Public transportation attendants....... 76 524 72 60 575 48 16 (2) (2) (3)
Early childhood teachers' assistants... 239 265 8 231 264 7 8 (2) (2) (3)
Precision production, craft, and repair...... 11,691 572 4 949 408 5 10,741 587 3 69.5
Mechanics and repairers.................... 4,081 597 4 155 519 20 3,926 599 4 86.8
Supervisors.............................. 247 743 18 15 (2) (2) 232 748 18 (3)
Mechanics and repairers, except
supervisors............................... 3,834 590 4 140 516 23 3,694 592 4 87.1
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics
and
repairers.......................... 1,494 552 11 12 (2) (2) 1,482 552 11 (3)
Automobile mechanics................. 653 493 9 2 (2) (2) 652 494 9 (3)
Bus, truck, and stationary engine
mechanics................................. 312 563 17 3 (2) (2) 309 561 17 (3)
Aircraft engine mechanics............ 140 780 20 4 (2) (2) 136 782 22 (3)
Automobile body and related repairers 134 510 17 - - - 134 510 17 -
Heavy equipment mechanics............ 159 636 20 - - - 159 636 20 -
Industrial machinery repairers......... 532 608 15 12 (2) (2) 520 611 15 (3)
Electrical and electronic equipment
repairers................................. 764 665 16 82 550 38 682 677 13 81.2
Electronic repairers, communications
and
industrial equipment............. 160 579 32 11 (2) (2) 148 590 33 (3)
Data processing equipment repairers.. 224 641 19 36 (2) (2) 189 657 20 (3)
Telephone installers and repairers... 225 750 18 30 (2) (2) 194 762 19 (3)
Miscellaneous electrical and
electronic
equipment repairers.............. 81 644 69 3 (2) (2) 77 629 55 (3)
Heating, air conditioning, and
refrigeration
mechanics.......................... 246 594 15 1 (2) (2) 244 594 14 (3)
Miscellaneous mechanics and repairers.. 786 584 9 32 (2) (2) 753 588 9 (3)
Office machine repairers............. 59 594 20 1 (2) (2) 57 598 20 (3)
Millwrights.......................... 84 712 19 1 (2) (2) 83 714 19 (3)
Construction trades........................ 4,054 543 7 64 408 18 3,989 545 7 74.8
Supervisors.............................. 481 708 13 4 (2) (2) 477 709 13 (3)
Construction trades, except supervisors.. 3,573 520 4 61 403 18 3,512 522 5 77.2
Brickmasons and stonemasons............ 125 573 33 2 (2) (2) 123 573 33 (3)
Carpet installers...................... 68 476 32 - - - 68 476 32 -
Carpenters............................. 920 490 7 10 (2) (2) 909 491 7 (3)
Drywall installers..................... 136 493 12 3 (2) (2) 134 496 12 (3)
Electricians........................... 717 643 15 16 (2) (2) 701 642 15 (3)
Electrical power installers and
repairers................................. 135 789 84 1 (2) (2) 134 795 85 (3)
Painters, construction and maintenance. 336 402 9 15 (2) (2) 321 406 9 (3)
Plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters,
and
apprentices....................... 428 593 14 5 (2) (2) 422 595 14 (3)
Concrete and terrazzo finishers........ 72 483 18 - - - 72 483 18 -
Roofers................................ 172 441 29 1 (2) (2) 171 443 29 (3)
Structural metalworkers................ 54 583 58 - - - 54 583 58 -
Extractive occupations..................... 120 633 63 1 (2) (2) 119 631 60 (3)
Precision production occupations........... 3,436 558 7 729 392 5 2,707 611 5 64.1
Supervisors.............................. 1,136 645 11 193 478 11 943 686 10 69.7
Precision metalworking occupations....... 873 610 9 57 444 24 816 621 10 71.4
Tool and die makers.................... 130 784 22 1 (2) (2) 129 786 22 (3)
Machinists............................. 508 594 10 33 (2) (2) 475 601 10 (3)
Sheet-metal workers.................... 116 584 24 4 (2) (2) 112 591 25 (3)
Precision woodworking occupations........ 88 475 62 11 (2) (2) 77 507 35 (3)
Cabinet makers and bench carpenters.... 60 531 61 4 (2) (2) 55 552 65 (3)
Precision textile, apparel, and
furnishings
machine workers...................... 122 387 11 42 (2) (2) 80 394 12 (3)
Precision workers, assorted materials.... 489 402 8 285 361 9 203 501 14 72.0
Optical goods workers.................. 65 412 20 39 (2) (2) 26 (2) (2) (3)
Electrical and electronic equipment
assemblers................................ 319 381 10 218 357 10 101 472 28 75.5
Precision food production occupations.... 333 401 8 95 344 14 238 422 9 81.7
Butchers and meat cutters.............. 199 416 8 35 (2) (2) 164 456 32 (3)
Bakers................................. 97 352 17 37 (2) (2) 60 375 29 (3)
Precision inspectors, testers, and
related workers........................... 139 623 32 37 (2) (2) 103 676 31 (3)
Inspectors, testers, and graders....... 134 630 38 36 (2) (2) 98 680 27 (3)
Plant and system operators............... 256 694 19 8 (2) (2) 248 703 19 (3)
Water and sewage treatment plant
operators................................. 57 586 27 4 (2) (2) 54 600 26 (3)
Stationary engineers................... 125 714 23 2 (2) (2) 123 718 24 (3)
Operators, fabricators, and laborers......... 15,082 415 2 3,518 327 2 11,564 456 3 71.6
Machine operators, assemblers, and
inspectors................................ 6,987 406 3 2,505 328 3 4,482 472 4 69.4
Machine operators and tenders, except
precision................................. 4,452 399 3 1,586 320 3 2,866 461 5 69.4
Metalworking and plastic working
machine
operators.......................... 389 475 12 66 387 17 323 496 12 78.0
Punching and stamping press machine
operators........................ 108 406 22 32 (2) (2) 77 440 23 (3)
Grinding, abrading, buffing, and
polishing
machine operators................ 120 441 36 12 (2) (2) 108 453 34 (3)
Metal and plastic processing machine
operators................................. 160 446 14 33 (2) (2) 127 468 14 (3)
Molding and casting machine operators 102 430 14 25 (2) (2) 77 448 15 (3)
Woodworking machine operators.......... 127 379 15 21 (2) (2) 106 394 17 (3)
Sawing machine operators............. 81 366 16 11 (2) (2) 70 375 20 (3)
Printing machine operators............. 357 495 10 83 384 19 273 533 21 72.1
Printing press operators............. 279 490 12 46 (2) (2) 233 514 13 (3)
Textile, apparel, and furnishings
machine
operators.......................... 784 293 4 569 285 4 215 318 7 89.6
Textile sewing machine operators..... 435 280 5 361 278 4 74 300 17 92.4
Pressing machine operators........... 64 276 10 47 (2) (2) 17 (2) (2) (3)
Laundering and dry cleaning machine
operators................................. 136 287 7 76 270 9 61 301 8 89.7
Machine operators, assorted materials.. 2,616 416 4 807 347 5 1,809 465 7 74.6
Packaging and filling machine
operators................................. 363 327 9 208 316 6 155 358 19 88.2
Mixing and blending machine operators 119 455 31 7 (2) (2) 112 459 30 (3)
Painting and paint spraying machine
operators................................. 189 413 14 24 (2) (2) 166 422 20 (3)
Furnace, kiln, and oven operators,
except
food............................. 77 554 34 2 (2) (2) 75 558 34 (3)
Slicing and cutting machine operators 164 389 20 43 (2) (2) 121 445 28 (3)
Photographic process machine
operators................................. 77 321 12 43 (2) (2) 33 (2) (2) (3)
Fabricators, assemblers, and hand
working
occupations........................ 1,845 421 5 589 347 5 1,256 482 8 72.0
Welders and cutters.................. 550 518 11 30 (2) (2) 519 527 13 (3)
Assemblers........................... 1,199 392 6 516 347 6 683 445 12 77.9
Production inspectors, testers,
samplers, and
weighers........................... 690 412 8 330 336 7 360 517 11 65.0
Production inspectors, checkers, and
examiners................................. 487 448 15 233 358 8 254 544 23 65.8
Graders and sorters, except
agricultural.............................. 150 306 9 85 289 8 65 351 22 82.2
Transportation and material moving
occupations............................... 4,322 510 4 345 373 13 3,977 519 4 71.9
Motor vehicle operators.................. 3,144 503 4 273 362 15 2,870 514 5 70.4
Supervisors............................ 79 595 33 18 (2) (2) 61 625 62 (3)
Truck drivers.......................... 2,458 516 5 114 371 26 2,345 520 6 71.3
Drivers—sales workers................. 143 526 32 14 (2) (2) 129 554 42 (3)
Bus drivers............................ 273 428 19 112 352 17 160 476 19 74.0
Taxicab drivers and chauffeurs......... 162 379 21 12 (2) (2) 150 386 21 (3)
Transportation occupations, except motor
vehicles.................................. 150 834 40 10 (2) (2) 141 862 39 (3)
Rail transportation.................... 101 849 54 8 (2) (2) 93 888 48 (3)
Material moving equipment operators...... 1,028 505 6 62 397 23 966 510 6 77.9
Operating engineers.................... 223 570 20 6 (2) (2) 217 568 19 (3)
Crane and tower operators.............. 65 576 33 4 (2) (2) 61 572 36 (3)
Excavating and loading machine
operators................................. 80 557 25 ± ± ± 79 558 25 ±
Grader, dozer, and scraper operators... 59 572 39 2 (2) (2) 58 578 22 (3)
Industrial truck and tractor equipment
operators................................. 501 452 13 39 (2) (2) 463 455 14 (3)
Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and
laborers.................................. 3,773 351 3 669 311 4 3,105 362 3 85.8
Helpers, construction and extractive
occupations............................... 112 341 18 1 (2) (2) 110 340 19 (3)
Helpers, construction trades........... 108 335 17 1 (2) (2) 106 334 19 (3)
Construction laborers.................... 729 390 7 23 (2) (2) 706 393 7 (3)
Freight, stock, and material handlers.... 1,192 339 6 236 312 7 956 350 7 89.1
Stock handlers and baggers............. 563 300 5 157 291 7 406 304 6 95.8
Machine feeders and offbearers......... 66 363 14 20 (2) (2) 46 (2) (2) (3)
Garage and service station related
occupations............................... 127 293 9 9 (2) (2) 118 297 9 (3)
Vehicle washers and equipment cleaners... 213 317 9 23 (2) (2) 190 322 10 (3)
Hand packers and packagers............... 255 304 6 164 301 8 92 307 9 98.3
Laborers, except construction............ 1,055 373 6 202 331 12 853 384 7 86.1
Farming, forestry, and fishing............... 1,555 302 3 218 272 5 1,337 307 3 88.6
Farm operators and managers................ 69 424 43 10 (2) (2) 59 475 59 (3)
Farm managers............................ 63 459 67 9 (2) (2) 53 486 24 (3)
Other agricultural and related occupations. 1,425 298 3 204 270 5 1,221 303 3 89.3
Farm occupations, except managerial...... 650 285 5 88 264 7 563 288 5 91.7
Farm workers........................... 602 281 5 77 262 8 525 285 5 91.9
Related agricultural occupations......... 775 308 4 117 274 8 658 314 4 87.5
Supervisors, related agricultural...... 63 469 24 4 (2) (2) 59 479 28 (3)
Groundskeepers and gardeners, except
farm...................................... 598 306 4 29 (2) (2) 569 306 4 (3)
Animal caretakers, except farm......... 51 300 21 38 (2) (2) 13 (2) (2) (3)
Graders and sorters, agricultural
products.................................. 61 259 6 45 (2) (2) 15 (2) (2) (3)
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians displayed in this
table.
2 Data not shown where base is less than 50,000.
3 Data not shown where base for either the numerator or denominator is less than 50,000.
Table 4. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by sex and State, 1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
State of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers weekly error workers weekly error workers weekly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands) median thousands) median thousands) median
UNITED STATES........... 95,595 $523 $1 41,282 $456 $2 54,313 $598 $2 76.3
Alabama..................... 1,532 476 9 674 403 8 857 543 22 74.1
Alaska...................... 203 653 14 89 543 14 114 766 27 71.0
Arizona..................... 1,556 476 9 649 416 9 907 523 15 79.6
Arkansas.................... 833 397 7 378 345 8 455 452 11 76.2
California.................. 10,776 574 5 4,453 520 5 6,323 606 5 85.7
Colorado.................... 1,557 577 10 675 493 9 881 637 15 77.4
Connecticut................. 1,188 646 15 516 532 16 672 766 21 69.5
Delaware.................... 281 542 19 125 472 14 156 609 11 77.6
District of Columbia........ 197 602 9 96 582 10 101 632 17 92.1
Florida..................... 5,106 476 5 2,312 416 4 2,793 516 5 80.6
Georgia..................... 2,966 493 7 1,342 421 6 1,624 583 9 72.2
Hawaii...................... 393 516 9 187 468 9 206 611 18 76.5
Idaho....................... 425 480 7 164 396 10 261 556 16 71.3
Illinois.................... 4,350 572 7 1,879 487 5 2,470 641 12 76.0
Indiana..................... 2,178 536 10 930 429 9 1,248 624 12 68.7
Iowa........................ 1,057 489 8 465 407 8 593 553 11 73.7
Kansas...................... 928 497 9 387 416 8 541 562 12 74.0
Kentucky.................... 1,396 475 9 608 392 7 788 551 17 71.3
Louisiana................... 1,464 463 10 667 381 8 797 544 14 70.0
Maine....................... 402 472 8 171 409 8 231 517 10 79.1
Maryland.................... 2,015 612 8 925 535 22 1,091 685 17 78.1
Massachusetts............... 2,226 603 6 954 526 10 1,272 665 14 79.1
Michigan.................... 3,490 598 6 1,398 482 7 2,091 686 11 70.2
Minnesota................... 1,718 595 9 715 519 8 1,003 646 14 80.2
Mississippi................. 937 450 10 431 380 8 506 515 8 73.8
Missouri.................... 2,018 506 7 924 454 10 1,095 562 16 80.8
Montana..................... 260 445 9 112 382 8 149 504 10 75.7
Nebraska.................... 587 492 7 263 409 9 324 549 15 74.4
Nevada...................... 677 492 7 291 423 8 386 556 19 76.1
New Hampshire............... 441 580 10 181 484 10 260 638 18 75.9
New Jersey.................. 2,968 622 6 1,313 533 11 1,655 713 10 74.7
New Mexico.................. 542 489 8 228 410 9 314 557 18 73.7
New York.................... 6,109 573 6 2,631 508 5 3,478 617 6 82.3
North Carolina.............. 2,865 470 6 1,289 409 5 1,577 521 7 78.4
North Dakota................ 214 438 9 99 358 7 115 513 8 69.8
Ohio........................ 3,944 541 7 1,679 446 7 2,265 627 8 71.2
Oklahoma.................... 1,128 454 8 495 388 8 633 532 16 72.9
Oregon...................... 1,138 523 13 448 432 15 690 598 11 72.2
Pennsylvania................ 4,011 545 6 1,738 464 8 2,273 614 7 75.6
Rhode Island................ 338 549 17 153 455 17 186 638 16 71.2
South Carolina.............. 1,446 484 7 681 404 8 766 554 15 73.0
South Dakota................ 251 422 7 111 377 7 140 479 10 78.7
Tennessee................... 1,978 453 9 918 394 7 1,059 525 13 75.1
Texas....................... 7,354 476 4 3,120 418 4 4,235 525 8 79.7
Utah........................ 694 507 7 280 406 8 414 604 11 67.3
Vermont..................... 200 490 8 88 421 8 112 550 21 76.5
Virginia.................... 2,583 567 12 1,117 488 8 1,466 636 19 76.7
Washington.................. 2,016 602 9 805 509 10 1,211 663 17 76.7
West Virginia............... 541 455 11 225 370 9 316 523 13 70.7
Wisconsin................... 1,957 532 10 841 460 8 1,117 614 10 74.9
Wyoming..................... 160 509 10 64 395 10 97 603 12 65.5
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
NOTE: Data refer to persons 16 years and over.
Table 5. Median usual weekly earnings of part-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
Characteristic of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers weekly error workers weekly error workers weekly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands} median thousands) median thousands) median
AGE
Total, 16 years and
over..................... 20,862 $156 $1 14,361 $161 $1 6,501 $146 $1 110.3
16 to 24 years.............. 8,082 118 1 4,500 118 1 3,582 119 1 98.6
16 to 19 years........... 4,712 105 1 2,524 103 1 2,187 107 1 96.9
20 to 24 years........... 3,371 148 1 1,976 145 2 1,395 151 2 96.5
25 years and over........... 12,780 192 1 9,861 191 1 2,919 197 2 96.8
25 to 34 years........... 3,500 204 2 2,643 199 2 857 218 4 91.4
35 to 44 years........... 3,640 205 2 3,099 204 2 541 212 5 96.2
45 to 54 years........... 2,494 208 3 2,096 205 3 398 223 8 91.6
55 to 64 years........... 1,727 168 2 1,254 164 3 473 182 7 90.0
65 years and over........ 1,418 140 3 769 133 3 649 150 4 88.6
RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN
White....................... 17,886 157 1 12,416 163 1 5,470 146 1 111.7
Black....................... 2,096 149 2 1,408 151 2 688 145 4 104.6
Hispanic origin............. 1,828 154 3 1,196 150 3 632 162 5 92.5
MARITAL STATUS
Never married............... 9,435 125 1 5,166 124 1 4,269 126 1 97.7
Married, spouse present..... 8,880 197 1 7,148 197 2 1,733 196 3 100.6
Other marital status........ 2,548 169 2 2,048 165 2 500 188 5 87.8
Divorced................. 1,323 183 3 1,024 178 4 299 201 7 88.8
Separated................ 578 173 4 456 170 4 122 184 7 92.1
Widowed.................. 647 142 4 568 141 4 79 151 12 93.8
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group
are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 6. Median usual weekly earnings of (full- and part-time) employed wage and salary workers by hours usually worked and sex,
1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
Hours of work of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers weekly error workers weekly error workers weekly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands) median thousands) median thousands) median
Total, 16 years and
over..................... 116,730 $458 $1 55,757 $376 $1 60,973 $548 $2 68.6
34 hours or less............ 18,347 160 1 12,783 165 1 5,564 148 1 111.3
4 hours or less........... 443 35 3 314 32 4 129 44 8 73.4
5 to 9 hours.............. 1,023 60 1 718 61 1 305 57 2 106.2
10 to 14 hours............ 1,626 72 1 1,092 74 2 534 69 2 106.6
15 to 19 hours............ 2,508 112 1 1,747 113 1 761 108 1 105.1
20 to 24 hours............ 5,712 153 1 3,886 159 1 1,826 141 2 112.3
25 to 29 hours............ 2,426 186 2 1,704 194 2 722 171 2 113.5
30 to 34 hours............ 4,610 245 2 3,323 250 2 1,287 232 4 107.4
35 hours or more............ 90,368 524 1 39,374 460 2 50,993 600 2 76.6
35 to 39 hours............ 7,087 367 3 4,923 364 3 2,164 373 7 97.7
40 hours................ 60,925 484 1 27,857 433 2 33,068 523 2 82.8
41 hours or more........ 22,356 758 3 6,595 662 4 15,762 804 5 82.3
41 to 44 hours........ 1,561 585 8 654 512 8 907 648 15 79.1
45 to 48 hours........ 6,755 680 6 2,376 624 6 4,379 716 7 87.1
49 to 59 hours........ 9,545 819 6 2,601 737 7 6,944 853 7 86.4
60 hours ............. 4,495 875 10 963 727 14 3,532 919 10 79.1
Hours vary.................. 8,016 322 4 3,600 223 3 4,416 442 9 50.4
Usually less than 35 hours 2,516 128 2 1,579 128 3 937 129 4 98.9
Usually 35 hours or more.. 5,228 485 5 1,908 368 8 3,320 558 11 66.0
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and part-time workers. Detail for the above "hours vary" groups
will not sum to totals because data are not presented for a small number of multiple jobholders whose usual number of hours on
the principal job is not identifiable.
Table 7. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by
selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
Number Upper limit of:
of
Characteristic workers
(in First First Second Third Ninth
thousands) decile quartile quartile quartile decile
(median)
SEX, RACE, AND HISPANIC ORIGIN
Total, 16 years and over.......................... 95,595 $256 $347 $523 $789 $1,155
Women........................................... 41,282 236 312 456 662 943
Men............................................. 54,313 279 388 598 895 1,289
White........................................... 79,403 262 359 545 818 1,180
Women....................................... 33,316 240 318 468 675 959
Men......................................... 46,087 284 401 615 921 1,338
Black........................................... 11,776 231 301 426 626 886
Women....................................... 6,025 222 288 400 589 808
Men......................................... 5,751 245 317 468 681 950
Hispanic origin................................. 10,532 216 272 370 563 818
Women....................................... 3,816 199 253 337 507 717
Men......................................... 6,716 228 284 390 594 887
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Total, 25 years and over.......................... 84,549 275 379 572 836 1,198
Less than a high school diploma............... 8,576 204 257 337 486 679
High school graduates, no college............. 27,131 259 338 479 667 899
Some college or associate degree.............. 23,210 291 391 558 774 1,040
College graduates, total...................... 25,632 410 586 821 1,173 1,657
Women, 25 years and over.......................... 36,561 249 331 485 695 974
Less than a high school diploma............... 2,874 184 228 283 370 493
High school graduates, no college............. 11,787 232 297 396 532 698
Some college or associate degree.............. 10,744 271 345 476 642 857
College graduates, total...................... 11,156 383 522 707 967 1,322
Men, 25 years and over............................ 47,988 299 425 639 940 1,353
Less than a high school diploma............... 5,702 225 283 383 535 740
High school graduates, no college............. 15,344 293 394 559 761 1,000
Some college or associate degree.............. 12,466 324 457 643 888 1,162
College graduates, total...................... 14,476 452 643 939 1,353 1,895
NOTE: Ten percent of all full-time wage and salary workers earn less than the upper limit of the first
decile; 25 percent earn less than the upper limit of the first quartile; 50 percent earn less than the upper
limit of the second quartile, or median; 75 percent earn less than the upper limit of the third quartile; and
90 percent earn less than the upper limit of the ninth decile. Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin
groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are
included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 8. Usual weekly earnings distribution of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, 1998 annual
averages
(In thousands)
Usual weekly earnings distribution
Characteristic Total
employed Under $150.00 $250.00 $350.00 $500.00 $750.00 $1,000.00 $1,500.00
$150.00 to to to to to to or
$249.99 $349.99 $499.99 $749.99 $999.99 $1,499.99 more
AGE AND SEX
Total, 16 years and over........... 95,595 1,191 7,590 14,883 20,410 24,036 13,093 9,860 4,533
16 to 24 years........................ 11,046 327 2,369 3,643 2,807 1,455 301 120 25
16 to 19 years..................... 2,211 137 813 788 364 85 17 6 1
20 to 24 years..................... 8,836 190 1,556 2,854 2,444 1,370 284 113 24
25 years and over..................... 84,549 864 5,221 11,240 17,603 22,581 12,792 9,740 4,509
25 to 34 years..................... 25,555 218 1,788 4,119 6,417 7,355 3,123 1,859 676
35 to 44 years..................... 28,156 248 1,629 3,381 5,536 7,430 4,597 3,649 1,686
45 to 54 years..................... 21,023 201 1,122 2,367 3,802 5,429 3,634 3,002 1,467
55 to 64 years..................... 8,666 130 506 1,137 1,649 2,181 1,325 1,129 610
65 years and over.................. 1,149 67 176 237 198 186 113 101 70
Women, 16 years and over........... 41,282 692 4,395 8,011 10,067 10,176 4,375 2,682 883
16 to 24 years........................ 4,721 181 1,201 1,626 1,094 517 73 23 6
16 to 19 years..................... 922 69 393 317 119 20 4 ± -
20 to 24 years..................... 3,799 112 807 1,310 975 497 69 23 6
25 years and over..................... 36,561 511 3,194 6,385 8,974 9,658 4,303 2,659 877
25 to 34 years..................... 10,800 141 1,001 2,090 2,989 2,930 974 518 157
35 to 44 years..................... 11,971 140 1,044 1,984 2,827 3,117 1,515 1,008 336
45 to 54 years..................... 9,579 122 743 1,483 2,161 2,595 1,346 844 285
55 to 64 years..................... 3,753 77 325 709 906 942 439 263 93
65 years and over.................. 459 31 82 120 90 74 30 26 6
Men, 16 years and over............. 54,313 499 3,195 6,871 10,343 13,860 8,718 7,178 3,650
16 to 24 years........................ 6,325 146 1,168 2,016 1,714 937 229 97 19
16 to 19 years..................... 1,288 68 420 472 245 64 13 6 1
20 to 24 years..................... 5,037 78 748 1,545 1,469 873 215 91 18
25 years and over..................... 47,988 353 2,027 4,855 8,630 12,923 8,489 7,081 3,631
25 to 34 years..................... 14,756 77 788 2,029 3,428 4,425 2,149 1,341 519
35 to 44 years..................... 16,185 108 585 1,397 2,709 4,312 3,082 2,641 1,351
45 to 54 years..................... 11,444 79 378 884 1,641 2,834 2,288 2,158 1,182
55 to 64 years..................... 4,914 52 181 428 743 1,239 887 866 517
65 years and over.................. 689 37 95 117 108 112 83 75 63
RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX
White, 16 years and over................ 79,403 947 5,786 11,655 16,578 20,189 11,390 8,737 4,122
Women............................... 33,316 535 3,310 6,249 8,102 8,402 3,674 2,284 760
Men................................. 46,087 411 2,476 5,406 8,475 11,787 7,716 6,454 3,362
Black, 16 years and over................ 11,776 180 1,414 2,508 2,948 2,788 1,099 663 175
Women............................... 6,025 117 857 1,397 1,541 1,325 463 268 56
Men................................. 5,751 63 557 1,111 1,407 1,463 636 395 119
Hispanic origin, 16 years and over...... 10,532 185 1,864 2,719 2,447 1,940 748 472 157
Women............................... 3,816 99 857 1,042 830 651 207 104 28
Men................................. 6,716 86 1,007 1,677 1,618 1,289 541 369 129
NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group
are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 9. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by sex, marital
status, and presence and age of own children under 18 years old, 1998 annual averages
Number of Median Standard
Characteristic workers weekly error
(in thousands) earnings of
median
WOMEN
Total, all marital statuses................ 41,282 $456 $2
With children under 18 years old......... 16,374 440 2
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 10,138 458 3
With children under 6 years old....... 6,236 414 3
With no children under 18 years old...... 24,909 467 2
Total, married, spouse present............. 21,863 485 2
With children under 18 years old......... 11,171 474 3
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 6,744 478 3
With children under 6 years old....... 4,428 466 4
With no children under 18 years old...... 10,692 496 2
Total, other marital statuses(1)........... 19,419 421 2
With children under 18 years old......... 5,202 384 3
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 3,394 419 3
With children under 6 years old....... 1,808 326 4
With no children under 18 years old...... 14,217 442 3
MEN
Total, all marital statuses................ 54,313 598 2
With children under 18 years old......... 21,770 663 3
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 11,485 699 4
With children under 6 years old....... 10,285 621 4
With no children under 18 years old...... 32,543 552 3
Total, married, spouse present............. 33,797 679 3
With children under 18 years old......... 20,250 675 3
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 10,624 708 4
With children under 6 years old....... 9,626 635 5
With no children under 18 years old...... 13,547 687 4
Total, other marital statuses(1)........... 20,516 477 2
With children under 18 years old......... 1,520 522 9
With children 6 to 17, none younger... 861 597 12
With children under 6 years old....... 659 451 15
With no children under 18 years old...... 18,996 473 3
1 Includes never-married, divorced, separated, and widowed persons.
NOTE: Children refer to "own" children and include sons, daughters, stepchildren,
and adopted children. Excluded are other related children such as grandchildren, nieces,
nephews, and cousins, and unrelated children.
Table 10. Median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates by selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
Both sexes Women Men
Women's
earnings
Number Number Number as
Characteristic of Median Standard of Median Standard of Median Standard percent
workers hourly error workers hourly error workers hourly error of
(in earnings of (in earnings of (in earnings of men's(1)
thousands) median thousands) median thousands) median
AGE
Total, 16 years and over... 71,440 $9.11 $.03 35,680 $8.24 $.04 35,761 $10.07 $.04 81.8
16 to 24 years.................. 16,361 6.59 .05 7,949 6.25 .04 8,411 6.92 .05 90.3
16 to 19 years............... 6,482 5.89 .03 3,263 5.79 .03 3,219 5.99 .04 96.7
20 to 24 years............... 9,879 7.25 .06 4,686 6.94 .05 5,192 7.79 .06 89.1
25 years and over............... 55,080 10.14 .03 27,730 9.14 .04 27,349 11.73 .10 77.9
25 to 34 years............... 17,298 9.66 .09 8,185 8.81 .07 9,114 10.23 .10 86.1
35 to 44 years............... 18,070 10.87 .08 9,127 9.67 .13 8,943 12.49 .22 77.4
45 to 54 years............... 12,445 10.97 .10 6,606 9.79 .09 5,839 13.05 .19 75.0
55 to 64 years............... 5,660 10.09 .10 2,972 8.86 .15 2,688 12.23 .35 72.4
65 years and over............ 1,606 7.41 .27 841 7.22 .17 765 7.75 .34 93.1
RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN
White........................... 58,512 9.23 .05 28,812 8.34 .06 29,700 10.19 .05 81.9
Black........................... 9,773 8.40 .14 5,281 7.91 .08 4,492 9.10 .10 86.9
Hispanic origin................. 9,065 7.93 .09 3,651 7.23 .11 5,414 8.25 .16 87.5
MARITAL STATUS
Never married................... 24,174 7.29 .05 11,141 6.93 .04 13,033 7.81 .05 88.7
Married, spouse present......... 35,319 10.41 .09 17,216 9.20 .06 18,103 12.09 .07 76.1
Other marital status............ 11,947 9.45 .15 7,323 8.71 .11 4,624 10.83 .18 80.5
Divorced..................... 7,608 10.01 .08 4,526 9.16 .10 3,082 11.53 .42 79.4
Separated.................... 2,949 8.64 .22 1,634 7.98 .13 1,316 9.71 .35 82.2
Widowed...................... 1,390 8.02 .16 1,163 7.88 .15 226 9.36 .84 84.2
UNION AFFILIATION(2)
Members of unions(3)............ 10,885 13.77 .17 3,593 11.23 .17 7,293 14.94 .09 75.2
Represented by unions(4)........ 11,794 13.53 .21 4,051 11.19 .15 7,743 14.87 .09 75.2
Not represented by a union...... 59,646 8.52 .05 31,628 8.02 .03 28,018 9.17 .05 87.4
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Total, 25 years and over........ 55,080 10.14 .03 27,730 9.14 .04 27,349 11.73 .10 77.9
Less than a high school
diploma...................... 8,082 7.76 .08 3,271 6.68 .09 4,812 8.77 .13 76.2
High school graduates, no
college...................... 22,462 9.93 .04 11,048 8.59 .08 11,414 11.81 .09 72.7
Some college or associate
degree....................... 16,738 11.02 .08 9,005 9.95 .05 7,733 12.86 .16 77.4
College graduates, total...... 7,798 13.98 .21 4,407 13.35 .35 3,391 14.78 .31 90.4
1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
2 Differences in earnings levels between men and women with union affiliation reflect a variety of factors in addition to coverage
by a collective bargaining agreement, including the distribution of male and female employees by occupation, industry, firm size, or
geographic region.
3 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
4 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers who report no union
affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
NOTE: Hourly-paid workers account for approximately three-fifths of all wage and salary workers. Detail for the above race and
Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included
in both the white and black population groups.
Table 11. Hourly earnings distribution of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates by selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
(In thousands)
Hourly earnings distribution
Characteristic Total
employed Under $4.00 $5.00 $6.00 $8.00 $10.00 $12.00 $16.00 $20.00
$4.00 to to to to to to to or
$4.99 $5.99 $7.99 $9.99 $11.99 $15.99 $19.99 more
AGE AND SEX
Total, 16 years and over......... 71,440 919 490 8,671 16,321 12,796 9,718 11,232 5,552 5,742
16 to 24 years........................ 16,361 412 250 4,619 6,000 2,838 1,270 734 153 83
16 to 19 years..................... 6,482 176 151 2,922 2,394 570 191 66 6 7
20 to 24 years..................... 9,879 236 99 1,697 3,607 2,268 1,078 669 148 77
25 years and over..................... 55,080 506 240 4,052 10,321 9,958 8,448 10,497 5,398 5,659
25 to 34 years..................... 17,298 249 76 1,394 3,570 3,657 2,888 3,166 1,256 1,043
35 to 44 years..................... 18,070 130 70 1,144 2,981 3,059 2,693 3,750 2,043 2,200
45 to 54 years..................... 12,445 76 38 735 2,084 2,025 1,882 2,459 1,480 1,664
55 to 64 years..................... 5,660 35 19 454 1,196 921 826 992 574 643
65 years and over.................. 1,606 16 37 325 490 295 159 131 45 108
Women, 16 years and over......... 35,680 669 288 5,284 9,508 6,788 4,780 4,471 1,948 1,944
16 to 24 years........................ 7,949 308 140 2,531 3,005 1,175 492 224 46 28
16 to 19 years..................... 3,263 124 88 1,573 1,166 217 73 17 - 4
20 to 24 years..................... 4,686 184 52 958 1,839 957 419 208 46 24
25 years and over..................... 27,730 361 148 2,753 6,503 5,613 4,288 4,247 1,902 1,916
25 to 34 years..................... 8,185 169 52 908 1,974 1,883 1,254 1,125 454 365
35 to 44 years..................... 9,127 99 47 821 2,007 1,737 1,409 1,499 717 791
45 to 54 years..................... 6,606 51 26 531 1,445 1,279 1,055 1,140 538 539
55 to 64 years..................... 2,972 30 14 305 807 553 486 417 177 182
65 years and over.................. 841 13 9 187 269 161 83 65 15 38
Men, 16 years and over........... 35,761 249 202 3,387 6,813 6,008 4,938 6,760 3,604 3,798
16 to 24 years........................ 8,411 104 109 2,088 2,996 1,663 778 510 107 56
16 to 19 years..................... 3,219 51 63 1,350 1,227 353 118 49 6 2
20 to 24 years..................... 5,192 53 47 739 1,768 1,311 660 461 102 53
25 years and over..................... 27,349 145 93 1,299 3,818 4,345 4,160 6,250 3,497 3,743
25 to 34 years..................... 9,114 79 25 486 1,596 1,774 1,634 2,040 802 678
35 to 44 years..................... 8,943 31 23 323 974 1,322 1,284 2,251 1,326 1,409
45 to 54 years..................... 5,839 25 12 204 639 746 827 1,319 941 1,125
55 to 64 years..................... 2,688 6 5 148 388 368 341 574 397 461
65 years and over.................. 765 4 28 138 221 134 76 65 30 70
RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX
White, 16 years and over.............. 58,512 829 368 6,960 12,945 10,290 8,003 9,426 4,703 4,989
Women.............................. 28,812 607 222 4,194 7,462 5,517 3,901 3,674 1,607 1,629
Men................................ 29,700 221 147 2,766 5,483 4,773 4,102 5,752 3,096 3,360
Black, 16 years and over.............. 9,773 58 101 1,341 2,623 1,949 1,295 1,314 618 474
Women.............................. 5,281 42 57 861 1,608 998 678 586 249 203
Men................................ 4,492 16 44 480 1,015 951 618 728 369 271
Hispanic origin, 16 years and over.... 9,065 74 72 1,562 2,664 1,752 1,078 1,076 426 361
Women.............................. 3,651 42 34 813 1,179 654 375 350 115 90
Men................................ 5,414 32 38 749 1,485 1,098 704 726 311 271
NOTE: Hourly-paid workers account for approximately three-fifths of all wage and salary workers. Detail for the above race and
Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both
the white and black population groups.
Table 12. Wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the prevailing Federal minimum wage
($5.15), by selected characteristics, 1998 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Workers paid hourly rates
Total at or below $5.15
Characteristic
Total Below At
$5.15 $5.15 Percent of
Number hourly-paid
workers
AGE AND SEX
Total, 16 years and over........... 71,440 2,834 1,593 4,427 6.2
16 to 24 years.......................... 16,361 1,377 883 2,260 13.8
16 to 19 years....................... 6,482 790 558 1,348 20.8
20 to 24 years....................... 9,879 587 325 912 9.2
25 years and over....................... 55,080 1,456 710 2,166 3.9
25 to 34 years....................... 17,298 532 245 776 4.5
35 to 44 years....................... 18,070 416 191 606 3.4
45 to 54 years....................... 12,445 253 138 390 3.1
55 to 64 years....................... 5,660 143 70 213 3.8
65 years and over.................... 1,606 113 67 180 11.2
Women, 16 years and over........... 35,680 1,794 965 2,760 7.7
16 to 24 years.......................... 7,949 841 483 1,324 16.7
16 to 19 years....................... 3,263 462 301 763 23.4
20 to 24 years....................... 4,686 379 183 562 12.0
25 years and over....................... 27,730 953 482 1,435 5.2
25 to 34 years....................... 8,185 349 146 495 6.0
35 to 44 years....................... 9,127 276 143 419 4.6
45 to 54 years....................... 6,606 169 103 272 4.1
55 to 64 years....................... 2,972 106 51 157 5.3
65 years and over.................... 841 53 39 92 10.9
Men, 16 years and over............. 35,761 1,039 628 1,667 4.7
16 to 24 years.......................... 8,411 536 400 936 11.1
16 to 19 years....................... 3,219 328 257 585 18.2
20 to 24 years....................... 5,192 208 142 351 6.8
25 years and over....................... 27,349 503 228 731 2.7
25 to 34 years....................... 9,114 182 99 281 3.1
35 to 44 years....................... 8,943 140 48 188 2.1
45 to 54 years....................... 5,839 84 34 118 2.0
55 to 64 years....................... 2,688 37 19 56 2.1
65 years and over.................... 765 60 28 88 11.6
RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX
White, 16 years and over................ 58,512 2,290 1,269 3,559 6.1
Women................................. 28,812 1,463 770 2,233 7.8
Men................................... 29,700 827 498 1,325 4.5
Black, 16 years and over................ 9,773 431 274 705 7.2
Women................................. 5,281 264 167 432 8.2
Men................................... 4,492 167 106 273 6.1
Hispanic origin, 16 years and over...... 9,065 393 276 669 7.4
Women................................. 3,651 194 150 345 9.4
Men................................... 5,414 199 126 325 6.0
FULL- AND PART-TIME STATUS
AND SEX(1)
Full-time workers....................... 54,093 1,197 596 1,793 3.3
Women................................. 23,778 683 347 1,029 4.3
Men................................... 30,315 515 249 764 2.5
Part-time workers....................... 17,198 1,628 993 2,621 15.2
Women................................. 11,831 1,108 617 1,725 14.6
Men................................... 5,367 520 376 896 16.7
1 The distinction between full- and part-time workers is based on hours usually worked. These data will not sum to
totals because full- or part-time status on the principal job is not identifiable for a small number of multiple
jobholders.
NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other
races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 13. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (1998) dollars by sex and age, 1979-98
annual averages
16 to 24 years 25 years and over
Total, 16
Year and sex years and
over Total 16 to 19 20 to 24 Total 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 years
years years years years years years and over
BOTH SEXES
1979.............. $531 $379 $317 $410 $584 $563 $617 $609 $576 $436
1980.............. 519 371 305 397 567 546 598 589 564 403
1981.............. 513 362 292 385 558 536 589 579 558 402
1982.............. 515 355 280 375 557 530 603 588 554 431
1983.............. 513 345 268 364 562 526 605 600 567 426
1984.............. 512 341 265 362 568 526 611 604 574 427
1985.............. 521 339 264 364 574 529 615 607 577 450
1986(1)........... 534 345 265 369 582 536 623 618 590 444
1987.............. 537 348 266 371 578 536 624 616 582 445
1988.............. 531 343 270 366 571 528 620 624 577 445
1989.............. 524 341 268 363 562 518 621 620 566 439
1990(1)........... 514 335 261 356 559 507 607 609 570 428
1991.............. 509 331 254 348 558 496 595 606 561 456
1992.............. 512 321 247 337 556 490 584 607 561 439
1993.............. 517 318 241 335 554 492 583 611 555 443
1994(1)........... 514 315 243 329 550 483 591 623 551 423
1995.............. 512 312 247 327 546 482 588 622 550 416
1996.............. 509 309 249 324 540 481 580 617 555 399
1997(1)........... 511 311 256 326 548 489 587 616 567 399
1998(1)........... 523 319 268 339 572 502 597 620 592 405
WOMEN
1979.............. 401 339 290 355 429 438 431 423 416 375
1980.............. 398 331 287 346 421 432 425 413 405 346
1981.............. 396 326 279 346 421 432 430 407 402 342
1982.............. 407 327 269 343 434 439 440 429 417 360
1983.............. 412 324 259 339 438 444 445 432 421 347
1984.............. 416 319 254 335 444 447 458 438 424 343
1985.............. 420 319 251 335 449 448 465 442 431 367
1986(1)........... 433 325 253 344 459 455 475 459 440 381
1987.............. 435 325 247 347 461 454 483 465 442 374
1988.............. 434 324 254 346 461 450 487 467 437 385
1989.............. 431 323 259 342 461 447 486 469 437 384
1990(1)........... 432 316 247 335 460 444 487 470 434 374
1991.............. 438 318 245 335 463 443 487 476 434 382
1992.............. 441 310 238 325 464 444 486 484 436 381
1993.............. 444 308 231 326 468 445 491 496 445 377
1994(1)........... 439 303 233 319 464 437 493 495 438 370
1995.............. 434 294 230 311 458 431 485 496 431 377
1996.............. 434 295 232 310 461 431 481 499 437 347
1997(1)........... 438 297 244 311 469 434 489 502 439 353
1998(1)........... 456 305 249 319 485 451 498 516 476 350
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 13. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (1998) dollars by sex and age, 1979-98
annual averages-Continued
16 to 24 years 25 years and over
Total, 16
Year and sex years and
over Total 16 to 19 20 to 24 Total 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 years
years years years years years years and over
MEN
1979.............. 642 432 341 465 692 651 739 744 688 483
1980.............. 620 413 321 443 672 623 727 726 682 453
1981.............. 614 395 304 429 672 614 718 717 682 482
1982.............. 621 383 290 416 670 609 719 713 679 511
1983.............. 620 365 275 395 666 607 724 726 682 504
1984.............. 615 363 274 393 663 600 740 737 690 514
1985.............. 616 365 277 392 671 597 738 741 708 557
1986(1)........... 624 366 276 393 688 598 742 753 721 533
1987.............. 622 369 281 394 685 591 732 746 711 545
1988.............. 619 360 282 384 671 580 712 756 700 544
1989.............. 615 357 275 381 657 570 713 747 684 517
1990(1)........... 600 351 271 372 639 560 699 737 680 502
1991.............. 590 341 262 359 626 548 689 733 674 558
1992.............. 582 329 253 345 622 542 675 736 672 489
1993.............. 575 325 249 341 626 536 672 737 661 509
1994(1)........... 574 324 251 337 634 527 679 738 663 485
1995.............. 575 324 261 337 629 524 667 732 666 472
1996.............. 579 319 260 334 622 518 657 725 667 496
1997(1)........... 587 322 266 343 624 523 661 724 679 459
1998(1)........... 598 334 281 357 639 544 677 732 699 482
WOMEN'S
EARNINGS
AS PERCENT
OF MEN'S(2)
1979.............. 62.5 78.5 85.2 76.5 62.1 67.4 58.3 56.9 60.5 77.8
1980.............. 64.3 80.1 89.5 78.0 62.7 69.4 58.4 56.9 59.4 76.5
1981.............. 64.5 82.6 91.8 80.7 62.7 70.4 59.9 56.8 58.9 70.9
1982.............. 65.5 85.3 92.8 82.5 64.7 72.1 61.2 60.1 61.3 70.4
1983.............. 66.6 88.6 94.1 85.9 65.8 73.3 61.5 59.5 61.8 68.7
1984.............. 67.6 87.9 92.7 85.3 67.0 74.5 61.9 59.4 61.4 66.8
1985.............. 68.2 87.5 90.8 85.5 66.9 75.1 63.1 59.7 60.9 66.0
1986(1)........... 69.3 88.9 91.5 87.7 66.7 76.2 64.0 61.0 61.0 71.4
1987.............. 69.9 88.1 87.8 88.0 67.3 76.8 66.1 62.3 62.2 68.7
1988.............. 70.1 90.0 89.8 90.1 68.7 77.7 68.4 61.8 62.4 70.8
1989.............. 70.1 90.7 94.0 89.8 70.2 78.4 68.1 62.7 63.9 74.2
1990(1)........... 71.9 90.1 91.0 90.2 72.1 79.2 69.7 63.8 63.7 74.5
1991.............. 74.3 93.3 93.5 93.5 74.0 80.9 70.8 64.9 64.4 68.4
1992.............. 75.8 94.0 93.8 94.2 74.6 82.0 71.9 65.8 64.9 78.1
1993.............. 77.1 94.8 93.0 95.6 74.7 82.9 73.0 67.3 67.4 74.1
1994(1)........... 76.4 93.7 92.7 94.5 73.1 82.9 72.5 67.1 66.1 76.3
1995.............. 75.4 90.8 87.9 92.2 72.7 82.4 72.7 67.8 64.8 79.9
1996.............. 75.0 92.4 88.9 92.8 74.1 83.2 73.2 68.9 65.4 70.0
1997(1)........... 74.5 92.1 91.4 90.6 75.1 82.9 74.0 69.4 64.7 77.1
1998(1)........... 76.3 91.3 88.5 89.4 75.9 83.0 73.5 70.5 68.2 72.6
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by methodological and conceptual changes
in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of the
February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
2 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
NOTE: The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is used to convert current dollars to
constant dollars for the years 1979-82; the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used for the years 1983-98.
See Technical Note.
Table 14. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (1998)
dollars by sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1979-98 annual averages
Race and Hispanic origin
Total, 16
Year and sex years and over
White Black Hispanic
origin
BOTH SEXES
1979.................................. $531 $545 $438 $426
1980.................................. 519 532 421 414
1981.................................. 513 525 425 403
1982.................................. 515 528 418 409
1983.................................. 513 524 428 409
1984.................................. 512 528 422 407
1985.................................. 521 539 420 409
1986(1)............................... 534 551 433 412
1987.................................. 537 551 432 409
1988.................................. 531 544 433 400
1989.................................. 524 538 420 392
1990(1)............................... 514 528 411 379
1991.................................. 509 529 416 374
1992.................................. 512 532 414 373
1993.................................. 517 536 416 373
1994(1)............................... 514 532 409 357
1995.................................. 512 529 409 351
1996.................................. 509 525 402 352
1997(1)............................... 511 527 406 357
1998(1)............................... 523 545 426 370
WOMEN
1979.................................. 401 405 372 346
1980.................................. 398 402 367 341
1981.................................. 396 399 372 344
1982.................................. 407 412 370 347
1983.................................. 412 417 379 351
1984.................................. 416 421 378 350
1985.................................. 420 426 382 348
1986(1)............................... 433 438 392 359
1987.................................. 435 441 396 360
1988.................................. 434 439 397 359
1989.................................. 431 438 396 354
1990(1)............................... 432 441 384 347
1991.................................. 438 446 386 350
1992.................................. 441 449 389 351
1993.................................. 444 452 392 352
1994(1)............................... 439 449 381 335
1995.................................. 434 443 379 326
1996.................................. 434 444 376 329
1997(1)............................... 438 451 381 323
1998(1)............................... 456 468 400 337
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 14. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (1998)
dollars by sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1979-98 annual averages-Continued
Race and Hispanic origin
Total, 16
Year and sex years and over
White Black Hispanic
origin
MEN
1979.................................. 642 657 501 483
1980.................................. 620 633 484 464
1981.................................. 614 632 485 455
1982.................................. 621 640 474 457
1983.................................. 620 634 481 449
1984.................................. 615 629 475 450
1985.................................. 616 633 462 448
1986(1)............................... 624 645 474 445
1987.................................. 622 646 469 439
1988.................................. 619 641 479 424
1989.................................. 615 633 457 413
1990(1)............................... 600 616 450 396
1991.................................. 590 605 448 386
1992.................................. 582 597 442 394
1993.................................. 575 591 442 390
1994(1)............................... 574 602 440 377
1995.................................. 575 606 439 374
1996.................................. 579 602 427 369
1997(1)............................... 587 604 438 377
1998(1)............................... 598 615 468 390
WOMEN'S
EARNINGS
AS PERCENT
OF MEN'S(2)
1979.................................. 62.5 61.7 74.3 71.7
1980.................................. 64.3 63.5 75.8 73.6
1981.................................. 64.5 63.1 76.7 75.6
1982.................................. 65.5 64.4 78.0 75.7
1983.................................. 66.6 65.7 78.9 78.3
1984.................................. 67.6 67.0 79.6 77.8
1985.................................. 68.2 67.4 82.8 77.7
1986(1)............................... 69.3 67.9 82.7 80.7
1987.................................. 69.9 68.2 84.4 82.1
1988.................................. 70.1 68.5 83.0 84.6
1989.................................. 70.1 69.2 86.5 85.6
1990(1)............................... 71.9 71.5 85.5 87.6
1991.................................. 74.3 73.7 86.1 90.5
1992.................................. 75.8 75.2 88.1 89.1
1993.................................. 77.1 76.5 88.8 90.4
1994(1)............................... 76.4 74.5 86.5 88.8
1995.................................. 75.4 73.2 86.3 87.3
1996.................................. 75.0 73.8 88.1 89.0
1997(1)............................... 74.5 74.6 86.8 85.6
1998(1)............................... 76.3 76.1 85.4 86.5
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by
methodological and conceptual changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation,
see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues
of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
2 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents
computed using the rounded medians displayed in this table.
NOTE: The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is used to
convert current dollars to constant dollars for the years 1979-82; the Consumer Price Index for All
Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used for the years 1983-98. See Technical Note.
Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers 25 years and over in constant
(1998) dollars by sex and educational attainment, 1979-98 annual averages
Total, Less than a High school Some college College
Year and sex 25 years high school graduates, no or associate graduates,
and over diploma college degree total
BOTH SEXES
1979............................. $584 $462 $548 $621 $758
1980............................. 567 440 527 601 745
1981............................. 558 433 518 586 735
1982............................. 557 422 514 598 745
1983............................. 562 419 509 594 755
1984............................. 568 413 507 600 762
1985............................. 574 409 505 604 766
1986(1).......................... 582 414 511 609 781
1987............................. 578 407 511 603 808
1988............................. 571 397 507 593 806
1989............................. 562 391 493 595 801
1990(1).......................... 559 378 481 593 795
1991............................. 558 368 475 585 796
1992............................. 556 361 468 563 808
1993............................. 554 354 468 557 806
1994(1).......................... 550 338 463 548 807
1995............................. 546 331 462 543 799
1996............................. 540 329 460 537 788
1997(1).......................... 548 326 468 543 791
1998(1).......................... 572 337 479 558 821
WOMEN
1979............................. 429 334 407 464 581
1980............................. 421 324 397 457 574
1981............................. 421 316 393 461 575
1982............................. 434 314 402 468 590
1983............................. 438 319 403 471 604
1984............................. 444 313 406 478 612
1985............................. 449 306 406 481 628
1986(1).......................... 459 309 412 490 649
1987............................. 461 307 413 498 668
1988............................. 461 304 411 496 668
1989............................. 461 304 400 498 667
1990(1).......................... 460 300 392 492 667
1991............................. 463 299 393 489 672
1992............................. 464 297 391 473 690
1993............................. 468 297 391 476 688
1994(1).......................... 464 282 386 465 697
1995............................. 458 280 381 456 689
1996............................. 461 279 379 459 682
1997(1).......................... 469 279 384 466 683
1998(1).......................... 485 283 396 476 707
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers 25 years and over in constant
(1998) dollars by sex and educational attainment, 1979-98 annual averages-Continued
Total, Less than a High school Some college College
Year and sex 25 years high school graduates, no or associate graduates,
and over diploma college degree total
MEN
1979............................. 692 555 679 725 872
1980............................. 672 530 648 709 846
1981............................. 672 517 644 703 860
1982............................. 670 500 637 701 857
1983............................. 666 493 635 691 849
1984............................. 663 484 626 700 882
1985............................. 671 476 617 715 894
1986(1).......................... 688 477 619 722 919
1987............................. 685 465 607 713 937
1988............................. 671 458 601 693 936
1989............................. 657 455 592 679 927
1990(1).......................... 639 436 572 676 924
1991............................. 626 418 562 673 914
1992............................. 622 408 556 644 919
1993............................. 626 402 549 645 908
1994(1).......................... 634 377 546 645 909
1995............................. 629 371 542 638 904
1996............................. 622 370 536 627 907
1997(1).......................... 624 371 543 631 910
1998(1).......................... 639 383 559 643 939
WOMEN'S
EARNINGS
AS PERCENT
OF MEN'S(2)
1979............................. 62.1 60.2 60.0 64.0 66.6
1980............................. 62.7 61.3 61.3 64.5 67.8
1981............................. 62.7 61.1 61.0 65.6 66.9
1982............................. 64.7 62.8 63.1 66.7 68.9
1983............................. 65.8 64.6 63.5 68.1 71.1
1984............................. 67.0 64.8 64.9 68.4 69.5
1985............................. 66.9 64.4 65.7 67.2 70.2
1986(1).......................... 66.7 64.7 66.6 67.9 70.6
1987............................. 67.3 66.1 68.0 69.9 71.3
1988............................. 68.7 66.4 68.3 71.5 71.4
1989............................. 70.2 66.8 67.6 73.3 71.9
1990(1).......................... 72.1 68.8 68.6 72.8 72.2
1991............................. 74.0 71.5 69.9 72.6 73.5
1992............................. 74.6 72.8 70.3 73.4 75.0
1993............................. 74.7 73.8 71.3 73.7 75.8
1994(1).......................... 73.1 74.9 70.8 72.0 76.7
1995............................. 72.7 75.4 70.2 71.6 76.2
1996............................. 74.1 75.2 70.7 73.1 75.2
1997(1).......................... 75.1 75.2 70.8 73.8 75.0
1998(1).......................... 75.9 73.7 70.9 74.0 75.3
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by methodological and
conceptual changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings, a monthly
BLS periodical.
2 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using
the rounded medians displayed in this table.
NOTE: The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is used to convert
current dollars to constant dollars for the years 1979-82; the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers
(CPI-U) is used for the years 1983-98. See Technical Note.
Table 16. Median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates in constant (1998) dollars by sex and age, 1979-98
annual averages
16 to 24 years 25 years and over
Total, 16
Year and sex years and
over Total 16 to 19 20 to 24 Total 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 years
years years years years years years and over
BOTH SEXES
1979.............. $9.80 $7.70 $6.86 $8.88 $11.28 $11.48 $11.68 $11.39 $10.96 $7.13
1980.............. 9.57 7.37 6.40 8.51 11.01 11.22 11.42 11.21 10.70 7.08
1981.............. 9.33 7.20 6.49 8.35 10.85 11.03 11.23 10.89 10.52 7.10
1982.............. 9.22 6.91 6.16 7.96 10.72 10.83 11.28 10.95 10.43 7.04
1983.............. 9.17 6.69 5.92 7.69 10.73 10.65 11.32 11.03 10.50 7.21
1984.............. 9.17 6.58 5.75 7.58 10.75 10.64 11.28 11.13 10.41 7.28
1985.............. 9.15 6.47 5.58 7.50 10.70 10.50 11.37 11.19 10.48 7.19
1986(1)........... 9.25 6.58 5.53 7.55 10.77 10.45 11.60 11.52 10.68 7.40
1987.............. 9.29 6.60 5.48 7.49 10.72 10.33 11.40 11.30 10.65 7.30
1988.............. 9.28 6.61 5.56 7.42 10.68 10.25 11.27 11.25 10.32 7.22
1989.............. 9.20 6.52 5.56 7.44 10.45 10.05 11.26 11.08 10.29 7.13
1990(1)........... 9.03 6.44 5.61 7.39 10.19 9.87 11.01 10.98 10.01 7.19
1991.............. 8.99 6.31 5.62 7.19 10.16 9.63 10.98 10.91 9.80 7.11
1992.............. 8.98 6.25 5.50 7.02 10.15 9.50 10.91 11.06 9.87 7.14
1993.............. 8.88 6.22 5.42 6.95 10.10 9.34 10.85 11.13 10.05 7.22
1994(1)........... 8.83 6.19 5.41 6.86 10.05 9.23 10.93 11.03 9.94 7.04
1995.............. 8.75 6.21 5.40 6.88 10.02 9.33 10.73 10.85 9.85 7.12
1996.............. 8.73 6.17 5.38 6.96 10.00 9.17 10.54 10.64 9.76 7.04
1997(1)........... 8.90 6.25 5.60 7.02 10.03 9.19 10.53 10.77 9.89 7.01
1998(1)........... 9.11 6.59 5.89 7.25 10.14 9.66 10.87 10.97 10.09 7.41
WOMEN
1979.............. 7.98 7.04 6.69 7.76 8.60 8.92 8.76 8.48 8.29 6.90
1980.............. 7.85 6.85 6.24 7.53 8.42 8.82 8.51 8.39 8.10 6.72
1981.............. 7.75 6.72 6.38 7.42 8.50 8.86 8.65 8.32 8.02 6.73
1982.............. 7.86 6.46 6.07 7.16 8.58 8.87 8.67 8.45 8.20 6.71
1983.............. 7.88 6.26 5.83 6.98 8.58 8.92 8.70 8.51 8.31 6.83
1984.............. 7.81 6.18 5.65 6.86 8.62 8.81 8.82 8.67 8.29 6.88
1985.............. 7.79 6.09 5.48 6.93 8.70 8.78 8.97 8.74 8.28 6.73
1986(1)........... 7.95 6.13 5.44 7.03 8.86 8.87 9.14 8.93 8.57 7.06
1987.............. 8.04 6.07 5.33 7.03 8.86 8.83 9.13 9.02 8.66 6.97
1988.............. 8.06 6.18 5.40 6.97 8.88 8.78 9.32 9.08 8.39 7.06
1989.............. 8.04 6.18 5.40 6.88 8.92 8.80 9.34 9.09 8.39 6.77
1990(1)........... 8.04 6.18 5.44 6.96 8.83 8.75 9.20 8.94 8.40 6.80
1991.............. 8.09 6.09 5.56 6.84 8.80 8.61 9.26 9.11 8.33 6.90
1992.............. 8.09 6.01 5.45 6.72 8.90 8.66 9.29 9.23 8.38 6.94
1993.............. 8.04 5.95 5.34 6.73 8.88 8.60 9.21 9.23 8.53 6.98
1994(1)........... 7.99 5.87 5.33 6.59 8.86 8.57 9.29 9.31 8.61 6.87
1995.............. 7.98 5.88 5.29 6.53 8.75 8.48 9.24 9.34 8.50 6.91
1996.............. 8.04 5.91 5.30 6.51 8.77 8.38 9.24 9.29 8.39 6.71
1997(1)........... 8.07 6.05 5.51 6.66 8.90 8.33 9.29 9.42 8.44 6.94
1998(1)........... 8.24 6.25 5.79 6.94 9.14 8.81 9.67 9.79 8.86 7.22
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 16. Median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates in constant (1998) dollars by sex and age, 1979-98
annual averages-Continued
16 to 24 years 25 years and over
Total, 16
Year and sex years and
over Total 16 to 19 20 to 24 Total 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 years
years years years years years years and over
MEN
1979.............. 12.47 8.62 7.05 10.24 14.76 14.07 15.71 15.66 14.53 7.87
1980.............. 12.09 8.14 6.70 9.76 14.31 13.73 15.48 15.43 14.35 7.53
1981.............. 11.89 7.82 6.60 9.26 14.09 13.28 15.02 15.38 14.27 7.64
1982.............. 11.69 7.47 6.25 8.75 13.78 13.08 15.16 15.15 13.89 7.62
1983.............. 11.34 7.19 6.02 8.28 13.62 12.69 15.10 15.01 14.32 7.79
1984.............. 11.20 7.19 5.85 8.12 13.52 12.39 14.94 15.23 13.93 7.72
1985.............. 11.13 7.11 5.70 7.95 13.42 12.13 14.87 15.13 13.72 7.57
1986(1)........... 11.31 7.15 5.70 8.09 13.43 11.97 14.89 15.11 14.21 7.73
1987.............. 11.17 7.05 5.69 8.16 13.16 11.86 14.50 14.70 13.95 7.65
1988.............. 10.91 6.94 5.72 7.99 12.93 11.59 14.09 14.74 13.43 7.62
1989.............. 10.65 6.81 5.78 7.92 12.77 11.27 13.93 14.31 13.15 7.76
1990(1)........... 10.32 6.79 5.80 7.72 12.29 11.03 13.39 13.89 12.70 7.60
1991.............. 10.29 6.68 5.68 7.47 11.94 10.71 13.15 14.02 12.07 7.45
1992.............. 10.08 6.57 5.58 7.26 11.69 10.49 12.71 13.97 12.07 7.51
1993.............. 10.00 6.49 5.50 7.15 11.49 10.27 12.60 13.71 12.37 7.57
1994(1)........... 9.91 6.47 5.49 7.23 11.33 10.03 12.66 13.32 12.17 7.31
1995.............. 9.88 6.47 5.51 7.30 11.48 10.13 12.72 13.18 11.89 7.34
1996.............. 9.90 6.42 5.47 7.27 11.20 10.08 12.37 12.89 11.59 7.32
1997(1)........... 9.99 6.55 5.71 7.30 11.28 10.08 12.27 13.00 11.98 7.08
1998(1)........... 10.07 6.92 5.99 7.79 11.73 10.23 12.49 13.05 12.23 7.75
WOMEN'S
EARNINGS
AS PERCENT
OF MEN'S(2)
1979.............. 64.0 81.7 94.9 75.8 58.3 63.4 55.8 54.1 57.0 87.7
1980.............. 64.9 84.1 93.1 77.2 58.8 64.2 54.9 54.4 56.4 89.3
1981.............. 65.2 86.0 96.6 80.2 60.3 66.7 57.6 54.1 56.2 88.1
1982.............. 67.3 86.5 97.1 81.8 62.2 67.8 57.2 55.8 59.0 88.1
1983.............. 69.5 87.1 96.9 84.4 63.0 70.3 57.6 56.7 58.0 87.6
1984.............. 69.8 86.0 96.6 84.5 63.8 71.1 59.0 56.9 59.5 89.1
1985.............. 70.1 85.7 96.1 87.2 64.8 72.4 60.3 57.8 60.4 88.9
1986(1)........... 70.3 85.8 95.5 86.9 66.0 74.1 61.4 59.1 60.3 91.3
1987.............. 72.0 86.0 93.7 86.2 67.3 74.4 62.9 61.4 62.1 91.2
1988.............. 73.9 89.1 94.4 87.3 68.7 75.7 66.2 61.6 62.5 92.6
1989.............. 75.5 90.8 93.4 86.9 69.9 78.1 67.0 63.5 63.8 87.2
1990(1)........... 77.9 91.0 93.8 90.2 71.9 79.4 68.7 64.3 66.2 89.6
1991.............. 78.6 91.2 97.8 91.6 73.6 80.4 70.4 65.0 69.0 92.6
1992.............. 80.2 91.4 97.7 92.5 76.1 82.6 73.1 66.0 69.4 92.5
1993.............. 80.4 91.6 97.2 94.1 77.3 83.7 73.1 67.3 69.0 92.2
1994(1)........... 80.6 90.6 97.0 91.1 78.2 85.5 73.4 69.9 70.7 94.0
1995.............. 80.8 90.9 96.0 89.4 76.2 83.7 72.6 70.9 71.4 94.1
1996.............. 81.2 92.0 96.9 89.5 78.3 83.1 74.7 72.1 72.4 91.7
1997(1)........... 80.8 92.3 96.6 91.3 78.9 82.7 75.8 72.4 70.5 98.1
1998(1)........... 81.8 90.3 96.7 89.1 77.9 86.1 77.4 75.0 72.4 93.1
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by methodological and conceptual changes
in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of the
February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
2 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded medians
displayed in this table.
NOTE: The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is used to convert current dollars to constant
dollars for the years 1979-82; the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used for the years 1983-98. See
Technical Note.
Table 17. Median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates in constant (1998)
dollars by sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1979-98 annual averages
Race and Hispanic origin
Total, 16
Year and sex years and over
White Black Hispanic
origin
BOTH SEXES
1979.................................. $9.80 $9.95 $9.07 $9.00
1980.................................. 9.57 9.68 8.82 8.81
1981.................................. 9.33 9.39 8.89 8.71
1982.................................. 9.22 9.33 8.64 8.55
1983.................................. 9.17 9.29 8.44 8.35
1984.................................. 9.17 9.28 8.44 8.29
1985.................................. 9.15 9.26 8.35 8.30
1986(1)............................... 9.25 9.36 8.65 8.43
1987.................................. 9.29 9.43 8.61 8.37
1988.................................. 9.28 9.39 8.49 8.21
1989.................................. 9.20 9.32 8.46 7.99
1990(1)............................... 9.03 9.16 8.50 7.84
1991.................................. 8.99 9.11 8.38 7.74
1992.................................. 8.98 9.09 8.21 7.73
1993.................................. 8.88 9.00 8.10 7.71
1994(1)............................... 8.83 8.93 8.03 7.63
1995.................................. 8.75 8.91 8.21 7.50
1996.................................. 8.73 8.91 8.07 7.45
1997(1)............................... 8.90 9.03 8.14 7.52
1998(1)............................... 9.11 9.23 8.40 7.93
WOMEN
1979.................................. 7.98 8.00 7.83 7.59
1980.................................. 7.85 7.86 7.70 7.50
1981.................................. 7.75 7.76 7.60 7.43
1982.................................. 7.86 7.88 7.67 7.40
1983.................................. 7.88 7.88 7.74 7.25
1984.................................. 7.81 7.83 7.67 7.32
1985.................................. 7.79 7.80 7.65 7.32
1986(1)............................... 7.95 7.98 7.71 7.45
1987.................................. 8.04 8.07 7.77 7.34
1988.................................. 8.06 8.09 7.75 7.29
1989.................................. 8.04 8.07 7.74 7.28
1990(1)............................... 8.04 8.07 7.78 7.25
1991.................................. 8.09 8.10 7.85 7.17
1992.................................. 8.09 8.13 7.72 7.18
1993.................................. 8.04 8.08 7.76 7.13
1994(1)............................... 7.99 8.08 7.64 7.06
1995.................................. 7.98 8.08 7.62 7.07
1996.................................. 8.04 8.10 7.48 7.04
1997(1)............................... 8.07 8.13 7.71 6.93
1998(1)............................... 8.24 8.34 7.91 7.23
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 17. Median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers paid hourly rates in constant (1998)
dollars by sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 1979-98 annual averages-Continued
Race and Hispanic origin
Total, 16
Year and sex years and over
White Black Hispanic
origin
MEN
1979.................................. 12.47 12.78 10.78 10.58
1980.................................. 12.09 12.35 10.27 9.97
1981.................................. 11.89 12.15 10.52 9.73
1982.................................. 11.69 11.91 10.19 9.78
1983.................................. 11.34 11.58 9.76 9.53
1984.................................. 11.20 11.41 9.68 9.49
1985.................................. 11.13 11.51 9.33 9.21
1986(1)............................... 11.31 11.60 9.79 9.23
1987.................................. 11.17 11.39 9.68 9.15
1988.................................. 10.91 11.11 9.57 8.98
1989.................................. 10.65 10.90 9.31 8.76
1990(1)............................... 10.32 10.67 9.20 8.42
1991.................................. 10.29 10.56 9.07 8.24
1992.................................. 10.08 10.34 8.86 8.13
1993.................................. 10.00 10.24 8.66 8.04
1994(1)............................... 9.91 10.14 8.72 7.90
1995.................................. 9.88 10.30 8.74 7.78
1996.................................. 9.90 10.17 8.50 7.92
1997(1)............................... 9.99 10.12 8.81 8.03
1998(1)............................... 10.07 10.19 9.10 8.25
WOMEN'S
EARNINGS
AS PERCENT
OF MEN'S(2)
1979.................................. 64.0 62.6 72.6 71.8
1980.................................. 64.9 63.6 75.0 75.2
1981.................................. 65.2 63.9 72.2 76.4
1982.................................. 67.3 66.1 75.3 75.7
1983.................................. 69.5 68.1 79.3 76.1
1984.................................. 69.8 68.6 79.2 77.1
1985.................................. 70.1 67.8 82.0 79.5
1986(1)............................... 70.3 68.8 78.8 80.8
1987.................................. 72.0 70.8 80.2 80.3
1988.................................. 73.9 72.8 80.9 81.2
1989.................................. 75.5 74.1 83.2 83.1
1990(1)............................... 77.9 75.6 84.5 86.1
1991.................................. 78.6 76.7 86.6 86.9
1992.................................. 80.2 78.7 87.2 88.4
1993.................................. 80.4 78.9 89.6 88.7
1994(1)............................... 80.6 79.7 87.5 89.3
1995.................................. 80.8 78.4 87.3 90.9
1996.................................. 81.2 79.6 88.0 88.9
1997(1)............................... 80.8 80.3 87.5 86.3
1998(1)............................... 81.8 81.9 86.9 87.5
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by
methodological and conceptual changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation,
see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues
of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
2 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents
computed using the rounded medians displayed in this table.
NOTE: The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is used to
convert current dollars to constant dollars for the years 1979-82; the Consumer Price Index for All
Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used for the years 1983-98. See Technical Note.
Table 18. Wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the prevailing Federal minimum wage by sex,
1979-98 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Workers paid hourly rates
Total paid the prevailing
Total Paid less Paid Federal
Year and sex wage and Percent of than the the minimum wage or less
salary total wage prevailing prevailing
workers Total and salary Federal Federal
workers minimum minimum Percent
wage wage Number of hourly-
paid
workers
BOTH SEXES
1979.............. 87,529 51,721 59.1 2,916 3,997 6,912 13.4
1980.............. 87,644 51,335 58.6 3,087 4,686 7,773 15.1
1981.............. 88,516 51,869 58.6 3,513 4,311 7,824 15.1
1982.............. 87,368 50,846 58.2 2,348 4,148 6,496 12.8
1983.............. 88,290 51,820 58.7 2,077 4,261 6,338 12.2
1984.............. 92,194 54,143 58.7 1,838 4,125 5,963 11.0
1985.............. 94,521 55,762 59.0 1,639 3,899 5,538 9.9
1986(1)........... 96,903 57,529 59.4 1,599 3,461 5,060 8.8
1987.............. 99,303 59,552 60.0 1,468 3,229 4,698 7.9
1988.............. 101,407 60,878 60.0 1,319 2,608 3,927 6.5
1989.............. 103,480 62,389 60.3 1,372 1,790 3,162 5.1
1990(1)........... 104,876 63,172 60.2 (2)2,132 (2)1,096 (2)3,228 (2)5.1
1991.............. 103,723 62,627 60.4 (2)2,377 (2)2,906 (2)5,283 (2)8.4
1992.............. 104,668 63,610 60.8 1,939 2,982 4,921 7.7
1993.............. 106,101 64,274 60.6 1,707 2,625 4,332 6.7
1994(1)........... 107,989 66,549 61.6 1,995 2,132 4,128 6.2
1995.............. 110,038 68,354 62.1 1,699 1,956 3,656 5.3
1996.............. 111,960 69,255 61.9 (2)1,863 (2)1,861 (2)3,724 (2)5.4
1997(1)........... 114,533 70,735 61.8 (2)2,990 (2)1,764 (2)4,754 (2)6.7
1998(1)........... 116,730 71,440 61.2 2,834 1,593 4,427 6.2
WOMEN
1979.............. 38,129 23,329 61.2 2,070 2,644 4,714 20.2
1980.............. 38,944 23,626 60.7 2,104 2,990 5,095 21.6
1981.............. 39,672 24,294 61.2 2,394 2,778 5,172 21.3
1982.............. 39,777 24,365 61.3 1,651 2,561 4,212 17.3
1983.............. 40,433 24,989 61.8 1,492 2,603 4,095 16.4
1984.............. 42,172 26,003 61.7 1,348 2,499 3,847 14.8
1985.............. 43,506 26,869 61.8 1,198 2,356 3,554 13.2
1986(1)........... 44,961 27,863 62.0 1,192 2,125 3,317 11.9
1987.............. 46,365 29,078 62.7 1,105 1,946 3,051 10.5
1988.............. 47,495 29,820 62.8 1,008 1,542 2,550 8.6
1989.............. 48,691 30,702 63.1 994 1,056 2,050 6.7
1990(1)........... 49,323 31,069 63.0 (2)1,420 (2)711 (2)2,131 (2)6.9
1991.............. 49,105 30,988 63.1 (2)1,582 (2)1,792 (2)3,374 (2)10.9
1992.............. 49,842 31,454 63.1 1,286 1,751 3,036 9.7
1993.............. 50,626 31,937 63.1 1,133 1,534 2,667 8.4
1994(1)........... 51,419 33,021 64.2 1,322 1,241 2,563 7.8
1995.............. 52,369 33,934 64.8 1,157 1,161 2,318 6.8
1996.............. 53,488 34,418 64.3 (2)1,244 (2)1,106 (2)2,350 (2)6.8
1997(1)........... 54,708 35,214 64.4 (2)1,843 (2)1,092 (2)2,935 (2)8.3
1998(1)........... 55,757 35,680 64.0 1,794 965 2,760 7.7
See footnotes at end of table.
Table 18. Wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the prevailing Federal minimum wage by sex,
1979-98 annual averages-Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Workers paid hourly rates
Total paid the prevailing
Total Paid less Paid Federal
Year and sex wage and Percent of than the the minimum wage or less
salary total wage prevailing prevailing
workers Total and salary Federal Federal
workers minimum minimum Percent
wage wage Number of hourly-
paid
workers
MEN
1979.............. 49,400 28,392 57.5 846 1,353 2,199 7.7
1980.............. 48,700 27,709 56.9 983 1,696 2,678 9.7
1981.............. 48,844 27,576 56.5 1,119 1,533 2,652 9.6
1982.............. 47,591 26,481 55.6 697 1,587 2,284 8.6
1983.............. 47,856 26,831 56.1 585 1,658 2,243 8.4
1984.............. 50,022 28,140 56.3 490 1,626 2,116 7.5
1985.............. 51,015 28,893 56.6 440 1,544 1,984 6.9
1986(1)........... 51,942 29,666 57.1 408 1,336 1,743 5.9
1987.............. 52,938 30,474 57.6 364 1,283 1,647 5.4
1988.............. 53,912 31,058 57.6 311 1,066 1,377 4.4
1989.............. 54,789 31,687 57.8 379 733 1,112 3.5
1990(1)........... 55,553 32,104 57.8 (2)712 (2)385 (2)1,097 (2)3.4
1991.............. 54,618 31,639 57.9 (2)795 (2)1,114 (2)1,909 (2)6.0
1992.............. 54,826 32,155 58.6 653 1,231 1,885 5.9
1993.............. 55,475 32,337 58.3 573 1,091 1,664 5.1
1994(1)........... 56,570 33,528 59.3 674 891 1,565 4.7
1995.............. 57,669 34,420 59.7 542 796 1,338 3.9
1996.............. 58,473 34,838 59.6 (2)619 (2)755 (2)1,374 (2)3.9
1997(1)........... 59,825 35,521 59.4 (2)1,147 (2)673 (2)1,820 (2)5.1
1998(1)........... 60,973 35,761 58.7 1,039 628 1,667 4.7
1 The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by methodological and conceptual
changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section
of the February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
2 Data for 1990-91 and 1996-97 reflect changes in the minimum wage that took place in those years.
NOTE: The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $2.90 in 1979, $3.10 in 1980, and $3.35 in 1981-89. The minimum wage rose
to $3.80 in April 1990, to $4.25 in April 1991, to $4.75 in October 1996, and to $5.15 in September 1997. See Technical
Note.
Technical Note
The estimates in this report were obtained from the Current Population
Survey (CPS), which provides a wide range of information on the labor force,
employment, and unemployment. The survey is conducted monthly for the Bureau of
Labor Statistics by the Bureau of the Census from a scientifically selected
national sample of about 50,000 households, with coverage in all 50 states and
the District of Columbia. The earnings data are collected from one-fourth of
the CPS monthly sample.
Material in this report is in the public domain and, with appropriate credit,
may be used without permission. This information is available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 606-7828; Federal Relay
Service: 1-800-877-8339.
Concepts and definitions
The principal concepts and definitions used in connection with the earnings data
in this report are described below.
Usual weekly earnings. Data are collected on wages and salaries before taxes
and other deductions and include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually
received (at the principal job in the case of multiple jobholders). Self-
employed workers are excluded, regardless of whether their businesses are
incorporated. Prior to 1994, respondents were asked how much they usually
earned per week. Since January 1994, respondents have been asked to identify
the easiest way for them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, biweekly, twice
monthly, monthly, annually, other) and how much they usually earn in the
reported time period. Earnings reported on a basis other than weekly are
converted to a weekly equivalent. The term "usual" is as perceived by the
respondent. If the respondent asks for a definition of usual, interviewers are
instructed to define the term as more than half the weeks worked during the past
4 or 5 months.
Medians (and quantiles) of weekly earnings. The median (or upper limit of the
second quartile) is the amount which divides a given earnings distribution into
two equal groups, one having earnings above the median and the other having
earnings below the median. Ten percent of a given distribution have earnings
below the upper limit of the first decile (90 percent have higher earnings); 25
percent have earnings below the upper limit of the first quartile (75 percent
have higher earnings); 75 percent have earnings below the upper limit of the
third quartile (25 percent have higher earnings); and 90 percent have earnings
below the upper limit of the ninth decile (10 percent have higher earnings).
The BLS estimating procedure for determining the median of an earnings
distribution places each reported or calculated weekly earnings value into $50-
wide intervals, centered around multiples of $50. The actual value of the
median is estimated through the linear interpolation of the interval in which
the median lies.
Over-the-year changes in the medians (and other quantile boundaries) for
specific groups may not necessarily be consistent with the movements estimated
for the overall quantile boundary. The most common reasons for this possible
anomaly are: (1) There could be a change in the relative weights of the
subgroups. For example, the medians of both 16- to 24-year-olds and those 25
years and over may rise but if the lower-earning 16-to-24 age group accounts for
a greatly increased share of the total, the overall median could actually fall.
(2) There could be a large change in the shape of the distribution of reported
earnings, particularly near a quantile boundary. This could be caused by survey
observations that are clustered at rounded values, for example, $250, $300,
$400. An estimate lying in a $50-wide centered interval containing such a
cluster or "spike" tends to change more slowly than one in other intervals.
Medians, for example, measure the central tendency of a multi-peaked
distribution that shifts over time. As the distribution shifts, the median does
not necessarily move at the same rate. Specifically, the median takes
relatively more time to move through a frequently reported interval, but once
above the upper limit of such an interval, it can move relatively quickly to the
next frequently reported earnings interval. BLS procedures for estimating
medians (and other quantile boundaries) mitigate such irregular movements of the
measures; however, users should be cautious of these effects when evaluating
short-term changes in the medians as well as in ratios of the medians.
Constant dollars. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is
used to convert current dollars to constant dollars for the years 1983 forward.
The Experimental Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U, X-1) is
used to convert current dollars to constant dollars for the years 1979-82. The
CPI-U, X-1 prior to 1983 is identical to the CPI-U, except for the treatment of
homeownership costs. In January 1983, BLS implemented important methodological
improvements to the homeownership components of the CPI-U. In keeping with BLS
practice, historical CPI-U series were not revised. BLS, however, has provided
the CPI-U, X-1 with homeownership methodology comparable to the revised CPI-U
for researchers who needed a consistent CPI series.
Wage and salary workers. These are workers who receive wages, salaries,
commissions, tips, payment in kind, or piece rates. The group includes
employees in both the private and public sectors but, for the purposes of the
earnings series, excludes all self-employed persons, regardless of whether their
businesses are incorporated.
Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week at their
sole or principal job are defined as working full-time.
Part-time workers. Workers who usually work less than 35 hours per week at
their sole or principal job are defined as working part-time.
Hourly-paid workers. Workers who are paid an hourly wage are a subset of wage
and salary workers, representing approximately three-fifths of all wage and
salary workers. Hourly-paid workers are, therefore, included in the full- and
part-time worker tables in this report along with salaried workers and other
workers not paid by the hour. (Data for the hourly-paid workers are presented
separately in tables 10 to 12 and 16 to 18).
Workers paid at or below the Federal minimum wage. The estimates of the numbers
of workers with reported earnings at or below the Federal minimum wage in tables
12 and 18 pertain only to workers who are paid hourly rates. Salaried workers
and other nonhourly workers are not included even though some have earnings
that, when converted to hourly rates, are at or below the minimum wage.
Consequently, the estimates presented in this report likely understate the
actual number of workers with hourly earnings at or below the minimum wage.
Research has shown, however, that the degree of understatement is small. BLS
does not routinely estimate hourly earnings for workers not paid by the hour
because of data quality concerns associated with such an estimation process.
The prevailing Federal minimum wage was:
$2.90 effective January 1979 $4.25 effective April 1991
$3.10 effective January 1980 $4.75 effective October 1996
$3.35 effective January 1981 $5.15 effective September 1997
$3.80 effective April 1990
Data for 1990-91 and 1996-97 in table 18 reflect changes in the minimum wage
that took place during those years.
The presence of workers with hourly earnings below the minimum wage does not
necessarily indicate violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act, as there are
exemptions to the minimum wage provisions of the law. In addition, some workers
might have rounded hourly earnings to the nearest dollar in response to survey
questions. As a result, some might have been reported with hourly earnings
below the minimum wage when in fact they earned the minimum wage or higher.
This may be more likely to occur in years when the minimum wage level is just
above a whole dollar value, for example, in 1998 ($5.15).
Reliability
Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error.
When a sample, rather than an entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance
that the sample estimates may differ from the "true" population values they
represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies depending on the
particular sample selected, and this variability is measured by the standard
error of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of
confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6
standard errors from the "true" population value because of sampling error. BLS
analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of confidence. The
standard errors included in this report were rounded for presentation purposes,
as were the earnings estimates. Consequently, a precise confidence interval
cannot be constructed using these data.
The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can
occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the
population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the sample,
inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, and
errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and information on
estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error"
section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues of Employment and Earnings.
United States Department of Labor
