Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 02-531 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Media contact: 691-5902 Thursday, September 19, 2002 EMPLOYEE TENURE IN 2002 The median number of years that wage and salary workers had been with their current employer (referred to as employee tenure) was 3.7 years in January 2002, according to data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. Since 1983, median employee tenure has ranged from 3.4 to 3.8 years in the years when such information was obtained. Information on employee tenure is obtained from supplemental questions in the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly survey of about 60,000 households that provides information on the labor force status, demographics, and other characteristics of the civilian noninstitutional pop- ulation age 16 and over. The supplemental questions about employee tenure have been essentially the same since 1983. Prior to that year, the CPS ques- tions on employee tenure were significantly different. As a result, this re- lease focuses only on comparable data from 1983 to 2002. (See the Technical Note.) Some highlights from the January 2002 survey follow: --Median years of tenure tend to increase with age. For example, the median tenure of older workers ages 55 to 64 was three and a half times that of workers ages 25 to 34. --Thirty percent of workers age 25 and over had been with their current employer for 10 years or more at the time of the survey. For workers age 55 and over, half had such long tenure. --The share of employed persons who had been with their employer for 12 months or less declined with age. Seventy percent of teenagers had been with their employer for a year or less, compared with 10 percent of persons age 55 and over. --The median years of tenure for workers in the public sector was twice that of workers in the private sector. This is partly due to the rela- tively older age of the public-sector workforce. --Managerial and professional specialty workers had the highest tenure among the major occupational groups, while workers in service occupa- tions had the lowest median tenure. Demographic characteristics In January 2002, the median tenure (the point at which half of the workers had more tenure and half had less tenure) was 3.9 years for men and 3.4 years for women. Median tenure has been about one-half year higher for men than for women since 1996, compared with a difference of about one year in the prior survey years. (See table 1.) - 2 - Among men, median tenure changed little from February 2000 (when data on job tenure were last collected), but was slightly lower than in January 1983, despite an upward shift in the age of the male workforce. As shown below, the percentage of male wage and salary workers who were between the ages of 35 and 54 increased from January 1983 to January 2002. All else held constant, this age shift would have been associated with an increase in median tenure because, until retirement age, tenure tends to increase with age. However, median tenure declined for men in most age groups, offsetting the aging effect. For women, median tenure also changed little from February 2000, though it was higher than in January 1983. Contributing to the increased tenure was an upward shift in the age distribution of working women from 1983 to 2002. In addition, there has been some increase in tenure between the two time periods, particularly among women ages 40 to 49. For example, the proportion of women in this age group who had been with their employer for 10 years or more rose from 28 percent in 1983 to 33 percent in 2002. Percent distribution of employed wage and salary workers by age and sex, January 1983 and January 2002 ------------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Men | Women | | Age --------------------------------------- | | | | | January | January | January | January | 1983 | 2002 | 1983 | 2002 | | | | ---------------------------|---------|---------|---------|--------- | | | | Total, 16 years and over..| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | | | | 16 to 24 year..............| 20.0 | 15.2 | 22.5 | 15.8 25 to 34 year..............| 29.9 | 23.6 | 28.9 | 21.9 35 to 44 year..............| 21.2 | 27.0 | 21.2 | 26.4 45 to 54 year..............| 15.6 | 21.6 | 14.7 | 23.0 55 to 64 year..............| 11.1 | 10.0 | 10.5 | 10.4 65 years and over..........| 2.2 | 2.6 | 2.3 | 2.5 ------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. In January 2002, 33 percent of male wage and salary workers age 25 and over had been with their current employer for 10 years or more, compared with 29 percent of women. The gap between men and women with such long tenure is about the same as when the survey was conducted in 1998 and 2000; however, it is about one-third lower than in 1983. (See table 2. Workers ages 16 to 24 are excluded from table 2 because few of these young workers could have been with their current employer for 10 years or more.) Larger proportions of whites and blacks than of Hispanics had 10 or more years of tenure with their current employer. In January 2002, 22 percent of Hispanics (age 25 and over) had been with their current employer for 10 years or more, compared with 29 percent of blacks and 32 percent of whites. This discrepancy can be explained, in part, by the relative youth of the Hispanic workforce. For example, among persons age 25 and over, nearly two- fifths of employed Hispanics were between the ages of 25 and 34, compared with about one-fourth of employed whites and blacks. Moreover, about 1 in 10 employed Hispanics age 35 and over--the group more likely to have 10 or more years of tenure--had not been in the United States for 10 years at the time of the survey. - 3 - In January 2002, 25 percent of wage and salary workers age 16 and over had been with their current employer for 12 months or less, down slightly from 27 percent in February 2000. This group includes new entrants and reentrants to the workforce, job losers who found new jobs during the previous year, and workers who had voluntarily changed employers during the previous year. Young workers are more likely to have shorter tenure than older workers. For example, 72 percent of 16- to 19-year-olds and 51 percent of 20- to 24-year-olds had tenure of 12 months or less with their current employer; this compares with 11 percent of workers ages 55 to 64. Industry In January 2002, nonagricultural wage and salary workers in government had double the tenure of their counterparts in private industries, 6.7 and 3.3 years, respectively. (See table 5.) Differing age distributions can explain part of the gap in tenure, as government workers tend to be older than workers in private industries. For example, 74 percent of government workers were age 35 and over, compared with 61 percent of private wage and salary workers. Within the private sector, manufacturing workers had the highest median tenure (5.5 years) of the major industry groups. Within manufacturing, industries with particularly high employee tenure included petroleum and coal products (10.2 years), primary metal industries (7.6 years), paper and allied products (7.4 years), and transportation equipment (7.0 years). Across the major industries, median tenure was lowest among workers in retail trade, at 2.2 years. Once again, age distributions affect overall median tenure. For example, workers in manufacturing tend to be older than those in retail trade. Occupation Managerial and professional specialty workers had the highest median tenure (4.8 years) among the major occupational groups. (See table 6.) Within this group, officials and administrators in public administration had a notably high median tenure of 11.3 years. Workers in service occu- pations had the lowest median tenure, 2.4 years. Within services, food service workers had the lowest median tenure (1.4 years), while protective service workers had the highest (5.1 years). Workers in service occupations tend to be younger than persons employed in managerial and professional specialty occupations. Technical Note The data in this release were collected through a supplement to the January 2002 Current Population Survey (CPS), the monthly survey of about 60,000 households that provides information on the labor force status, demographics, and other characteristics of the nation's civilian noninsti- tutional population age 16 and over. The CPS is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The January 2002 CPS supplement obtained information on worker displace- ment and on workers' tenure with their current employer. The data on worker displacement appear in the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) news release USDL 02-483, "Worker Displacement, 1999-2001," issued on August 21, 2002. Information in this release will be made available to sensory-impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200, TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339. Reliability of the estimates Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsam- pling error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true" popu- lation 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 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 infor- mation, 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 Employment and Earnings. Tenure questions and concepts In the January 2002 CPS supplement, questions on tenure were asked of all employed persons. The first question was: "How long has ... been working continuously for (fill in name of present employer)?" _____ Days _____ Weeks _____ Months _____ Years For responses of "1 year" or "2 years," a follow-up question asked: "Could you please give the exact number of months?" The purpose of the follow-up question was to obtain more precise infor- mation on workers who had been with their current employer a relatively short time. This follow-up question was included for the first time in the February 1996 CPS supplement on worker displacement and tenure. CPS supple- ments that obtained information on tenure in January of 1983, 1987, and 1991 did not include the follow-up question. In those surveys, responses of 1 year or more could be coded only as the nearest full year, and responses of less than a year were coded as the nearest full month. Prior to January 1983, CPS supplements on tenure asked wage and salary workers, "When did ... start working at (his/her) present job?" For wage and sala6ry workers, the meaning of the term "job" is ambiguous. For example, a worker who had been employed at a particular company for 10 years and had been promoted to a managerial position 1 year prior to the survey may have been counted as having 10 years or 1 year of tenure, de- pending on whether the respondent interpreted the question to mean tenure with the current employer or tenure in the managerial position. To rectify this ambiguity, the wording of the question was changed in January 1983 to specify the length of time a worker had been with his or her current em- ployer. The change resulted in a break in historical comparability, and, for this reason, estimates of tenure are not presented in this release for years prior to 1983. Interpreting tenure data Data on tenure have been used as a gauge of employment security, with some observers regarding increases in tenure as a sign of improving security and decreasing tenure as a sign of deteriorating security. However, there are limitations to using the data in this way. For example, during recessions or other periods of declining job security, median tenure and the proportion of workers with long tenure could rise because less-senior workers are more likely to lose their jobs than are workers with longer tenure. During periods of economic growth, median tenure and the proportion of workers with long tenure could fall because more job opportunities are available for new en- trants to the workforce and experienced workers have more opportunities to change employers and take better jobs. Tenure also could rise under improv- ing economic conditions, however, as fewer layoffs occur and good job matches develop between workers and employers. Table 1. Median years of tenure with current employer for employed wage and salary workers by age and sex, selected years, 1983-2002 Age and sex January January January February February February January 1983 1987 1991 1996 1998 2000 2002 TOTAL 16 years and over...................... 3.5 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.5 3.7 16 to 17 years............................... .7 .6 .7 .7 .6 .6 .7 18 to 19 years............................... .8 .7 .8 .7 .7 .7 .7 20 to 24 years............................... 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.1 1.1 1.2 25 years and over............................ 5.0 5.0 4.8 5.0 4.7 4.7 4.7 25 to 34 years............................. 3.0 2.9 2.9 2.8 2.7 2.6 2.7 35 to 44 years............................. 5.2 5.5 5.4 5.3 5.0 4.8 4.6 45 to 54 years............................. 9.5 8.8 8.9 8.3 8.1 8.2 7.6 55 to 64 years............................. 12.2 11.6 11.1 10.2 10.1 10.0 9.9 65 years and over.......................... 9.6 9.5 8.1 8.4 7.8 9.5 8.7 Men 16 years and over...................... 4.1 4.0 4.1 4.0 3.8 3.8 3.9 16 to 17 years............................... .7 .6 .7 .6 .6 .6 .8 18 to 19 years............................... .8 .7 .8 .7 .7 .7 .7 20 to 24 years............................... 1.5 1.3 1.4 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.3 25 years and over............................ 5.9 5.7 5.4 5.3 4.9 5.0 4.9 25 to 34 years............................. 3.2 3.1 3.1 3.0 2.8 2.7 2.9 35 to 44 years............................. 7.3 7.0 6.5 6.1 5.5 5.4 5.1 45 to 54 years............................. 12.8 11.8 11.2 10.1 9.4 9.5 9.1 55 to 64 years............................. 15.3 14.5 13.4 10.5 11.2 10.2 10.2 65 years and over.......................... 8.3 8.3 7.0 8.3 7.1 9.1 8.1 Women 16 years and over...................... 3.1 3.0 3.2 3.5 3.4 3.3 3.4 16 to 17 years............................... .7 .6 .7 .7 .7 .6 .7 18 to 19 years............................... .8 .7 .8 .7 .7 .7 .7 20 to 24 years............................... 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.2 1.1 1.0 1.1 25 years and over............................ 4.2 4.3 4.3 4.7 4.4 4.4 4.4 25 to 34 years............................. 2.8 2.6 2.7 2.7 2.5 2.5 2.5 35 to 44 years............................. 4.1 4.4 4.5 4.8 4.5 4.3 4.3 45 to 54 years............................. 6.3 6.8 6.7 7.0 7.2 7.3 6.5 55 to 64 years............................. 9.8 9.7 9.9 10.0 9.6 9.9 9.6 65 years and over.......................... 10.1 9.9 9.5 8.4 8.7 9.7 9.5 NOTE: Data for 1996, 1998, 2000, and 2002 are not strictly comparable with data for 1991 and earlier years because population controls from the 1990 census, adjusted for the estimated undercount, are used beginning in 1996. Figures for the 1983-91 period are based on population controls from the 1980 census. Also, beginning in 1996, the figures incorporate the effects of the redesign of the Current Population Survey introduced in January 1994. Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. Table 2. Percent of employed wage and salary workers 25 years and over who had 10 years or more of tenure with their current employer by age and sex, selected years, 1983-2002 Age and sex January January January February February February January 1983 1987 1991 1996 1998 2000 2002 TOTAL 25 years and over..................... 31.9 30.7 32.2 30.5 30.7 31.7 31.0 25 to 29 years............................... 3.3 4.1 5.1 2.8 2.7 2.5 2.2 30 to 34 years............................... 16.9 16.9 19.3 14.7 14.7 14.0 11.8 35 to 39 years............................... 29.9 29.6 31.1 26.9 27.0 26.2 25.3 40 to 44 years............................... 38.1 38.7 39.3 36.1 35.6 35.9 34.1 45 to 49 years............................... 46.5 45.2 46.5 44.5 42.9 45.3 41.4 50 to 54 years............................... 53.5 51.8 51.4 50.4 48.8 48.6 49.2 55 to 59 years............................... 59.3 57.6 56.7 54.0 52.9 53.1 53.2 60 to 64 years............................... 59.8 55.9 55.4 51.5 54.4 53.2 50.3 65 years and over............................ 50.9 50.1 46.3 47.4 45.0 50.0 48.1 Men 25 years and over..................... 37.7 35.0 35.9 33.1 32.7 33.6 33.0 25 to 29 years............................... 4.0 4.5 5.7 3.3 3.1 3.0 2.6 30 to 34 years............................... 18.7 18.7 21.1 15.6 15.3 15.3 13.1 35 to 39 years............................... 36.9 34.8 35.6 30.5 29.7 29.5 27.3 40 to 44 years............................... 51.1 48.5 46.3 41.7 39.1 40.4 37.7 45 to 49 years............................... 57.8 53.0 53.5 50.8 47.4 49.0 45.7 50 to 54 years............................... 62.3 59.4 58.5 54.9 52.8 51.6 53.8 55 to 59 years............................... 66.2 63.2 61.0 55.7 56.5 53.7 56.4 60 to 64 years............................... 65.6 58.7 57.5 50.4 55.7 52.5 48.3 65 years and over............................ 47.6 47.4 42.6 47.6 42.3 48.9 46.4 Women 25 years and over..................... 24.9 25.7 28.2 27.6 28.4 29.5 28.8 25 to 29 years............................... 2.5 3.6 4.4 2.2 2.2 1.9 1.8 30 to 34 years............................... 14.8 14.7 17.3 13.6 14.0 12.6 10.2 35 to 39 years............................... 21.6 23.8 26.1 22.9 24.0 22.4 23.0 40 to 44 years............................... 23.4 27.9 32.0 30.4 31.8 31.4 30.2 45 to 49 years............................... 33.0 36.4 39.3 38.1 38.4 41.5 37.1 50 to 54 years............................... 42.5 43.0 43.4 45.8 44.6 45.6 44.6 55 to 59 years............................... 51.0 50.8 51.4 52.1 49.2 52.5 49.9 60 to 64 years............................... 52.6 52.4 53.1 52.7 53.0 54.0 52.3 65 years and over............................ 54.5 53.1 49.9 47.2 47.7 51.2 50.0 NOTE: Data for 1996, 1998, 2000, and 2002 are not strictly comparable with data for 1991 and earlier years because population controls from the 1990 census, adjusted for the estimated undercount, are used beginning in 1996. Figures for the 1983-91 period are based on population controls from the 1980 census. Also, beginning in 1996, the figures incorporate the effects of the redesign of the Current Population Survey introduced in January 1994. Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. Table 3. Distribution of employed wage and salary workers by tenure with current employer, age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, January 2002 Percent distribution by tenure with current employer Number Age, sex, race, and employed Hispanic origin (in thousands) 12 13 to 3 to 4 5 to 9 10 to 15 to 20 Total months 23 2 years years years 14 19 years or less months years years or more TOTAL 16 years and over. 118,424 100.0 24.5 8.4 5.8 17.3 17.7 10.4 6.0 9.8 16 to 19 years........... 5,904 100.0 71.5 12.6 7.8 7.5 .5 - - - 20 years and over........ 112,520 100.0 22.1 8.2 5.7 17.9 18.6 10.9 6.3 10.3 20 to 24 years........... 12,414 100.0 51.4 14.6 9.2 19.2 5.6 (1) - - 25 to 34 years........... 26,959 100.0 28.9 11.0 7.5 23.3 22.0 6.5 .8 (1) 35 to 44 years........... 31,648 100.0 17.9 7.3 5.3 18.4 21.3 14.7 9.3 5.8 45 to 54 years........... 26,422 100.0 12.9 5.5 3.7 14.2 18.8 13.8 9.5 21.6 55 to 64 years........... 12,104 100.0 10.7 4.6 3.3 12.0 17.1 15.2 9.7 27.4 65 years and over........ 2,973 100.0 9.9 4.1 4.5 13.4 19.8 13.9 8.6 25.6 Men 16 years and over. 61,023 100.0 23.5 8.1 5.6 17.0 17.7 10.4 6.3 11.3 16 to 19 years........... 2,879 100.0 72.2 12.9 7.0 7.4 .4 - - - 20 years and over........ 58,144 100.0 21.1 7.9 5.6 17.5 18.6 10.9 6.6 11.8 20 to 24 years........... 6,368 100.0 49.4 13.9 9.2 21.0 6.4 .1 - - 25 to 34 years........... 14,408 100.0 27.2 10.5 7.4 23.2 23.5 7.2 .9 (1) 35 to 44 years........... 16,491 100.0 16.9 6.8 5.1 17.3 21.4 15.6 10.3 6.6 45 to 54 years........... 13,201 100.0 12.1 5.4 3.5 12.7 17.0 13.0 10.1 26.2 55 to 64 years........... 6,118 100.0 10.9 4.8 3.3 12.0 15.3 13.4 9.0 31.4 65 years and over........ 1,558 100.0 10.0 4.1 5.2 14.1 20.2 12.3 8.3 25.8 Women 16 years and over. 57,401 100.0 25.6 8.7 5.9 17.7 17.7 10.4 5.7 8.3 16 to 19 years........... 3,025 100.0 71.0 12.3 8.6 7.6 .5 - - - 20 years and over........ 54,376 100.0 23.1 8.5 5.8 18.3 18.7 10.9 6.0 8.7 20 to 24 years........... 6,045 100.0 53.4 15.4 9.2 17.4 4.6 (1) - - 25 to 34 years........... 12,551 100.0 30.8 11.6 7.7 23.4 20.3 5.6 .6 - 35 to 44 years........... 15,157 100.0 19.0 7.8 5.6 19.6 21.2 13.7 8.2 4.8 45 to 54 years........... 13,221 100.0 13.8 5.5 4.0 15.7 20.5 14.6 8.9 17.0 55 to 64 years........... 5,986 100.0 10.5 4.5 3.3 11.9 19.0 17.0 10.4 23.4 65 years and over........ 1,415 100.0 9.8 4.2 3.8 12.6 19.5 15.7 8.9 25.4 White 16 years and over.... 98,670 100.0 24.4 8.4 5.6 17.1 17.8 10.5 6.2 10.1 Men...................... 51,473 100.0 23.3 8.0 5.4 16.8 17.8 10.4 6.5 11.9 Women.................... 47,197 100.0 25.5 9.0 5.9 17.3 17.8 10.5 5.9 8.2 Black 16 years and over.... 14,143 100.0 25.4 7.5 6.6 18.0 17.9 9.6 5.6 9.5 Men...................... 6,567 100.0 24.5 8.2 7.0 16.5 18.2 9.8 6.3 9.4 Women.................... 7,577 100.0 26.3 6.8 6.2 19.2 17.7 9.4 4.9 9.5 Hispanic origin 16 years and over.... 13,776 100.0 29.4 8.5 7.7 19.2 17.7 8.4 4.0 5.1 Men...................... 7,807 100.0 28.5 7.6 8.2 19.7 17.9 8.6 4.1 5.5 Women.................... 5,968 100.0 30.5 9.7 7.1 18.6 17.5 8.2 3.8 4.5 1 Less than 0.05 percent. NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" groups are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. Dash represents zero. Table 4. Median years of tenure with current employer for employed wage and salary workers 25 years and over by educational attainment, sex, and age, January 2002 25 years and over Educational attainment and sex Total 25 to 34 35 to 44 45 to 54 55 to 64 65 years years years years years and over Total.......................... 4.7 2.7 4.6 7.6 9.9 8.7 Less than a high school diploma.... 3.9 2.3 3.5 5.2 8.4 7.4 High school graduates, no college.. 5.1 2.9 4.9 7.8 10.1 8.5 Some college, no degree............ 4.6 2.6 4.6 7.8 9.5 8.4 Associate degree................... 4.6 2.9 4.5 6.7 8.1 8.0 College graduates.................. 4.7 2.6 4.9 8.4 10.7 9.6 Bachelor's degree................ 4.4 2.7 5.1 7.7 9.8 8.0 Master's degree.................. 5.6 2.7 4.9 9.6 11.8 9.1 Doctoral or professional degree.. 4.8 1.9 3.8 8.6 13.6 15.9 Men............................ 4.9 2.9 5.1 9.1 10.2 8.1 Less than a high school diploma.... 4.1 2.5 4.0 5.8 8.7 5.8 High school graduates, no college.. 5.3 3.1 5.3 9.8 11.7 7.7 Some college, no degree............ 4.8 2.8 5.1 9.9 9.4 8.0 Associate degree................... 4.9 3.1 5.4 8.6 7.6 7.2 College graduates.................. 5.0 2.8 5.1 9.3 11.4 9.8 Bachelor's degree................ 4.8 2.8 5.4 8.6 10.2 7.9 Master's degree.................. 5.6 2.9 5.0 9.9 10.7 9.7 Doctoral or professional degree.. 5.8 1.9 3.7 9.2 15.4 15.9 Women.......................... 4.4 2.5 4.3 6.5 9.6 9.5 Less than a high school diploma.... 3.5 1.8 3.0 4.8 7.9 10.2 High school graduates, no college.. 4.9 2.7 4.4 6.6 9.6 9.3 Some college, no degree............ 4.3 2.5 4.2 6.3 9.6 8.7 Associate degree................... 4.3 2.8 4.0 5.8 8.4 9.7 College graduates.................. 4.3 2.5 4.6 7.7 10.3 8.9 Bachelor's degree................ 4.0 2.5 4.6 6.5 9.2 8.6 Master's degree.................. 5.5 2.5 4.9 9.4 12.7 7.4 Doctoral or professional degree.. 4.0 1.8 4.0 7.3 8.3 15.7 NOTE: Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. Table 5. Median years of tenure with current employer for employed wage and salary workers by industry, selected years, 1983-2002 Industry January January January February February February January 1983 1987 1991 1996 1998 2000 2002 Total, 16 years and over.............................. 3.5 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.5 3.7 Agriculture.............................................. 2.2 2.4 2.6 3.4 2.9 3.1 3.4 Nonagricultural industries............................... 3.6 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.5 3.7 Government............................................. 5.8 6.5 6.5 6.9 7.3 7.2 6.7 Private industries..................................... 3.2 3.0 3.2 3.3 3.2 3.2 3.3 Mining............................................... 3.4 6.1 5.8 6.1 5.6 6.5 4.6 Construction......................................... 2.0 2.0 2.6 2.9 2.7 2.8 3.0 Manufacturing........................................ 5.4 5.5 5.2 5.4 4.9 5.0 5.5 Durable goods(1)................................... 5.6 6.0 5.8 5.3 4.9 4.9 5.5 Lumber and wood products......................... 4.0 3.2 3.6 3.3 3.8 4.0 3.5 Furniture and fixtures........................... 4.2 3.2 4.0 4.2 3.9 4.1 5.3 Stone, clay, and glass products.................. 7.0 6.8 6.3 5.1 6.1 5.4 5.9 Primary metal industries......................... 10.0 10.2 9.7 8.1 8.0 7.0 7.6 Fabricated metal products........................ 5.7 5.5 5.5 5.1 4.0 4.7 5.5 Machinery and computing equipment................ 5.8 6.7 5.9 5.2 4.4 4.5 5.5 Electrical machinery, equipment, and supplies.... 4.7 4.8 5.5 4.9 5.0 4.7 4.9 Transportation equipment(1)...................... 8.8 8.0 7.6 8.3 7.8 6.4 7.0 Motor vehicles and equipment................... 13.0 11.2 11.7 7.8 6.4 5.8 7.0 Aircraft and parts............................. 6.4 6.8 6.3 9.8 9.6 9.7 8.3 Professional and photographic equipment and watches......................................... 4.7 5.9 5.1 5.1 5.5 5.2 4.5 Toys, amusements, and sporting goods............. 3.6 5.8 3.2 2.7 3.6 3.7 5.6 Nondurable goods(1)................................ 5.1 4.9 4.7 5.4 4.9 5.1 5.5 Food and kindred products........................ 5.2 4.4 4.2 5.1 5.1 5.0 5.1 Textile mill products............................ 7.0 7.0 5.6 5.4 6.7 7.4 5.1 Apparel and other finished textile products...... 3.8 3.2 3.8 3.8 3.8 3.3 4.8 Paper and allied products........................ 7.6 8.6 7.6 8.4 7.5 6.1 7.4 Printing and publishing.......................... 3.2 3.2 3.5 4.3 4.0 4.4 5.1 Chemicals and allied products.................... 7.0 7.2 5.7 6.9 5.4 5.8 6.3 Petroleum and coal products...................... 6.0 11.7 8.4 10.3 9.4 7.5 10.2 Rubber and miscellaneous plastics products....... 5.4 4.4 4.7 4.7 4.6 4.9 6.4 Transportation and public utilities.................. 5.8 5.7 5.8 5.2 4.8 4.4 4.4 Transportation..................................... 4.6 3.9 4.2 4.1 3.8 3.9 4.3 Communications and other public utilities.......... 8.3 8.4 9.9 8.2 8.2 5.2 4.7 Wholesale trade...................................... 3.8 3.7 3.4 3.9 4.1 3.9 3.9 Retail trade......................................... 1.9 1.8 1.9 1.9 1.8 2.0 2.2 Finance, insurance, and real estate.................. 3.2 3.0 3.4 4.1 3.5 3.6 3.6 Banking and other finance.......................... 3.3 3.1 3.6 3.9 3.7 3.3 3.5 Insurance and real estate.......................... 3.0 2.9 3.2 4.2 3.4 3.9 3.8 Services(1).......................................... 2.5 2.5 2.7 3.0 2.9 2.9 3.1 Private households................................. 1.8 1.7 1.9 2.3 2.3 2.9 2.8 Services, except private households................ 2.5 2.5 2.7 3.0 2.9 2.9 3.1 Business services................................ 1.5 1.6 1.8 2.0 1.9 r1.8 2.2 Automobile and repair services................... 2.3 2.0 2.2 2.9 2.4 2.7 3.0 Personal services, except private households..... 2.0 2.0 2.1 2.3 2.3 2.7 2.8 Entertainment and recreation services............ 1.8 1.8 2.3 1.9 1.9 2.3 2.1 Hospitals........................................ 3.5 4.6 4.2 5.2 5.2 5.2 4.8 Health services, except hospitals................ 2.5 2.4 2.7 2.9 2.9 3.2 3.0 Educational services............................. 2.7 3.1 3.5 3.8 3.5 3.3 3.6 Social services.................................. 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.8 2.7 2.6 2.7 Other professional services...................... 2.9 2.8 3.3 3.5 3.3 r3.2 3.5 1 Includes other industries, not shown separately. r =revised. NOTE: Data for 1996, 1998, 2000, and 2002 are not strictly comparable with data for 1991 and earlier years because population controls from the 1990 census, adjusted for the estimated undercount, are used beginning in 1996. Figures for the 1983-91 period are based on population controls from the 1980 census. Also, beginning in 1996, the figures incorporate the effects of the redesign of the Current Population Survey introduced in January 1994. Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed. Table 6. Median years of tenure with current employer for employed wage and salary workers by occupation, selected years, 1983-2002 Occupation January January January February February February January 1983 1987 1991 1996 1998 2000 2002 Total, 16 years and over............................. 3.5 3.4 3.6 3.8 3.6 3.5 3.7 Managerial and professional specialty.................... 4.8 5.0 5.2 5.1 4.8 4.8 4.8 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 5.3 5.1 5.5 5.5 5.3 5.0 5.3 Officials and administrators, public administration.. 8.4 9.7 10.7 10.4 12.3 12.0 11.3 Other executive, administrative, and managerial...... 5.3 5.2 5.7 5.6 5.5 5.2 5.4 Management-related occupations....................... 4.8 4.2 4.7 4.8 4.1 3.9 4.3 Professional specialty................................. 4.5 5.0 4.9 4.8 4.4 4.6 4.3 Engineers............................................ 6.3 6.1 6.7 6.6 5.3 4.8 4.8 Mathematical and computer scientists................. 3.8 5.0 4.2 4.5 3.3 3.3 3.3 Natural scientists................................... 4.7 6.0 5.6 4.4 5.0 5.2 4.6 Health diagnosing occupations........................ 2.8 2.5 3.0 3.3 3.2 3.4 4.1 Health assessment and treating occupations........... 3.6 4.1 4.2 4.9 4.6 5.3 4.6 Teachers, college and university..................... 4.4 7.2 5.5 4.4 4.2 4.7 3.8 Teachers, except college and university.............. 6.0 7.0 6.7 5.8 5.9 5.6 5.0 Lawyers and judges................................... 3.2 3.3 3.4 4.3 4.3 3.8 4.7 Other professional specialty occupations............. 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.9 3.6 3.9 3.9 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 3.1 2.9 3.2 3.4 3.2 3.1 3.2 Technicians and related support........................ 3.3 3.8 3.8 4.7 4.3 3.8 3.7 Health technologists and technicians................. 3.3 4.4 3.5 4.5 4.5 3.8 3.6 Engineering and science technicians.................. 3.9 4.7 4.0 5.5 4.0 4.1 4.0 Technicians, except health, engineering, and science. 2.7 2.9 3.9 4.4 4.1 3.4 3.7 Sales occupations...................................... 2.3 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.4 2.7 2.7 Supervisors and proprietors.......................... 4.4 4.4 4.9 4.8 4.8 4.7 4.6 Sales representatives, finance and business services. 2.6 2.4 2.7 3.3 2.7 2.8 3.1 Sales representatives, commodities, except retail.... 3.7 3.9 3.4 3.8 4.1 4.3 4.1 Sales workers, retail and personal services.......... 1.6 1.4 1.4 1.3 1.2 1.4 1.5 Sales-related occupations............................ 1.7 2.4 3.8 1.5 2.4 3.7 2.3 Administrative support, including clerical............. 3.5 3.3 3.6 4.0 3.6 3.4 3.6 Supervisors.......................................... 7.6 8.9 8.4 9.4 8.2 7.6 7.5 Computer equipment operators......................... 3.2 3.0 3.8 4.8 4.1 2.9 3.4 Secretaries, stenographers, and typists.............. 3.2 3.0 3.4 4.4 4.1 4.4 4.3 Financial records processing......................... 4.0 3.6 4.0 4.2 4.2 4.1 4.2 Mail and message distributing........................ 6.1 4.6 5.9 7.3 7.6 9.4 9.9 Other administrative support, including clerical..... 3.2 3.0 3.1 3.4 3.1 2.8 3.0 Service occupations...................................... 2.2 2.0 2.3 2.4 2.4 2.5 2.4 Private household...................................... 1.9 1.9 2.2 2.2 2.3 2.8 2.9 Protective service..................................... 4.6 5.0 4.4 5.2 5.4 5.7 5.1 Service, except private household and protective....... 2.0 1.8 2.0 2.1 2.1 2.2 2.1 Food service......................................... 1.5 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.3 1.5 1.4 Health service....................................... 2.6 2.2 2.4 2.8 2.8 3.1 2.4 Cleaning and building service........................ 3.0 2.7 3.0 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.1 Personal service..................................... 1.9 1.9 2.1 2.2 2.2 2.3 2.4 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 4.8 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.6 4.3 4.4 Mechanics and repairers.............................. 5.2 5.8 5.0 5.3 4.9 4.7 4.6 Construction trades.................................. 3.2 2.6 3.2 3.5 3.4 3.1 3.3 Other precision production, craft, and repair........ 6.0 6.2 6.4 6.3 6.1 5.4 6.7 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 3.9 3.4 3.5 3.2 3.2 3.2 3.5 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 4.8 4.3 4.4 4.1 3.9 4.0 4.9 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 4.4 4.1 3.9 3.9 3.8 3.7 3.6 Motor vehicle operators.............................. 3.5 3.2 3.2 3.4 3.4 3.5 3.4 Other transportation and material moving occupations. 6.8 7.2 6.3 5.4 4.8 4.8 4.6 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 2.1 2.0 2.2 1.9 1.9 2.0 2.4 Construction laborers................................ 2.0 1.3 2.4 2.2 1.6 2.6 2.3 Other handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers............................................ 2.2 2.2 2.1 1.8 1.9 1.9 2.4 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 2.3 2.4 2.7 3.7 2.8 3.1 3.1 Farm operators and managers............................ 3.9 5.0 4.8 6.2 4.7 3.9 5.5 Other farming, forestry, and fishing occupations....... 2.3 2.3 2.6 3.6 2.8 3.1 3.0 NOTE: Data for 1996, 1998, 2000, and 2002 are not strictly comparable with data for 1991 and earlier years because population controls from the 1990 census, adjusted for the estimated undercount, are used beginning in 1996. Figures for the 1983-91 period are based on population controls from the 1980 census. Also, beginning in 1996, the figures incorporate the effects of the redesign of the Current Population Survey introduced in January 1994. Data exclude the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed.