Internet address: http://stats.bls.gov:80/newsrels.htm Technical information: (202) 606-6378 USDL 97-235 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Media contact: 606-5902 Tuesday, July 22, 1997 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: SECOND QUARTER 1997 Median weekly earnings of the nation's 93.4 million full-time wage and salary workers were $499 in the second quarter of 1997, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 2.7 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 2.3 percent in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) over the same period. Data on usual earnings are collected as part of the Current Population Survey, a nationwide sample survey of households in which respondents are asked, among other things, how much each wage and salary worker usually earns. (See explanatory note.) Highlights from the second-quarter data are: ---Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $428 a week, or 74.8 percent of the $572 median for men. The female-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (89.4 percent) and Hispanics (87.0 percent) than among whites (75.2 percent). (See table 1.) ---Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $424 per week, 72.0 percent of the median for white men ($589). The racial variation was much less among women, as black women's median earnings ($379) were 85.6 percent of those for their white counterparts ($443). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($352) were lower than those of blacks ($397) and whites ($515). (See table 1.) ---The highest median weekly earnings for full-time workers were $692 for men in the 45- to 54-year-age group, with the median for 55- to 64-year- old men next, at $660. Among women, the highest-earning age group also was 45- to 54-year-olds, who had a median of $496, followed by 35- to 44-year- olds, with a median of $475. (See table 2.) ---Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial and professional specialty occupations had the highest median weekly earnings--$862 for men and $622 for women--while men and women in service and farm jobs earned the least. (See table 3.) ---Full-time workers age 25 and over with less than a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $322, compared with $463 for high school graduates (no college) and $772 for college graduates. Among college graduates with advanced degrees (professional or master's degree and above), the highest 10 percent of male workers earned more than $2,089, compared with more than $1,515 for their female counterparts. (See table 4.) Explanatory Note The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), which provides the basic 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-quarter of the CPS monthly sample and are limited to wages and salaries. The data, therefore, exclude self-employment income. Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-606-STAT; TDD phone: 202-606-5897; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-326-2577. Reliability In any sample survey, variations in the data can occur by chance because a sample, rather than the whole of the population, is surveyed. The standard error is a measure of such potential variation. The chances are about 68 out of 100 that an estimate from the survey differs from a figure that would be obtained from a complete census by less than one standard error. The chances are about 90 out of 100 that such a difference would be less than 1.6 standard errors. All statements of comparisons in the text of this release are significant at 1.6 or more standard errors. 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. Definitions The principal definitions used in connection with the earnings series are described briefly below. Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes and other deductions and include any overtime pay, taxes, commissions, or tips usually received (at the main job in the case of multiple jobholders.) 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 other 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 estimating procedure places each reported or calculated weekly earnings value into $50-wide intervals which are centered around multiples of $50. The actual value is estimated through the linear interpolation of the interval in which the quantile boundary 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 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, e.g., $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. Wage and salary workers. 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 self-employed persons whose businesses are incorporated. - 2 - Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week at their sole or principal job. Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer than 35 hours per week at their sole or principal job. Constant dollars. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used to convert current dollars to constant (1982) dollars. Hispanic origin. Refers to persons who are of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or of other Hispanic origin or descent. Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race; hence, they are included in the numbers for the white and black populations. Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly averages, not seasonally adjusted Number of workers Median weekly earnings (in thousands) Characteristic In current dollars In constant (1982) dollars II II 1996 1997 II II II II 1996 1997 1996 1997 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 90,956 93,387 $486 $499 $300 $301 Men, 16 years and over................................. 52,140 53,329 554 572 341 344 16 to 24 years....................................... 6,079 6,321 302 316 186 190 25 years and over.................................... 46,061 47,008 599 609 369 367 Women, 16 years and over............................... 38,817 40,058 414 428 255 258 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,337 4,511 273 289 168 174 25 years and over.................................... 34,480 35,548 439 457 271 275 RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX White.................................................. 76,144 77,856 502 515 309 310 Men.................................................. 44,604 45,493 578 589 356 355 Women................................................ 31,540 32,363 425 443 262 267 Black.................................................. 10,864 11,338 383 397 236 239 Men.................................................. 5,314 5,490 411 424 253 255 Women................................................ 5,550 5,847 353 379 218 228 Hispanic origin........................................ 8,790 9,789 336 352 207 212 Men.................................................. 5,706 6,462 350 368 216 222 Women................................................ 3,084 3,327 313 320 193 193 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. Beginning in January 1997, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 2. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by age, race, Hispanic origin, and sex, second quarter 1997 averages, not seasonally adjusted Total Men Women Age, race, and Hispanic origin Number Number Number of Median of Median of Median workers weekly workers weekly workers weekly (in earnings (in earnings (in earnings thousands) thousands) thousands) TOTAL 16 years and over......................................... 93,387 $499 53,329 $572 40,058 $428 16 to 24 years.......................................... 10,831 305 6,321 316 4,511 289 16 to 19 years........................................ 2,031 251 1,206 264 825 239 20 to 24 years........................................ 8,800 318 5,114 333 3,686 302 25 years and over....................................... 82,556 533 47,008 609 35,548 457 25 to 54 years........................................ 73,372 533 41,718 605 31,654 462 25 to 34 years...................................... 25,851 478 14,913 514 10,939 422 35 to 44 years...................................... 27,489 567 15,804 639 11,685 475 45 to 54 years...................................... 20,032 601 11,001 692 9,031 496 55 years and over..................................... 9,184 537 5,291 646 3,893 417 55 to 64 years...................................... 8,071 560 4,623 660 3,449 426 65 years and over................................... 1,113 403 668 486 445 352 White 16 years and over......................................... 77,856 515 45,493 589 32,363 443 16 to 24 years.......................................... 9,144 309 5,480 320 3,664 295 25 years and over....................................... 68,712 560 40,013 627 28,700 472 25 to 54 years........................................ 60,826 559 35,429 622 25,397 478 55 years and over..................................... 7,886 570 4,584 677 3,302 422 Black 16 years and over......................................... 11,338 397 5,490 424 5,847 379 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,303 271 615 288 688 252 25 years and over....................................... 10,035 418 4,876 463 5,160 397 25 to 54 years........................................ 9,102 418 4,383 460 4,718 398 55 years and over..................................... 933 423 492 482 441 382 Hispanic origin 16 years and over......................................... 9,789 352 6,462 368 3,327 320 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,695 262 1,219 258 476 271 25 years and over....................................... 8,094 389 5,243 411 2,852 341 25 to 54 years........................................ 7,509 389 4,852 408 2,657 348 55 years and over..................................... 585 389 391 469 195 276 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. Beginning in January 1997, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 3. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by occupation and sex, quarterly averages, not seasonally adjusted Number of workers Median weekly earnings (in thousands) Occupation and sex II II II II 1996 1997 1996 1997 TOTAL Managerial and professional specialty.................... 27,282 28,160 $718 $727 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 13,335 13,978 705 694 Professional specialty................................. 13,947 14,183 729 748 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 26,058 26,540 438 449 Technicians and related support........................ 3,233 3,443 566 567 Sales occupations...................................... 8,864 9,340 478 466 Administrative support, including clerical............. 13,961 13,757 404 418 Service occupations...................................... 10,085 10,039 303 311 Private household...................................... 303 338 224 214 Protective service..................................... 1,850 1,915 524 510 Service, except private household and protective....... 7,932 7,786 285 295 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 10,832 11,671 527 545 Mechanics and repairers................................ 3,697 3,970 554 568 Construction trades.................................... 3,717 4,057 498 541 Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 3,417 3,644 543 526 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 14,984 15,230 392 402 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 7,089 7,186 380 385 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 4,163 4,522 487 502 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 3,732 3,521 333 340 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 1,716 1,748 286 291 Men Managerial and professional specialty.................... 14,015 14,131 867 862 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 7,240 7,339 865 850 Professional specialty................................. 6,775 6,792 870 878 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 10,004 10,278 575 589 Technicians and related support........................ 1,620 1,806 649 680 Sales occupations...................................... 5,099 5,167 591 592 Administrative support, including clerical............. 3,284 3,306 488 530 Service occupations...................................... 5,096 5,012 358 366 Private household...................................... 12 19 (1) (1) Protective service..................................... 1,594 1,604 $540 $527 Service, except private household and protective....... 3,490 3,388 308 314 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 9,970 10,675 545 562 Mechanics and repairers................................ 3,556 3,789 562 571 Construction trades.................................... 3,635 3,991 500 541 Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 2,779 2,895 585 582 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 11,538 11,674 427 438 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 4,511 4,604 $444 $437 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 3,901 4,198 495 511 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 3,126 2,872 352 357 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 1,517 1,558 293 296 Women Managerial and professional specialty.................... 13,267 14,029 609 622 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 6,095 6,638 584 599 Professional specialty................................. 7,172 7,391 634 653 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 16,054 16,261 391 398 Technicians and related support........................ 1,612 1,637 495 484 Sales occupations...................................... 3,765 4,173 336 348 Administrative support, including clerical............. 10,677 10,451 392 397 Service occupations...................................... 4,989 5,027 270 283 Private household...................................... 290 319 221 212 Protective service..................................... 257 311 429 428 Service, except private household and protective....... 4,442 4,398 269 281 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 861 996 373 380 Mechanics and repairers................................ 141 180 431 504 Construction trades.................................... 82 66 (1) (1) Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 638 749 $365 $352 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 3,447 3,555 301 315 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 2,579 2,582 301 315 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 261 325 372 361 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 607 649 282 301 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 199 189 224 256 1 Data not shown where base is less than 100,000. Beginning in January 1997, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 4. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, second quarter 1997 averages, not seasonally adjusted 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.................................. 93,387 $239 $327 $499 $749 $1,081 Men..................................................... 53,329 260 369 572 847 1,215 Women................................................... 40,058 223 298 428 623 886 White................................................... 77,856 246 340 515 772 1,129 Men................................................... 45,493 269 384 589 875 1,247 Women................................................. 32,363 228 304 443 640 905 Black................................................... 11,338 210 284 397 586 782 Men................................................... 5,490 223 297 424 621 831 Women................................................. 5,847 201 272 379 525 737 Hispanic................................................ 9,789 197 254 352 526 776 Men................................................... 6,462 201 260 368 561 839 Women................................................. 3,327 191 242 320 492 676 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Total, 25 years and over................................ 82,556 259 359 533 788 1,137 Less than a high school diploma....................... 8,780 193 246 322 472 647 High school graduates, no college..................... 27,284 245 324 463 642 864 Some college or associate degree...................... 22,202 279 372 526 741 998 College graduates, total.............................. 24,290 383 546 772 1,129 1,556 Bachelor's degree only.............................. 16,534 358 502 709 1,003 1,391 Advanced degree..................................... 7,756 475 664 928 1,334 1,888 Men, 25 years and over................................ 47,008 286 408 609 894 1,263 Less than a high school diploma..................... 5,893 205 268 369 517 702 High school graduates, no college................... 15,372 285 388 536 729 960 Some college or associate degree.................... 12,004 306 424 608 851 1,129 College graduates, total............................ 13,739 427 617 891 1,266 1,757 Bachelor's degree only............................ 9,152 400 581 817 1,158 1,551 Advanced degree................................... 4,587 509 752 1,063 1,472 2,089 Women, 25 years and over.............................. 35,548 235 315 457 652 919 Less than a high school diploma..................... 2,887 179 217 280 361 476 High school graduates, no college................... 11,911 217 286 381 510 670 Some college or associate degree.................... 10,198 253 328 454 616 816 College graduates, total............................ 10,551 349 485 657 913 1,236 Bachelor's degree only............................ 7,382 $328 $449 $612 $843 $1,138 Advanced degree................................... 3,169 434 594 786 1,052 1,515 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. Beginning in January 1997, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey. Table 5. Median usual weekly earnings of part-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly averages, not seasonally adjusted Number of workers Median weekly earnings (in thousands) Age, race, and Hispanic origin II II II II 1996 1997 1996 1997 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 20,770 20,853 $142 $147 Men, 16 years and over................................. 6,383 6,584 129 138 16 to 24 years....................................... 3,361 3,461 108 113 25 years and over.................................... 3,023 3,123 168 180 Women, 16 years and over............................... 14,387 14,268 148 151 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,390 4,365 111 111 25 years and over.................................... 9,996 9,903 171 173 RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX White.................................................. 17,926 18,090 144 148 Men.................................................. 5,356 5,541 131 136 Women................................................ 12,570 12,549 149 153 Black.................................................. 2,025 1,883 131 138 Men.................................................. 704 677 125 143 Women................................................ 1,321 1,206 134 136 Hispanic origin........................................ 1,758 1,999 140 142 Men.................................................. 664 723 143 159 Women................................................ 1,094 1,276 138 132 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. Beginning in January 1997, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.