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News Release Information

14-323-BOS
Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (617) 565-4141

Women’s Earnings in Massachusetts - 2012

In 2012, Massachusetts women who were full-time wage and salary workers had median weekly earnings of $840 or 80.8 percent of the $1,040 median weekly earnings of their male counterparts, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Deborah A. Brown noted that the women’s to men’s earnings ratio in Massachusetts for 2012 was the highest in the history of the series. Nationwide, women earned $691 per week or 80.9 percent of the $854 median for men. (See table 1. Earnings in this report do not control for many factors that can be significant in explaining earnings differences.)

In Massachusetts, the ratio of women’s to men’s earnings has increased each of the last five years. These increases come after the ratio reached a series low of 74.8 percent in 2007. (See chart 1.)

Among the 50 states, median weekly earnings of women in full-time wage and salary positions in 2012 ranged from $566 in Montana to $868 in Connecticut. States with the highest wages for women were located along the Eastern Seaboard. In addition to Connecticut, women’s earnings in Maryland, Massachusetts, and New Jersey were also above $800 per week. (See table 1 and chart 2 .)

Across the nation, median weekly earnings for men were lowest in Arkansas at $717 and highest in Connecticut at $1,127. Four of the five highest-paying states for full-time male workers (Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Maryland) were also located along the Eastern Seaboard. The sole exception was on the West Coast – Alaska. (See table 1.)

The ratio of female-to-male earnings in 2012 varied across the nation, ranging from 65.5 percent in Wyoming to 86.8 percent in Arizona. (See table 1.) Two other states recorded ratios above 85.0 percent – California at 86.0 percent and Maryland at 85.2 percent. (See chart 3.) The differences among the states reflect, in part, variation in the occupations and industries found in each state and in the age composition of each state’s labor force. In addition, comparisons by gender are on a broad level and do not control for factors such as educational attainment which can be significant in explaining earnings differences.


For more information on the median weekly earnings of women and men, see Bureau of Labor Statistics Report 1045, Highlights of Women’s Earnings in 2012, issued in October 2013; copies are available on the Internet at www.bls.gov/cps/cpswom2012.pdf. Information in this release will be available to sensory impaired individuals upon request: 202-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: 1-800-877-8339.


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. This survey is conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau, using a national sample of about 60,000 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.

Statistics based on the CPS data are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. The differences among data for the states reflect, in part, variations in the occupation, industry, and age composition of each state’s labor force. In addition, sampling error for the state estimates is considerably larger than it is for the national data.

The principal definitions used in connection with the earnings series in this release are described below.

Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes and other deductions and include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually received (at the main job in the case of multiple jobholders.)

Median weekly earnings. The median 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.

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 all self-employed persons, regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.

Full-time worker. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week at their sole or principal job.

 

Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by state and sex, 2012 annual averages
      State                     Both sexesWomenMenWomen's earnings as percent of men's
Number of workers (thousands)Median weekly earningsStandard error of medianNumber of workers (thousands)Median weekly earningsStandard error of medianNumber of workers (thousands)Median weekly earningsStandard error of median

United States

102,749$768$245,462$691$357,286$854$480.9

Alabama

1,52272414683620158398122776.4

Alaska

24888816110757141381,0252773.9

Arizona

1,9697329878670141,0907721886.8

Arkansas

97165115438603105347172184.1

California

11,570820104,89075496,6808771286.0

Colorado

1,71485018725750159899582478.3

Connecticut

1,17898822519868296591,1274077.0

Delaware

30980720146737201638883683.0

District of Columbia

2761,102371381,072431381,1313894.8

Florida

6,29973562,99267693,3077961384.9

Georgia

3,287737131,503640171,7848382676.4

Hawaii

43075314192689162388393582.1

Idaho

47870613187614112917851578.2

Illinois

4,368809111,958708132,4118951679.1

Indiana

2,15871614936632161,2218091978.1

Iowa

1,09674414491654176058232079.5

Kansas

98873814428649145608252278.7

Kentucky

1,41466312644596137707331881.3

Louisiana

1,44967618637573178127962072.0

Maine

42374113191654252328232579.5

Maryland

2,198921201,056842231,1419882785.2

Massachusetts

2,16793512980840191,1871,0402880.8

Michigan

2,876783141,237687181,6398892077.3

Minnesota

1,89786515816779231,0819482482.2

Mississippi

92267714413582195097762375.0

Missouri

2,01375018913660191,0998413078.5

Montana

29365821137566181567332377.2

Nebraska

68072814312663173697872184.2

Nevada

89769011399620104977681980.7

New Hampshire

47888321214772242649752979.2

New Jersey

3,142935131,425818261,7171,0302579.4

New Mexico

61473717274645253408022280.4

New York

6,513819102,95174693,5629001482.9

North Carolina

3,124727101,392641131,7327921380.9

North Dakota

26673512116651121498342378.1

Ohio

3,66273991,589664102,0738021582.8

Oklahoma

1,29969511570631157297601683.0

Oregon

1,14482319480756176649012883.9

Pennsylvania

4,32077481,898694112,4238491381.7

Rhode Island

34279621158733231848864282.7

South Carolina

1,46266915677603177857241883.3

South Dakota

2826641012960491537371682.0

Tennessee

2,12567512922611121,2037401582.6

Texas

8,90471873,85263395,0517951579.6

Utah

87976014326661185528702576.0

Vermont

2167671696692191208592980.6

Virginia

2,974846171,335756211,6409512479.5

Washington

2,20487021935746201,2699822876.0

West Virginia

57474014257614143178462872.6

Wisconsin

1,92978316833696251,0958632080.6

Wyoming

2078081781645221269841965.5

Note: In general, the sampling error for the state estimates is considerably larger than it is for the national estimates; thus, comparisons of state estimates should be made with caution.
 

 

Last Modified Date: Wednesday, February 26, 2014