In 2020, South Carolina women who were full-time wage and salary workers had median usual weekly earnings of $767, or 77.6 percent of the $988 median usual weekly earnings of their male counterparts, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Janet S. Rankin noted that the 2020 women’s-to-men’s earnings ratio of 77.6 percent compared to 76.9 percent in 2019. Nationwide, women earned $891 per week, or 82.3 percent of the $1,082 median for men. (See chart 1 and table 1. The earnings comparisons in this release are on a broad level and do not control for many factors that can be important in explaining earnings differences, such as job skills and responsibilities, work experience, and specialization.)

Among the 50 states, median weekly earnings of women in full-time wage and salary positions in 2020 ranged from $675 in Mississippi to $1,166 in Connecticut. Women’s earnings in five other states (Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia) and the District of Columbia were at or above $1,000 per week. (See table 1 and chart 2.)

Median weekly earnings for men were lowest in Mississippi at $878 and highest in Massachusetts at $1,356. Thirty-four states and the District of Columbia had weekly wages above $1,000 for full-time male workers.

Connecticut had the highest women’s-to-men’s earnings ratio among the states, 97.0 percent, and Utah had the lowest, 72.7 percent. The District of Columbia had a ratio of 85.6 percent. (See chart 3.) The differences among the states reflect, in part, variation in the occupations and industries found in each state and differences in the demographic composition of each state’s labor force. In addition, sampling error for state estimates is considerably larger than it is for the national estimates. Consequently, earnings comparisons between states should be made with caution.

Technical Note

The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), which provides information on the labor force, employment, and unemployment. The survey is conducted monthly for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census Bureau using a scientifically selected national sample of about 60,000 eligible households representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The survey data on earnings are based on one-fourth of the CPS monthly sample and are limited to wage and salary workers. All self-employed workers, both incorporated and unincorporated, are excluded from the data presented in this release.

Statistics based on the CPS data are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. Further information about the reliability of data from the CPS is available on the CPS Technical Documentation page of the BLS website.

The principal concepts and definitions used in connection with the earnings data in this release are described briefly below.

Usual weekly earnings reflect 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). Respondents are asked to identify the easiest way for them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, biweekly, twice monthly, monthly, annually, or 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 determined by each respondent’s own understanding of the term.

The median of usual weekly earnings reflects the midpoint in a given earnings distribution, with half of workers having earnings above the median and the other half having earnings below the median.

Wage and salary workers are people age 16 and older who receive wages, salaries, commissions, tips, payments in kind, or piece rates on their sole or principal job. This group includes employees in both the public and private sectors. All self-employed workers are excluded whether or not their businesses are incorporated.

Full-time workers are defined for the purposes of these estimates as those who usually work 35 hours or more per week at their sole or principal job.

For more information on the median weekly earnings of women and men, see Bureau of Labor Statistics Report 1094, Highlights of women’s earnings in 2020, available at www.bls.gov/opub/reports/womens-earnings/2020/home.htm.      

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202)-691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800)-877-8339.

Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by state, 2020 annual averages

State	Total			Women			Men			Women’s earnings as a percentage of men’s
	Number of workers (in thou- sands)	Median weekly earnings	Standard error of median	Number of workers (in thou- sands)	Median weekly earnings	Standard error of median	Number of workers (in thou- sands)	Median weekly earnings	Standard error of median
United States	110,387	$984	$2	49,476	$891	$3	60,911	$1,082	$5	82.3
Alabama	1,628	887	15	745	791	21	884	978	29	80.9
Alaska	238	1,021	21	106	913	27	132	1,128	27	80.9
Arizona	2,384	932	16	1,073	856	28	1,312	991	15	86.4
Arkansas	995	849	16	443	771	17	552	917	21	84.1
California	12,544	1,063	11	5,401	993	12	7,143	1,133	14	87.6
Colorado	2,008	1,103	24	834	966	24	1,174	1,237	17	78.1
Connecticut	1,221	1,190	25	536	1,166	37	684	1,202	25	97.0
Delaware	358	947	21	168	838	29	190	1,076	65	77.9
District of Columbia	311	1,628	27	156	1,506	51	155	1,759	38	85.6
Florida	7,025	904	10	3,249	831	10	3,776	988	12	84.1
Georgia	3,584	891	16	1,716	788	18	1,868	1,011	33	77.9
Hawaii	419	980	25	196	896	24	223	1,128	47	79.4
Idaho	588	862	16	239	731	13	349	966	22	75.7
Illinois	4,293	1,030	17	1,951	931	15	2,342	1,162	18	80.1
Indiana	2,378	903	16	1,050	801	21	1,328	1,040	28	77.0
Iowa	1,159	933	19	521	854	16	638	1,020	28	83.7
Kansas	1,044	889	14	457	810	21	586	962	23	84.2
Kentucky	1,439	850	17	656	737	16	783	960	23	76.8
Louisiana	1,457	896	20	693	760	26	764	1,024	35	74.2
Maine	451	918	21	206	794	22	245	1,036	38	76.6
Maryland	2,279	1,149	19	1,104	1,074	51	1,175	1,248	39	86.1
Massachusetts	2,429	1,239	21	1,114	1,115	26	1,314	1,356	16	82.2
Michigan	3,277	995	11	1,500	897	17	1,777	1,113	19	80.6
Minnesota	2,040	1,062	20	914	984	16	1,126	1,147	17	85.8
Mississippi	894	764	15	432	675	23	461	878	27	76.9
Missouri	2,094	904	19	979	807	17	1,115	1,026	30	78.7
Montana	325	876	19	142	771	19	183	955	26	80.7
Nebraska	742	931	15	337	843	18	405	1,014	29	83.1
Nevada	1,035	886	14	449	791	13	586	991	19	79.8
New Hampshire	525	1,051	27	234	954	19	291	1,156	24	82.5
New Jersey	3,178	1,163	11	1,421	1,041	31	1,756	1,267	24	82.2
New Mexico	618	858	20	275	801	24	343	915	33	87.5
New York	6,312	1,101	14	2,934	1,000	11	3,378	1,183	18	84.5
North Carolina	3,524	936	14	1,609	837	20	1,916	1,032	22	81.1
North Dakota	281	963	16	127	851	20	155	1,065	22	79.9
Ohio	3,852	967	12	1,708	862	15	2,144	1,052	22	81.9
Oklahoma	1,265	844	20	538	753	14	728	942	18	79.9
Oregon	1,352	1,026	21	564	936	24	787	1,121	39	83.5
Pennsylvania	4,295	1,002	11	1,922	884	20	2,373	1,111	19	79.6
Rhode Island	375	1,020	25	163	951	28	212	1,112	35	85.5
South Carolina	1,747	883	18	817	767	22	930	988	23	77.6
South Dakota	315	877	13	145	797	18	170	936	20	85.1
Tennessee	2,284	861	20	1,035	760	18	1,249	929	25	81.8
Texas	9,882	939	10	4,274	875	13	5,608	1,006	11	87.0
Utah	1,074	941	13	418	782	20	656	1,076	26	72.7
Vermont	217	960	18	108	886	20	109	1,059	56	83.7
Virginia	3,181	1,130	22	1,453	1,002	30	1,728	1,260	28	79.5
Washington	2,680	1,109	19	1,139	982	34	1,540	1,224	33	80.2
West Virginia	570	829	16	258	739	14	313	907	16	81.5
Wisconsin	2,025	966	18	880	885	18	1,145	1,023	21	86.5
Wyoming	195	940	17	84	795	26	111	1,057	23	75.2
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. Data shown are based on workers' state of residence; workers' reported earnings, however, may or may not be from a job located in the same state. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.