Internet address: http://stats.bls.gov:80/newsrels.htm Technical information: (202) 606-6378 USDL 97-129 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Media contact: 606-5902 Friday, April 18, 1997 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: FIRST QUARTER 1997 Median weekly earnings of the nation's 90.7 million full-time wage and salary workers were $504 in the first quarter of 1997, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 3.1 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 3.0 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 first-quarter data are: ---Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $427 a week, or 73.4 percent of the $582 median for men. The female-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (87.3 percent) and Hispanics (85.6 percent). (See table 1.) ---Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $426 per week, 71.1 percent of the median for white men ($599). The racial variation was much less among women, as black women's median earnings ($372) were 84.5 percent of those for their white counterparts ($440). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($349) were lower than those of blacks ($399) and whites ($519). (See table 1.) ---The highest median weekly earnings for full-time workers were $719 for men in the 45- to 54-year-age group, with the median for 55- to 64-year- old men next, at $676. Among women, the highest-earning age group also was 45- to 54-year-olds, who had a median of $494; this was followed by 35- to 44-year-olds, with a median of $475. (See table 2.) ----------------------------------------------------------------- | Beginning in January 1997, data are not strictly comparable | |with figures for 1996 and earlier years because of revisions in | |the population controls used in the household survey. For | |additional information, see "Revisions in the Current Population | |Survey Effective January 1997" in the February 1997 issue of | |Employment and Earnings. | ----------------------------------------------------------------- - 2 - ---Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial and professional specialty occupations had the highest median weekly earnings--$875 for men and $630 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 $318, compared with $450 for high school graduates (no college) and $776 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 $1,977, compared with more than $1,393 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 I I 1996 1997 I I I I 1996 1997 1996 1997 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 88,699 90,734 $489 $504 $304 $304 Men, 16 years and over................................. 50,388 51,604 557 582 347 352 16 to 24 years....................................... 5,448 5,409 311 319 193 193 25 years and over.................................... 44,940 46,195 597 615 372 372 Women, 16 years and over............................... 38,312 39,129 419 427 261 258 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,059 4,084 289 289 180 175 25 years and over.................................... 34,253 35,045 442 456 276 276 RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX White.................................................. 74,423 75,743 504 519 314 314 Men.................................................. 43,177 44,009 580 599 361 362 Women................................................ 31,247 31,734 427 440 266 266 Black.................................................. 10,534 10,879 394 399 245 241 Men.................................................. 5,199 5,340 417 426 260 258 Women................................................ 5,335 5,539 372 372 232 225 Hispanic origin........................................ 8,599 9,623 330 349 205 211 Men.................................................. 5,495 6,145 344 369 214 223 Women................................................ 3,104 3,478 315 316 196 191 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, first 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......................................... 90,734 $504 51,604 $582 39,129 $427 16 to 24 years.......................................... 9,493 307 5,409 319 4,084 289 16 to 19 years........................................ 1,499 243 893 255 606 229 20 to 24 years........................................ 7,994 321 4,516 338 3,478 304 25 years and over....................................... 81,240 536 46,195 615 35,045 456 25 to 54 years........................................ 72,173 537 41,014 612 31,159 463 25 to 34 years...................................... 25,324 477 14,712 511 10,611 423 35 to 44 years...................................... 27,061 576 15,464 650 11,598 475 45 to 54 years...................................... 19,788 609 10,838 719 8,950 494 55 years and over..................................... 9,067 524 5,182 658 3,886 411 55 to 64 years...................................... 8,046 544 4,572 676 3,474 416 65 years and over................................... 1,021 405 610 489 412 346 White 16 years and over......................................... 75,743 519 44,009 599 31,734 440 16 to 24 years.......................................... 7,836 309 4,559 323 3,277 290 25 years and over....................................... 67,907 562 39,450 635 28,457 469 25 to 54 years........................................ 60,053 563 34,912 630 25,142 476 55 years and over..................................... 7,854 558 4,538 681 3,315 421 Black 16 years and over......................................... 10,879 399 5,340 426 5,539 372 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,190 283 566 286 624 279 25 years and over....................................... 9,689 422 4,774 467 4,916 392 25 to 54 years........................................ 8,808 425 4,339 466 4,469 397 55 years and over..................................... 881 388 435 472 447 352 Hispanic origin 16 years and over......................................... 9,623 349 6,145 369 3,478 316 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,492 260 959 265 533 251 25 years and over....................................... 8,130 374 5,186 396 2,944 335 25 to 54 years........................................ 7,428 376 4,776 395 2,652 337 55 years and over..................................... 702 359 410 401 292 328 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 I I I I 1996 1997 1996 1997 TOTAL Managerial and professional specialty.................... 27,002 28,164 $713 $740 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 12,884 13,625 696 726 Professional specialty................................. 14,118 14,539 724 754 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 25,453 25,841 438 453 Technicians and related support........................ 3,045 3,445 576 578 Sales occupations...................................... 8,917 8,783 481 482 Administrative support, including clerical............. 13,491 13,614 399 415 Service occupations...................................... 9,247 9,587 302 310 Private household...................................... 371 351 198 215 Protective service..................................... 1,865 1,870 522 570 Service, except private household and protective....... 7,010 7,365 282 292 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 10,862 11,035 546 547 Mechanics and repairers................................ 3,881 3,901 573 578 Construction trades.................................... 3,390 3,675 523 532 Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 3,591 3,460 531 524 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 14,879 14,811 381 398 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 7,151 7,256 374 388 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 4,225 3,968 455 492 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 3,502 3,588 320 336 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 1,257 1,294 297 294 Men Managerial and professional specialty.................... 13,669 14,562 846 875 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 6,929 7,530 843 858 Professional specialty................................. 6,740 7,032 849 889 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 9,622 9,861 580 591 Technicians and related support........................ 1,559 1,793 659 663 Sales occupations...................................... 5,081 4,939 611 604 Administrative support, including clerical............. 2,982 3,129 469 515 Service occupations...................................... 4,554 4,691 355 363 Private household...................................... 11 10 (1) (1) Protective service..................................... 1,605 1,585 $554 $582 Service, except private household and protective....... 2,938 3,096 300 315 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 9,945 10,095 564 572 Mechanics and repairers................................ 3,732 3,757 575 582 Construction trades.................................... 3,344 3,621 523 535 Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 2,869 2,717 584 602 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 11,482 11,295 409 429 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 4,637 4,688 $419 $443 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 3,963 3,721 463 498 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 2,882 2,887 329 345 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 1,115 1,099 303 307 Women Managerial and professional specialty.................... 13,333 13,602 612 630 Executive, administrative, and managerial.............. 5,955 6,095 581 597 Professional specialty................................. 7,378 7,507 641 663 Technical, sales, and administrative support............. 15,832 15,980 391 400 Technicians and related support........................ 1,487 1,652 501 496 Sales occupations...................................... 3,836 3,843 361 346 Administrative support, including clerical............. 10,509 10,485 384 398 Service occupations...................................... 4,693 4,896 269 279 Private household...................................... 361 341 198 214 Protective service..................................... 260 286 427 495 Service, except private household and protective....... 4,072 4,269 269 278 Precision production, craft, and repair.................. 916 940 393 366 Mechanics and repairers................................ 148 144 540 420 Construction trades.................................... 46 54 (1) (1) Other precision production, craft, and repair.......... 722 742 $369 $357 Operators, fabricators, and laborers..................... 3,396 3,516 308 316 Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors.......... 2,514 2,568 308 311 Transportation and material moving occupations......... 262 247 350 392 Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers.... 621 701 294 312 Farming, forestry, and fishing........................... 141 195 266 240 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, first 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.................................. 90,734 $242 $330 $504 $762 $1,098 Men..................................................... 51,604 264 373 582 860 1,212 Women................................................... 39,129 224 299 427 634 906 White................................................... 75,743 248 343 519 786 1,131 Men................................................... 44,009 273 387 599 882 1,242 Women................................................. 31,734 228 306 440 651 925 Black................................................... 10,879 213 283 399 595 842 Men................................................... 5,340 229 298 426 642 895 Women................................................. 5,539 202 265 372 537 754 Hispanic................................................ 9,623 197 254 349 529 806 Men................................................... 6,145 206 268 369 572 852 Women................................................. 3,478 186 232 316 479 734 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Total, 25 years and over................................ 81,240 259 357 536 800 1,137 Less than a high school diploma....................... 8,157 194 242 318 458 632 High school graduates, no college..................... 26,319 243 319 450 643 864 Some college or associate degree...................... 22,600 280 373 532 755 1,002 College graduates, total.............................. 24,164 386 551 776 1,121 1,556 Bachelor's degree only.............................. 15,983 360 506 719 1,005 1,424 Advanced degree..................................... 8,181 465 648 922 1,289 1,813 Men, 25 years and over................................ 46,195 285 405 615 898 1,256 Less than a high school diploma..................... 5,430 208 265 358 508 697 High school graduates, no college................... 14,814 282 377 529 736 960 Some college or associate degree.................... 12,408 308 441 632 864 1,141 College graduates, total............................ 13,542 423 611 886 1,257 1,807 Bachelor's degree only............................ 8,907 399 576 818 1,147 1,621 Advanced degree................................... 4,635 491 732 1,027 1,445 1,977 Women, 25 years and over.............................. 35,045 234 315 456 662 934 Less than a high school diploma..................... 2,726 181 212 275 350 466 High school graduates, no college................... 11,505 216 282 375 504 672 Some college or associate degree.................... 10,192 253 329 446 608 800 College graduates, total............................ 10,621 353 497 673 935 1,249 Bachelor's degree only............................ 7,076 $326 $465 $621 $847 $1,142 Advanced degree................................... 3,546 437 598 804 1,064 1,393 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 I I I I 1996 1997 1996 1997 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 21,047 21,302 $139 $143 Men, 16 years and over................................. 6,586 6,620 132 130 16 to 24 years....................................... 3,416 3,577 107 108 25 years and over.................................... 3,170 3,043 173 179 Women, 16 years and over............................... 14,461 14,682 142 148 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,225 4,456 103 107 25 years and over.................................... 10,237 10,226 165 172 RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX White.................................................. 18,215 18,523 141 143 Men.................................................. 5,646 5,741 132 129 Women................................................ 12,569 12,782 144 149 Black.................................................. 1,995 2,023 128 138 Men.................................................. 626 586 124 132 Women................................................ 1,369 1,438 129 140 Hispanic origin........................................ 1,773 1,905 139 140 Men.................................................. 672 739 141 145 Women................................................ 1,101 1,166 138 137 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.