Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 07-1584 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ For release: 10:00 A.M. EST Media contact: 691-5902 Thursday, October 18, 2007 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: THIRD QUARTER 2007 Median weekly earnings of the nation's 108.3 million full-time wage and salary workers were $695 in the third quarter of 2007, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 3.0 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 2.4 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 the Technical Note.) Highlights from the third-quarter data are: --Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $616 per week, or 80.3 percent of the $767 median for men. The female-to- male earnings ratios were higher among Hispanics (90.5 percent) and blacks (86.4 percent) than among whites (80.4 percent) or Asians (77.9 percent). (See table 1.) --Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $618 per week, 78.8 percent of the median for white men ($784). The difference was less among women, as black women's median earnings ($534) were 84.8 percent of those for their white counterparts ($630). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($502) were lower than those of blacks ($578), whites ($713), and Asians ($842). (See table 1.) --Among men, those age 45 to 54 and age 55 to 64 had the highest median weekly earnings, $916 and $915, respectively. Among women, earnings were highest for those age 45 to 54 ($686). (See table 2.) --Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings--$1,205 for men and $868 for women. Men and women in service jobs earned the least. (See table 3.) --Full-time workers age 25 and over without a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $422, compared with $610 for high school graduates (no college) and $1,088 for those holding at least a bache- lor’s degree. Among college graduates with advanced degrees (profes- sional or master's degree and above), the highest earning 10 percent of male workers made $2,923 or more per week, compared with $2,120 or more for their female counterparts. (See table 4.) - 2 - Technical 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 U.S. Census Bureau from a scientif- ically selected 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-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: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339. Reliability 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" population 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 information, 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. 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, 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. - 3 - 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 all self-employed persons, regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated. 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 or Latino ethnicity. Refers to persons who identified them- selves in the enumeration process as being Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. 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 III III 2006 2007 III III III III 2006 2007 2006 2007 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over....................................... 108,169 108,272 $675 $695 $320 $322 Men, 16 years and over....................................... 60,996 61,150 749 767 355 356 16 to 24 years............................................. 7,313 7,042 409 430 194 199 25 years and over.......................................... 53,683 54,108 808 831 383 385 Women, 16 years and over..................................... 47,173 47,122 599 616 284 285 16 to 24 years............................................. 5,273 5,160 393 398 187 184 25 years and over.......................................... 41,901 41,963 629 654 299 303 RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX White........................................................ 87,956 87,258 692 713 328 331 Men........................................................ 50,852 50,520 764 784 362 363 Women...................................................... 37,103 36,738 608 630 289 292 Black or African American.................................... 12,857 13,229 555 578 263 268 Men........................................................ 6,070 6,320 610 618 289 286 Women...................................................... 6,787 6,909 511 534 243 247 Asian........................................................ 4,873 5,250 798 842 378 390 Men........................................................ 2,703 2,939 857 947 407 439 Women...................................................... 2,170 2,311 728 738 345 342 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity................................. 15,886 16,525 485 502 230 233 Men........................................................ 10,096 10,533 504 518 239 240 Women...................................................... 5,790 5,993 440 469 209 217 NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2007, 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 or Latino ethnicity, and sex, third quarter 2007 averages, not seasonally adjusted Total Men Women Age, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity Number of Number of Number of workers Median workers Median workers Median (in weekly (in weekly (in weekly thousands) earnings thousands) earnings thousands) earnings TOTAL 16 years and over........................................... 108,272 $695 61,150 $767 47,122 $616 16 to 24 years............................................ 12,201 415 7,042 430 5,160 398 16 to 19 years.......................................... 2,150 331 1,371 336 780 324 20 to 24 years.......................................... 10,051 439 5,671 466 4,380 414 25 years and over......................................... 96,071 745 54,108 831 41,963 654 25 to 54 years.......................................... 79,389 741 44,983 822 34,406 654 25 to 34 years........................................ 26,162 649 15,208 687 10,954 605 35 to 44 years........................................ 26,753 782 15,434 887 11,318 677 45 to 54 years........................................ 26,475 804 14,340 916 12,134 686 55 years and over....................................... 16,682 766 9,125 879 7,556 653 55 to 64 years........................................ 14,305 790 7,711 915 6,594 669 65 years and over..................................... 2,377 599 1,414 656 962 540 White 16 years and over........................................... 87,258 713 50,520 784 36,738 630 16 to 24 years............................................ 10,035 421 5,920 437 4,116 404 25 years and over......................................... 77,222 764 44,600 851 32,622 671 25 to 54 years.......................................... 63,249 758 36,788 839 26,460 671 55 years and over....................................... 13,974 792 7,812 911 6,162 672 Black or African American 16 years and over........................................... 13,229 578 6,320 618 6,909 534 16 to 24 years............................................ 1,407 382 716 399 690 363 25 years and over......................................... 11,823 607 5,604 656 6,219 572 25 to 54 years.......................................... 10,087 608 4,816 655 5,272 572 55 years and over....................................... 1,735 603 789 658 947 574 Asian 16 years and over........................................... 5,250 842 2,939 947 2,311 738 16 to 24 years............................................ 335 514 182 572 154 505 25 years and over......................................... 4,915 875 2,758 974 2,158 755 25 to 54 years.......................................... 4,183 904 2,351 1,014 1,832 778 55 years and over....................................... 732 702 407 758 325 535 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 16 years and over........................................... 16,525 502 10,533 518 5,993 469 16 to 24 years............................................ 2,462 388 1,571 400 890 362 25 years and over......................................... 14,064 530 8,961 559 5,103 497 25 to 54 years.......................................... 12,574 528 8,038 555 4,536 497 55 years and over....................................... 1,490 545 923 590 567 498 NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2007, 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 III III III III 2006 2007 2006 2007 TOTAL Management, professional, and related occupations................... 37,876 38,843 $974 $1,011 Management, business, and financial operations occupations........ 15,319 15,848 1,046 1,114 Professional and related occupations.............................. 22,557 22,995 935 958 Service occupations................................................. 15,413 15,296 423 445 Sales and office occupations........................................ 26,206 25,844 592 602 Sales and related occupations..................................... 10,657 10,473 627 640 Office and administrative support occupations..................... 15,549 15,371 580 587 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations........ 13,104 12,678 663 659 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations........................ 881 825 371 372 Construction and extraction occupations........................... 7,331 7,304 637 631 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations................. 4,892 4,549 743 745 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations......... 15,571 15,611 569 584 Production occupations............................................ 8,491 8,399 578 585 Transportation and material moving occupations.................... 7,079 7,212 558 584 Men Management, professional, and related occupations................... 18,612 19,325 1,147 1,205 Management, business, and financial operations occupations........ 8,270 8,448 1,209 1,328 Professional and related occupations.............................. 10,342 10,877 1,104 1,151 Service occupations................................................. 7,566 7,612 494 503 Sales and office occupations........................................ 10,117 9,769 718 710 Sales and related occupations..................................... 5,924 5,767 770 784 Office and administrative support occupations..................... 4,193 4,002 635 624 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations........ 12,516 12,187 672 663 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations........................ 713 663 384 379 Construction and extraction occupations........................... 7,157 7,126 642 633 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations................. 4,647 4,398 745 744 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations......... 12,185 12,257 615 622 Production occupations............................................ 5,994 6,013 659 643 Transportation and material moving occupations.................... 6,191 6,245 587 608 Women Management, professional, and related occupations................... 19,264 19,518 856 868 Management, business, and financial operations occupations........ 7,049 7,400 905 923 Professional and related occupations.............................. 12,215 12,118 827 835 Service occupations................................................. 7,847 7,684 391 408 Sales and office occupations........................................ 16,089 16,075 541 562 Sales and related occupations..................................... 4,733 4,706 484 507 Office and administrative support occupations..................... 11,355 11,370 563 577 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations........ 588 490 518 526 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations........................ 169 162 319 353 Construction and extraction occupations........................... 174 178 527 560 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations................. 245 150 725 773 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations......... 3,386 3,354 432 437 Production occupations............................................ 2,498 2,387 441 443 Transportation and material moving occupations.................... 888 967 414 426 NOTE: Beginning in January 2007, 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, third quarter 2007 averages, not seasonally adjusted Number of Upper limit of: workers Characteristic (in thousands) First First Second Third Ninth decile quartile quartile quartile decile (median) SEX, RACE, AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY Total, 16 years and over....................................... 108,272 $329 $462 $695 $1,082 $1,603 Men.......................................................... 61,150 355 500 767 1,194 1,832 Women........................................................ 47,122 309 418 616 919 1,367 White........................................................ 87,258 335 474 713 1,115 1,647 Men........................................................ 50,520 362 509 784 1,220 1,876 Women...................................................... 36,738 312 425 630 939 1,397 Black or African American.................................... 13,229 304 403 578 858 1,241 Men........................................................ 6,320 314 421 618 938 1,393 Women...................................................... 6,909 296 389 534 781 1,129 Asian........................................................ 5,250 369 516 842 1,331 1,888 Men........................................................ 2,939 399 603 947 1,526 2,017 Women...................................................... 2,311 340 467 738 1,123 1,541 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity................................. 16,525 290 362 502 740 1,174 Men........................................................ 10,533 300 380 518 781 1,248 Women...................................................... 5,993 275 336 469 680 1,082 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Total, 25 years and over....................................... 96,071 358 498 745 1,143 1,674 Less than a high school diploma.............................. 8,387 280 325 422 597 841 High school graduates, no college (1)........................ 27,621 326 430 610 861 1,203 Some college or associate degree............................. 26,662 378 503 707 999 1,396 Bachelor's degree and higher (2)............................. 33,400 520 746 1,088 1,587 2,300 Bachelor's degree only..................................... 21,680 489 690 993 1,474 2,088 Advanced degree............................................ 11,720 631 877 1,254 1,878 2,623 Men, 25 years and over....................................... 54,108 389 552 831 1,274 1,889 Less than a high school diploma............................ 5,833 291 351 472 648 928 High school graduates, no college (1)...................... 16,290 373 496 697 977 1,380 Some college or associate degree........................... 13,912 418 583 816 1,141 1,517 Bachelor's degree and higher (2)........................... 18,074 587 836 1,250 1,869 2,556 Bachelor's degree only................................... 11,808 531 766 1,141 1,657 2,340 Advanced degree.......................................... 6,266 696 987 1,475 2,081 2,923 Women, 25 years and over..................................... 41,963 328 450 654 965 1,423 Less than a high school diploma............................ 2,555 248 298 368 482 609 High school graduates, no college (1)...................... 11,331 295 385 512 694 918 Some college or associate degree........................... 12,750 344 454 612 843 1,169 Bachelor's degree and higher (2)........................... 15,326 482 679 938 1,334 1,885 Bachelor's degree only................................... 9,872 448 630 868 1,223 1,715 Advanced degree.......................................... 5,454 589 804 1,080 1,487 2,120 1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent. 2 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees. 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. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2007, 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) Characteristic III III III III 2006 2007 2006 2007 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over............................................ 20,659 21,707 $211 $218 Men, 16 years and over............................................ 6,579 6,855 198 213 16 to 24 years.................................................. 3,352 3,279 161 174 25 years and over............................................... 3,228 3,577 259 268 Women, 16 years and over.......................................... 14,079 14,851 218 221 16 to 24 years.................................................. 4,365 4,529 160 164 25 years and over............................................... 9,715 10,323 256 262 RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX White........................................................... 17,318 18,190 213 221 Men......................................................... 5,337 5,543 199 214 Women....................................................... 11,981 12,646 221 224 Black or African American....................................... 2,032 2,039 202 200 Men......................................................... 767 768 200 201 Women....................................................... 1,266 1,271 203 198 Asian........................................................... 796 902 216 233 Men......................................................... 287 347 192 251 Women....................................................... 509 555 228 222 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.................................... 2,220 2,377 200 208 Men......................................................... 733 786 202 202 Women....................................................... 1,487 1,591 200 210 NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2007, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.