Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 05-689 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Media contact: 691-5902 Thursday, April 21, 2005 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: FIRST QUARTER 2005 Median weekly earnings of the nation's 100.9 million full-time wage and salary workers were $653 in the first quarter of 2005, 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 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 the Explanatory Note.) Highlights from the first-quarter data are: --Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $586 per week, or 80.4 percent of the $729 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among Hispanics or Latinos (88.7 percent) and blacks (88.6 percent) than among Asians (84.0 percent) or whites (79.8 percent). (See table 1.) --Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $555 per week, 73.9 percent of the median for white men ($751). The difference was less among women, as black women's median earnings ($492) were 82.1 percent of those for their white counterparts ($599). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics or Latinos who worked full time ($470) were lower than those of blacks ($513), whites ($677), and Asians ($738). (See table 1.) --Among men, the highest median weekly earnings were for those age 55 to 64 and age 45 to 54, $877 and $853, respectively. Among women, earnings were highest for 45- to 54-year olds ($657). (See table 2.) --Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings--$1,127 for men and $804 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 $404, compared with $579 for high school graduates (no college) and $1,013 for college graduates holding at least a bachelor's degree. Among college graduates with advanced degrees (professional or master's degree and above), the highest-earning 10 percent of male workers made $2,896 or more per week, compared with $1,902 or more for their female counterparts. (See table 4.) - 2 - 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 U.S. Census Bureau from a scienti- fically 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 I I 2004 2005 I I I I 2004 2005 2004 2005 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 99,720 100,884 $634 $653 $328 $328 Men, 16 years and over................................. 55,888 56,719 711 729 368 367 16 to 24 years....................................... 5,762 5,904 410 401 212 201 25 years and over.................................... 50,126 50,815 757 775 392 390 Women, 16 years and over............................... 43,832 44,165 567 586 294 295 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,342 4,331 387 380 200 191 25 years and over.................................... 39,490 39,834 592 610 307 307 RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX White.................................................. 81,271 82,155 652 677 338 340 Men.................................................. 46,562 47,364 729 751 378 378 Women................................................ 34,709 34,790 580 599 300 301 Black or African American.............................. 11,796 12,023 521 513 270 258 Men.................................................. 5,585 5,722 567 555 293 279 Women................................................ 6,211 6,301 498 492 258 247 Asian.................................................. 4,440 4,425 712 738 369 371 Men.................................................. 2,489 2,403 790 798 409 401 Women................................................ 1,951 2,022 615 670 318 337 Hispanic or Latino..................................... 13,648 14,040 450 470 233 236 Men.................................................. 8,678 9,021 478 488 248 245 Women................................................ 4,970 5,019 417 433 216 218 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 2005, 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, first quarter 2005 averages, not seasonally adjusted Total Men Women Age, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 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......................................... 100,884 $653 56,719 $729 44,165 $586 16 to 24 years.......................................... 10,235 392 5,904 401 4,331 380 16 to 19 years........................................ 1,279 311 771 313 507 307 20 to 24 years........................................ 8,956 403 5,132 411 3,824 392 25 years and over....................................... 90,649 696 50,815 775 39,834 610 25 to 54 years........................................ 76,404 691 43,061 765 33,344 610 25 to 34 years...................................... 24,515 610 14,264 658 10,250 556 35 to 44 years...................................... 26,509 725 15,193 828 11,315 617 45 to 54 years...................................... 25,381 751 13,603 853 11,778 657 55 years and over..................................... 14,245 730 7,755 851 6,490 609 55 to 64 years...................................... 12,423 746 6,687 877 5,735 622 65 years and over................................... 1,822 553 1,067 655 755 481 White 16 years and over......................................... 82,155 677 47,364 751 34,790 599 16 to 24 years.......................................... 8,340 399 4,948 409 3,391 384 25 years and over....................................... 73,815 723 42,416 805 31,399 623 25 to 54 years........................................ 61,767 716 35,762 790 26,005 624 55 years and over..................................... 12,048 751 6,654 884 5,394 619 Black or African American 16 years and over......................................... 12,023 513 5,722 555 6,301 492 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,253 338 597 322 655 348 25 years and over....................................... 10,770 540 5,124 591 5,646 506 25 to 54 years........................................ 9,381 539 4,472 594 4,909 503 55 years and over..................................... 1,389 548 652 556 737 542 Asian 16 years and over......................................... 4,425 738 2,403 798 2,022 670 16 to 24 years.......................................... 290 411 168 405 121 419 25 years and over....................................... 4,135 775 2,235 853 1,900 694 25 to 54 years........................................ 3,548 784 1,900 876 1,648 715 55 years and over..................................... 587 743 335 810 252 532 Hispanic or Latino 16 years and over......................................... 14,040 $470 9,021 488 5,019 433 16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,997 337 1,377 332 620 349 25 years and over....................................... 12,043 498 7,644 515 4,398 454 25 to 54 years........................................ 10,899 499 6,959 515 3,940 456 55 years and over..................................... 1,144 485 686 517 458 437 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 2005, 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 2004 2005 2004 2005 TOTAL Managerial, professional, and related occupations.............. 36,362 36,935 $914 $937 Management, business, and financial operations occupations... 15,047 15,034 982 1,016 Professional and related occupations......................... 21,315 21,901 865 895 Service occupations............................................ 12,985 13,467 410 416 Sales and office occupations................................... 24,705 24,142 555 570 Sales and related occupations................................ 9,978 9,304 605 623 Office and administrative support occupations................ 14,726 14,838 532 543 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations... 10,617 11,218 629 634 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations................... 637 690 327 370 Construction and extraction occupations...................... 5,641 6,164 608 615 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations............ 4,340 4,365 713 712 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations.... 15,052 15,122 519 543 Production occupations....................................... 8,588 8,475 522 539 Transportation and material moving occupations............... 6,465 6,646 515 550 Men Managerial, professional, and related occupations.............. 18,013 18,403 1,099 1,127 Management, business, and financial operations occupations... 8,277 8,086 1,168 1,234 Professional and related occupations......................... 9,736 10,317 1,037 1,048 Service occupations............................................ 6,510 6,846 476 477 Sales and office occupations................................... 9,380 8,865 656 691 Sales and related occupations................................ 5,620 5,140 741 772 Office and administrative support occupations................ 3,759 3,726 566 598 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations... 10,240 10,745 635 639 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations................... 505 562 345 387 Construction and extraction occupations...................... 5,543 6,028 608 616 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations............ 4,192 4,155 712 713 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations.... 11,745 11,860 575 592 Production occupations....................................... 6,118 6,046 594 606 Transportation and material moving occupations............... 5,627 5,814 538 579 Women Managerial, professional, and related occupations.............. 18,349 18,532 767 804 Management, business, and financial operations occupations... 6,769 6,948 809 838 Professional and related occupations......................... 11,579 11,584 750 784 Service occupations............................................ 6,475 6,620 375 381 Sales and office occupations................................... 15,325 15,277 515 519 Sales and related occupations................................ 4,358 4,164 476 487 Office and administrative support occupations................ 10,967 11,113 523 527 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations... 377 473 460 505 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations................... 132 128 306 326 Construction and extraction occupations...................... 98 136 (1) 592 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations............ 147 210 724 680 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations.... 3,308 3,262 404 432 Production occupations....................................... 2,469 2,430 400 433 Transportation and material moving occupations............... 838 832 413 429 1 Data not shown where base is less than 100,000. NOTE: Beginning in January 2005, 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 2005 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 OR LATINO ETHNICITY Total, 16 years and over.................................. 100,884 $312 $433 $653 $999 $1,509 Men..................................................... 56,719 331 478 729 1,130 1,692 Women................................................... 44,165 294 400 586 856 1,244 White................................................... 82,155 319 452 677 1,028 1,542 Men................................................... 47,364 341 492 751 1,154 1,735 Women................................................. 34,790 300 411 599 871 1,257 Black or African American............................... 12,023 284 367 513 764 1,127 Men................................................... 5,722 293 386 555 854 1,208 Women................................................. 6,301 276 351 492 714 996 Asian................................................... 4,425 330 474 738 1,160 1,753 Men................................................... 2,403 364 499 798 1,310 1,884 Women................................................. 2,022 308 422 670 1,046 1,544 Hispanic or Latino...................................... 14,040 277 332 470 695 1,033 Men................................................... 9,021 283 345 488 732 1,079 Women................................................. 5,019 262 315 433 639 927 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT Total, 25 years and over................................ 90,649 333 473 696 1,050 1,558 Less than a high school diploma....................... 8,427 257 309 404 578 789 High school graduates, no college(1).................. 26,777 311 412 579 799 1,084 Some college or associate degree...................... 25,074 357 484 667 956 1,319 Bachelor's degree and higher(2)....................... 30,372 496 704 1,013 1,529 2,099 Bachelor's degree only.............................. 19,587 470 643 931 1,395 1,908 Advanced degree..................................... 10,785 602 840 1,176 1,744 2,476 Men, 25 years and over................................ 50,815 367 512 775 1,173 1,756 Less than a high school diploma..................... 5,640 281 334 449 641 886 High school graduates, no college(1)................ 15,388 350 475 644 913 1,198 Some college or associate degree.................... 13,219 398 540 769 1,088 1,447 Bachelor's degree and higher(2)..................... 16,569 560 792 1,171 1,755 2,407 Bachelor's degree only............................ 10,653 511 734 1,081 1,617 2,205 Advanced degree................................... 5,916 675 937 1,401 1,918 2,896 Women, 25 years and over.............................. 39,834 307 421 610 890 1,278 Less than a high school diploma..................... 2,786 228 279 341 430 597 High school graduates, no college(1)................ 11,389 286 369 496 667 857 Some college or associate degree.................... 11,855 326 434 587 791 1,084 Bachelor's degree and higher(2)..................... 13,804 465 628 877 1,235 1,721 Bachelor's degree only............................ 8,934 439 587 798 1,144 1,556 Advanced degree................................... 4,870 563 752 1,003 1,403 1,902 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 2005, 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 I I I I 2004 2005 2004 2005 SEX AND AGE Total, 16 years and over.................................. 22,127 22,398 $192 $197 Men, 16 years and over................................. 7,057 6,951 180 188 16 to 24 years....................................... 3,624 3,404 140 146 25 years and over.................................... 3,433 3,547 240 248 Women, 16 years and over............................... 15,071 15,447 198 201 16 to 24 years....................................... 4,614 4,707 136 138 25 years and over.................................... 10,457 10,740 232 242 RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX White.................................................. 18,665 19,040 194 197 Men.................................................. 5,813 5,851 179 188 Women................................................ 12,852 13,190 200 202 Black or African American.............................. 2,098 1,948 191 186 Men.................................................. 721 609 200 188 Women................................................ 1,377 1,340 189 184 Asian.................................................. 856 815 168 220 Men.................................................. 342 276 161 211 Women................................................ 514 539 175 223 Hispanic or Latino..................................... 2,338 2,497 195 193 Men.................................................. 825 953 203 200 Women................................................ 1,513 1,544 190 188 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 2005, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.