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1 Technical information: Media contact: (202) 691-6378 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ 691-5902 USDL 03-177 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Thursday, April 17, 2003 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: FIRST QUARTER 2003 Median weekly earnings of the nation’s 99.0 million full-time wage and salary workers were $620 in the first quarter of 2003, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 1.5 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 2.8 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 $551 per week, or 79.3 percent of the $695 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks or African Americans (89.3 percent) and Hispanics or Latinos (88.3 percent) than among whites (79.0 percent) and Asians (78.2 percent). (See table 1.) —Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $552 per week, 77.4 percent of the median for white men ($713). The difference was much less among women, as black women’s median earnings ($493) were 87.6 percent of those for their white counterparts ($563). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($447) were lower than those of blacks ($516), whites ($636), and Asians ($718). (See table 1.) —Among men, the highest median weekly earnings were for those age 45 to 54 and age 55 to 64 ($822 for each age group). Among women, earnings were highest for those 45 to 54 years old ($606). (See table 2.) —Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,058 for men and $756 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 $397, compared with $549 for high school graduates (no college) and $961 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 $2,498 or more per week, compared with $1,856 or more for their female counterparts. (See table 4.) 2 Changes in Usual Weekly Earnings Data Several major changes introduced into the Current Population Survey in 2003 affect the usual weekly earnings data that are presented in this release. These include the use of new population controls that reflect Census 2000 results, the use of new questions about race and Hispanic ethnicity, the presentation of data for Asians, and the use of a new occupational classification system. Additionally, the first quarter 2003 data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the survey. The first quarter 2002 data shown in this release have been revised to reflect the new population controls and the new occupational classification system introduced into the survey. (Data by race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity prior to the first quarter of 2003 continue to be based on the old race/ethnicity questions.) For a detailed discussion of the changes, see “Revisions to the Current Population Survey Effective in January 2003” in the February 2003 issue of Employment and Earnings and available on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/cps/ rvcps03.pdf. 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 scientifically 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 selfemployment 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 nonsampling 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 bynonsampling error. Nonsam-pling 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. 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. This refers to persons who identified themselves 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 (in thousands) Characteristic Median weekly earnings In current dollars In constant (1982) dollars I 2002 I 2003 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 98,809 98,988 $611 $620 $332 $327 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 55,217 5,725 49,491 55,162 5,829 49,333 682 406 729 695 396 741 370 220 395 366 209 391 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 43,592 4,509 39,083 43,826 4,266 39,560 533 375 570 551 384 581 289 203 309 291 202 306 White1 .................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 81,543 46,549 34,994 80,878 46,184 34,694 625 701 547 636 713 563 339 380 297 336 376 297 Black or African American1 ................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 11,899 5,669 6,230 11,706 5,443 6,263 510 533 492 516 552 493 276 289 267 272 291 260 Asian1 .................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 4,354 2,414 1,939 4,230 2,365 1,865 651 752 558 718 793 620 353 408 303 379 418 327 Hispanic or Latino .................................................................................. Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 12,861 8,047 4,815 13,653 8,611 5,042 420 452 387 447 471 416 228 245 210 236 249 219 I 2002 I 2003 I 2002 I 2003 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX 1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the main race. 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. All data have been revised back to January 2000 to reflect the introduction of Census 2000-based population controls into the household survey. Beginning in January 2003, data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the 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 2003 averages, not seasonally adjusted Total Age, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity Number of workers (in thousands) Men Median weekly earnings Number of workers (in thousands) Women Median weekly earnings Number of workers (in thousands) Median weekly earnings TOTAL 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 16 to 19 years ....................................................................................... 20 to 24 years ....................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 25 to 34 years ..................................................................................... 35 to 44 years ..................................................................................... 45 to 54 years ..................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. 55 to 64 years ..................................................................................... 65 years and over ............................................................................... 98,988 10,095 1,236 8,858 88,893 75,888 24,512 27,172 24,204 13,005 11,237 1,768 $620 391 312 402 659 657 599 677 718 672 697 493 55,162 5,829 743 5,086 49,333 42,308 14,046 15,369 12,893 7,025 5,988 1,037 $695 396 321 409 741 734 641 766 822 791 822 592 43,826 4,266 494 3,773 39,560 33,580 10,466 11,803 11,312 5,980 5,249 731 $551 384 298 393 581 583 549 590 606 567 586 424 80,878 8,343 72,535 61,514 11,021 636 393 679 676 696 46,184 4,936 41,248 35,227 6,021 713 398 761 752 831 34,694 3,407 31,287 26,287 5,000 563 385 590 592 579 11,706 1,122 10,584 9,261 1,323 516 372 543 540 565 5,443 550 4,892 4,254 638 552 364 582 575 609 6,263 571 5,692 5,007 685 493 379 512 510 523 4,230 359 3,871 3,376 495 718 413 739 755 670 2,365 200 2,165 1,875 291 793 428 828 859 728 1,865 159 1,705 1,501 204 620 396 652 665 558 13,653 2,205 11,448 10,501 947 447 339 481 482 473 8,611 1,489 7,122 6,539 583 471 337 501 500 516 5,042 716 4,326 3,962 364 416 344 430 436 401 White1 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Black or African American1 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Asian1 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Hispanic or Latino 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. 1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the main race. 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. All data have been revised back to January 2000 to reflect the introduction of Census 2000-based population controls into the household survey. Beginning in January 2003, data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the 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 (in thousands) Median weekly earnings Occupation and sex I 2002 I 2003 I 2002 I 2003 35,193 14,497 20,696 12,749 24,872 9,483 15,389 10,440 700 5,650 4,090 15,555 9,079 6,476 35,451 14,374 21,077 13,327 24,625 9,853 14,772 10,581 678 5,561 4,342 15,005 8,493 6,511 $856 919 820 389 527 596 510 608 344 592 670 513 514 512 $893 954 854 407 541 594 522 610 365 601 668 519 524 513 17,559 8,085 9,474 6,533 9,118 5,279 3,839 9,972 512 5,548 3,912 12,035 6,452 5,582 17,569 7,936 9,633 6,620 9,192 5,416 3,776 10,116 541 5,408 4,167 11,665 6,014 5,651 1,017 1,090 981 442 642 716 573 613 355 590 670 560 574 540 1,058 1,140 1,018 477 645 703 583 615 376 605 669 563 581 534 Managerial, professional, and related occupations ................................. Management, business, and financial operations occupations ............. Professional and related occupations .................................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Sales and office occupations ................................................................... Sales and related occupations .............................................................. Office and administrative support occupations ...................................... Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations ............. Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................ Construction and extraction occupations ............................................... Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................ Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ................. Production occupations ......................................................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. 17,634 6,411 11,222 6,216 15,754 4,204 11,550 468 188 102 178 3,520 2,627 894 17,882 6,437 11,444 6,707 15,432 4,437 10,996 466 137 153 175 3,339 2,479 860 736 760 721 344 486 441 496 488 315 620 639 403 409 383 756 793 740 366 503 461 512 483 323 480 631 407 411 397 NOTE: Occupations reflect the introduction of the 2002 Census occupational classification system derived from the 2000 Standard Occupational Classification system into the Current Population Survey. Data are based on Census 2000 based-population controls. Beginning in January 2003, data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the survey. TOTAL Managerial, professional, and related occupations ................................. Management, business, and financial operations occupations ............. Professional and related occupations .................................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Sales and office occupations ................................................................... Sales and related occupations .............................................................. Office and administrative support occupations ...................................... Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations ............. Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................ Construction and extraction occupations ............................................... Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................ Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ................. Production occupations ......................................................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. Men Managerial, professional, and related occupations ................................. Management, business, and financial operations occupations ............. Professional and related occupations .................................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Sales and office occupations ................................................................... Sales and related occupations .............................................................. Office and administrative support occupations ...................................... Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations ............. Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................ Construction and extraction occupations ............................................... Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................ Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ................. Production occupations ......................................................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. Women Table 4. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, first quarter 2003 averages, not seasonally adjusted Characteristic Number of workers (in thousands) Upper limit of: First decile First quartile Second quartile (median) Third quartile Ninth decile SEX, RACE, AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... Men ......................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................... 98,988 55,162 43,826 $300 320 283 $414 460 381 $620 695 551 $945 1,062 803 $1,413 1,586 1,139 White1 ..................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 80,878 46,184 34,694 305 324 286 423 475 386 636 713 563 967 1,089 814 1,447 1,637 1,150 Black or African American1 .................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 11,706 5,443 6,263 281 296 268 373 393 353 516 552 493 762 809 726 1,076 1,156 1,000 Asian1 ..................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 4,230 2,365 1,865 299 319 285 423 475 396 718 793 620 1,121 1,263 918 1,694 1,894 1,344 Hispanic or Latino ................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 13,653 8,611 5,042 258 270 245 318 325 307 447 471 416 675 701 615 991 1,057 902 Total, 25 years and over ......................................................................... Less than a high school diploma .......................................................... High school graduates, no college ....................................................... Some college or associate degree ....................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher ............................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ....................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................... 88,893 8,483 26,930 24,859 28,621 18,732 9,889 316 238 297 339 477 438 580 445 300 394 462 672 623 774 659 397 549 635 961 903 1,104 988 539 766 909 1,426 1,324 1,614 1,464 766 1,047 1,210 1,961 1,885 2,226 Men, 25 years and over ........................................................................ Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college ..................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher ............................................................. Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 49,333 5,617 15,040 12,982 15,694 10,315 5,380 350 263 337 384 522 494 618 497 320 461 514 767 718 896 741 431 627 731 1,129 1,047 1,283 1,123 597 870 1,019 1,654 1,544 1,875 1,665 815 1,158 1,380 2,301 2,113 2,498 Women, 25 years and over .................................................................. Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college ..................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher ............................................................. Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 39,560 2,866 11,890 11,877 12,927 8,417 4,510 293 208 270 312 427 400 545 396 270 345 410 607 569 709 581 338 464 561 819 758 927 840 444 628 761 1,134 1,044 1,278 1,168 593 856 1,022 1,562 1,430 1,856 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT 1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the main race. 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. All data have been revised back to January 2000 to reflect the introduction of Census 2000-based population controls into the household survey. Beginning in January 2003, data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the 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 (in thousands) Median weekly earnings Characteristic I 2002 I 2003 I 2002 I 2003 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 21,817 22,154 $179 $184 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 6,971 3,681 3,289 6,988 3,557 3,431 171 143 219 172 137 225 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 14,847 4,628 10,218 15,165 4,696 10,469 184 133 214 191 129 224 White1 .................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 18,607 5,771 12,837 18,761 5,754 13,007 181 170 186 185 167 193 Black or African American1 ................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,032 735 1,296 2,050 762 1,287 168 168 168 178 192 169 Asian1 .................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 960 372 588 804 298 506 186 170 192 202 206 198 Hispanic or Latino .................................................................................. Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,359 812 1,547 2,183 775 1,408 184 191 180 181 200 171 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX 1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group are not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the main race. 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. All data have been revised back to January 2000 to reflect the introduction of Census 2000-based population controls into the household survey. Beginning in January 2003, data also reflect an additional upward adjustment to population controls and other changes to the survey.