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Technical information: Media contact: (202) 691-6378 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ 691-5902 USDL 02-396 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Monday, July 22, 2002 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: SECOND QUARTER 2002 Median weekly earnings of the nation’s 98.7 million full-time wage and salary workers were $608 in the second quarter of 2002, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 2.2 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 1.3 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 second-quarter data are: —Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $521 per week, or 76.3 percent of the $683 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (88.0 percent) and Hispanics (85.7 percent) than among whites (75.5 percent). (See table 1.) —Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $535 per week, 75.4 percent of the median for white men ($710). The difference was much less among women, as black women’s median earnings ($471) were 87.9 percent of those for their white counterparts ($536). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($421) were lower than those of blacks ($502) and whites ($625). (See table 1.) —Among men, the $831 median weekly earnings of 45- to 54-year-olds was the highest of any age group. Among women, earnings also were highest for those 45 to 54 years old ($589). (See table 2.) —Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial and professional specialty occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,049 for men and $755 for women. Men and women in service and farm jobs earned the least. (See table 3.) —Full-time workers age 25 and over without a high school diploma had median weekly earnings of $392, compared with $535 for high school graduates (no college) and $943 for college graduates. —Among college graduates with advanced degrees (professional or master’s degree and above), the highest-earning 10 percent of male workers made $2,436 or more per week, compared with $1,753 or more 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 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 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 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 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 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, 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 origin. Refers to persons who are of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or 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 (in thousands) Characteristic Median weekly earnings In current dollars In constant (1982) dollars II 2001 II 2002 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 99,917 98,730 $595 $608 $323 $326 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 55,896 6,385 49,511 55,604 6,340 49,264 667 394 716 683 399 738 363 214 389 367 214 396 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 44,021 5,240 38,781 43,126 4,981 38,145 514 348 547 521 356 562 280 189 297 280 191 301 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 82,348 47,292 35,056 81,281 46,918 34,363 609 687 522 625 710 536 331 374 284 335 381 288 Black ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 12,635 5,887 6,747 12,382 5,964 6,418 495 537 460 502 535 471 269 292 250 269 287 253 Hispanic origin ....................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 12,012 7,375 4,637 11,859 7,291 4,568 417 445 383 421 456 391 227 242 208 226 245 210 II 2001 II 2002 II 2001 II 2002 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX 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. Table 2. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by age, race, Hispanic origin, and sex, second quarter 2002 averages, not seasonally adjusted Total Age, race, and Hispanic origin 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 ............................................................................... 98,730 11,321 1,973 9,348 87,409 75,434 23,751 27,899 23,784 11,975 10,317 1,658 $608 378 302 400 647 647 588 669 711 648 671 501 55,604 6,340 1,153 5,187 49,264 42,595 13,674 15,990 12,931 6,669 5,725 944 $683 399 306 422 738 732 624 761 831 773 801 585 43,126 4,981 819 4,161 38,145 32,839 10,077 11,909 10,853 5,306 4,592 714 $521 356 295 370 562 565 522 580 589 542 561 447 81,281 9,436 71,846 61,518 10,328 625 384 673 673 673 46,918 5,390 41,529 35,710 5,819 710 404 761 756 806 34,363 4,046 30,317 25,808 4,509 536 359 579 582 559 12,382 1,424 10,958 9,783 1,175 502 350 521 521 515 5,964 707 5,257 4,661 597 535 364 575 575 567 6,418 718 5,700 5,123 578 471 343 489 491 475 11,859 2,021 9,838 8,922 916 421 334 458 459 457 7,291 1,287 6,004 5,484 520 456 359 489 490 471 4,568 734 3,834 3,438 396 391 303 413 412 432 White 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Black 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Hispanic origin 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. 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. 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 II 2001 II 2002 II 2001 II 2002 32,209 15,891 16,318 28,116 3,673 10,212 14,231 10,951 328 2,231 8,393 12,027 4,189 4,334 3,504 14,983 6,341 4,631 4,011 1,631 32,118 15,923 16,195 27,728 3,563 10,353 13,811 11,096 302 2,236 8,558 11,614 3,979 4,404 3,231 14,556 5,847 4,737 3,971 1,617 $846 846 845 523 659 576 489 379 245 618 348 620 642 606 620 476 464 583 396 346 $884 893 877 543 664 593 503 384 328 646 356 625 678 604 604 486 470 582 399 360 16,174 8,334 7,840 10,502 1,853 5,616 3,032 5,200 10 1,834 3,355 11,111 4,043 4,229 2,839 11,586 4,093 4,306 3,188 1,323 16,210 8,530 7,680 10,824 1,768 5,816 3,240 5,187 20 1,795 3,372 10,681 3,777 4,297 2,606 11,345 3,825 4,354 3,166 1,356 1,017 1,009 1,025 665 750 704 574 437 (1) $655 374 636 650 608 677 505 518 595 405 357 1,049 1,088 1,013 708 823 762 599 443 (1) $689 382 642 680 606 643 517 521 592 411 373 16,035 7,557 8,478 17,614 1,820 4,595 11,199 5,751 317 396 5,038 915 146 105 665 3,397 2,249 325 823 309 15,908 7,393 8,515 16,903 1,795 4,537 10,571 5,909 282 442 5,185 933 202 107 625 3,211 2,022 383 805 261 728 700 745 478 586 434 475 332 246 517 327 477 528 536 447 366 364 458 354 312 755 735 773 485 587 433 487 346 328 512 339 459 580 500 418 384 383 482 355 296 TOTAL Managerial and professional specialty .................................................... Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................................ Professional specialty ............................................................................ Technical, sales, and administrative support ........................................... Technicians and related support ........................................................... Sales occupations ................................................................................. Administrative support, including clerical ............................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Private household .................................................................................. Protective service .................................................................................. Service, except private household and protective ................................. Precision production, craft, and repair ..................................................... Mechanics and repairers ....................................................................... Construction trades ............................................................................... Other precision production, craft, and repair ......................................... Operators, fabricators, and laborers ........................................................ Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors ................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ........................... Farming, forestry, and fishing .................................................................. Men Managerial and professional specialty .................................................... Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................................ Professional specialty ............................................................................ Technical, sales, and administrative support ........................................... Technicians and related support ........................................................... Sales occupations ................................................................................. Administrative support, including clerical ............................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Private household .................................................................................. Protective service .................................................................................. Service, except private household and protective ................................. Precision production, craft, and repair ..................................................... Mechanics and repairers ....................................................................... Construction trades ............................................................................... Other precision production, craft, and repair ......................................... Operators, fabricators, and laborers ........................................................ Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors ................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ........................... Farming, forestry, and fishing .................................................................. Women Managerial and professional specialty .................................................... Executive, administrative, and managerial ............................................ Professional specialty ............................................................................ Technical, sales, and administrative support ........................................... Technicians and related support ........................................................... Sales occupations ................................................................................. Administrative support, including clerical ............................................... Service occupations ................................................................................ Private household .................................................................................. Protective service .................................................................................. Service, except private household and protective ................................. Precision production, craft, and repair ..................................................... Mechanics and repairers ....................................................................... Construction trades ............................................................................... Other precision production, craft, and repair ......................................... Operators, fabricators, and laborers ........................................................ Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors ................................... Transportation and material moving occupations .................................. Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers ........................... Farming, forestry, and fishing .................................................................. 1 Data not shown where base is less than 100,000. Table 4. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, second quarter 2002 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 ORIGIN Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... Men ......................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................... 98,730 55,604 43,126 $297 318 280 $405 453 367 $608 683 521 $924 1,035 772 $1,374 1,544 1,127 White ...................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 81,281 46,918 34,363 302 324 282 415 469 377 625 710 536 954 1,072 790 1,423 1,595 1,148 Black ....................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 12,382 5,964 6,418 278 290 265 352 387 328 502 535 471 724 759 664 1,001 1,080 925 Hispanic .................................................................................................. Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 11,859 7,291 4,568 250 271 232 312 327 290 421 456 391 637 667 589 941 1,001 844 Total, 25 years and over ......................................................................... Less than a high school diploma .......................................................... High school graduates, no college ....................................................... Some college or associate degree ....................................................... College graduates, total ........................................................................ Bachelor’s degree only ....................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................... 87,409 8,445 26,674 23,814 28,476 18,912 9,564 315 239 295 337 460 430 557 436 299 392 453 647 608 763 647 392 535 636 943 871 1,109 971 534 759 890 1,370 1,254 1,568 1,434 741 1,030 1,236 1,905 1,770 2,122 Men, 25 years and over ........................................................................ Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college ..................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... College graduates, total ...................................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 49,264 5,554 15,013 12,726 15,970 10,610 5,360 347 261 329 380 501 479 593 495 326 447 521 732 671 866 738 443 618 743 1,083 992 1,262 1,106 606 871 1,002 1,560 1,433 1,774 1,614 816 1,169 1,408 2,196 1,967 2,436 Women, 25 years and over .................................................................. Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college ..................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... College graduates, total ...................................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 38,145 2,891 11,662 11,087 12,506 8,302 4,203 291 212 272 311 424 396 525 390 269 345 399 594 548 690 562 324 460 540 803 746 935 811 411 618 748 1,135 1,042 1,301 1,161 518 816 983 1,541 1,399 1,753 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT 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. 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 II 2001 II 2002 II 2001 II 2002 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 20,956 21,260 $176 $189 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 6,953 3,805 3,147 6,808 3,567 3,241 160 135 215 181 149 228 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 14,003 4,441 9,562 14,451 4,527 9,924 186 134 220 194 138 230 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 18,167 5,855 12,312 18,368 5,707 12,661 178 161 188 190 176 196 Black ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 1,924 694 1,230 1,989 726 1,264 162 146 170 186 203 176 Hispanic origin ....................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 1,876 765 1,111 2,178 723 1,455 178 180 177 183 190 181 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX 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.