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1 Technical information: Media contact: (202) 691-6378 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ 691-5902 USDL 04-1328 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Tuesday, July 20, 2004 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: SECOND QUARTER 2004 Median weekly earnings of the nation’s 101.3 million full-time wage and salary workers were $639 in the second quarter of 2004, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 3.7 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 second-quarter data are: —Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $572 per week, or 80.1 percent of the $714 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among Hispanics or Latinos (86.8 percent) and blacks (84.3 percent) than among Asians (80.9 percent) or whites (80.0 percent). (See table 1.) —Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $598 per week, 82.0 percent of the median for white men ($729). The difference was less among women, as black women’s median earnings ($504) were 86.4 percent of those for their white counterparts ($583). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics or Latinos who worked full time ($451) were lower than those of blacks ($536), whites ($655), and Asians ($720). (See table 1.) —Among men, those age 55 to 64 and age 45 to 54 had the highest median weekly earnings, $854 and $849, respectively. Among women, earnings also were highest for these two age groups—$628 for both groups. (See table 2.) —Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,073 for men and $782 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 $576 for high school graduates (no college) and $973 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 $2,891 or more per week, compared with $1,845 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 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. 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. 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 II 2003 II 2004 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 100,442 101,300 $616 $639 $323 $326 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 56,111 6,206 49,905 57,034 6,272 50,763 692 391 743 714 397 763 363 205 390 364 203 389 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 44,332 4,835 39,497 44,266 4,691 39,575 547 366 582 572 370 601 287 192 306 292 189 307 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 82,145 47,028 35,117 82,756 47,688 35,067 631 712 561 655 729 583 331 374 295 334 372 298 Black or African American ..................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 11,879 5,471 6,408 12,014 5,669 6,344 509 540 489 536 598 504 267 284 257 274 305 257 Asian ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 4,242 2,414 1,828 4,328 2,404 1,924 678 759 606 720 807 653 356 399 318 368 412 333 Hispanic or Latino .................................................................................. Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 13,624 8,597 5,027 14,324 9,163 5,160 430 456 399 451 477 414 226 239 210 230 244 211 II 2003 II 2004 II 2003 II 2004 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX 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 2004, 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, second quarter 2004 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 ............................................................................... 101,300 10,963 1,637 9,325 90,337 76,648 24,863 26,826 24,959 13,690 11,844 1,846 $639 387 313 401 684 679 595 722 741 714 733 592 57,034 6,272 991 5,281 50,763 43,303 14,459 15,395 13,449 7,460 6,443 1,017 $714 397 324 409 763 754 627 814 849 832 854 664 44,266 4,691 646 4,045 39,575 33,345 10,404 11,431 11,510 6,230 5,401 828 $572 370 296 386 601 599 553 613 628 611 628 473 82,756 9,177 73,579 61,980 11,599 655 391 703 698 729 47,688 5,344 42,344 35,917 6,427 729 398 781 769 862 35,067 3,833 31,234 26,063 5,171 583 379 612 611 618 12,014 1,202 10,812 9,494 1,318 536 346 577 576 585 5,669 606 5,063 4,468 596 598 381 626 627 618 6,344 596 5,748 5,026 722 504 328 520 521 514 4,328 264 4,064 3,524 540 720 404 755 749 794 2,404 127 2,276 1,971 305 807 405 840 840 838 1,924 137 1,788 1,552 235 653 402 667 664 739 14,324 2,233 12,091 10,951 1,139 451 346 484 481 508 9,163 1,439 7,724 7,063 661 477 353 502 499 558 5,160 794 4,367 3,888 478 414 330 439 436 472 White 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Black or African American 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 16 to 24 years ......................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................... 25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 55 years and over ................................................................................. Asian 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 ................................................................................. 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 2004, 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 (in thousands) Median weekly earnings Occupation and sex II 2003 II 2004 II 2003 II 2004 35,730 14,798 20,932 13,184 25,396 9,986 15,410 10,891 736 5,889 4,265 15,241 8,600 6,641 36,217 14,828 21,389 13,847 24,846 9,899 14,947 11,157 768 6,090 4,299 15,233 8,496 6,737 $877 956 837 398 545 598 522 611 357 598 668 510 504 517 $912 952 882 409 557 616 525 618 367 595 707 523 520 528 17,666 8,124 9,542 6,568 9,619 5,676 3,943 10,433 552 5,770 4,111 11,825 6,041 5,784 17,976 8,183 9,793 7,012 9,435 5,601 3,835 10,669 632 5,963 4,073 11,942 6,072 5,871 1,048 1,140 988 451 662 733 583 616 379 600 669 562 573 547 1,073 1,134 1,046 474 664 753 585 623 382 596 711 577 590 561 18,065 6,674 11,391 6,616 15,777 4,310 11,468 458 185 119 154 3,416 2,560 857 18,241 6,645 11,596 6,835 15,411 4,298 11,112 488 136 127 225 3,291 2,424 867 753 786 734 365 502 455 512 454 327 535 656 399 399 396 782 810 768 369 509 465 516 476 330 509 588 405 407 402 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 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 .................................. NOTE: Beginning in January 2004, 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, second quarter 2004 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 ................................................................................................... 101,300 57,034 44,266 $304 323 287 $419 467 386 $639 714 572 $969 1,087 834 $1,445 1,631 1,174 White ...................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 82,756 47,688 35,067 310 328 291 429 478 395 655 729 583 991 1,121 847 1,474 1,660 1,199 Black or African American ...................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 12,014 5,669 6,344 282 294 272 366 400 343 536 598 504 788 852 732 1,101 1,158 1,026 Asian ....................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 4,328 2,404 1,924 321 354 297 465 504 422 720 807 653 1,157 1,288 1,044 1,730 1,861 1,439 Hispanic or Latino ................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 14,324 9,163 5,160 266 281 240 320 336 302 451 477 414 678 700 621 992 1,024 932 Total, 25 years and over ......................................................................... Less than a high school diploma .......................................................... High school graduates, no college1 ...................................................... Some college or associate degree ....................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher2 ............................................................. Bachelor’s degree only ....................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................... 90,337 8,661 27,383 24,450 29,844 19,386 10,457 323 250 308 338 480 440 596 462 305 408 478 679 628 806 684 404 576 664 973 902 1,142 1,015 562 801 932 1,439 1,302 1,679 1,500 798 1,105 1,258 2,019 1,860 2,423 Men, 25 years and over ........................................................................ Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college1 .................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher2 ........................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 50,763 5,893 15,542 12,844 16,485 10,688 5,797 357 279 345 384 508 470 640 509 331 476 546 759 705 911 763 455 657 760 1,123 1,020 1,331 1,145 618 906 1,043 1,669 1,511 1,909 1,717 884 1,215 1,422 2,402 2,116 2,891 Women, 25 years and over .................................................................. Less than a high school diploma ........................................................ High school graduates, no college1 .................................................... Some college or associate degree ..................................................... Bachelor’s degree and higher2 ........................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 39,575 2,768 11,841 11,606 13,359 8,699 4,660 300 224 284 310 451 415 567 409 270 362 417 621 590 726 601 326 489 580 850 777 979 872 425 653 779 1,170 1,082 1,343 1,226 559 889 1,054 1,573 1,459 1,845 EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT 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 2004, 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 (in thousands) Median weekly earnings Characteristic II 2003 II 2004 II 2003 II 2004 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 21,721 21,817 $193 $195 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 6,975 3,490 3,484 6,860 3,558 3,302 188 148 241 178 150 226 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 14,746 4,430 10,316 14,957 4,573 10,384 196 143 228 203 145 237 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 18,388 5,729 12,659 18,489 5,702 12,787 195 186 199 197 178 205 Black or African American ..................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,068 768 1,300 1,953 663 1,290 185 194 180 192 183 197 Asian ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 724 242 482 781 291 490 206 206 205 193 183 197 Hispanic or Latino .................................................................................. Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,512 996 1,516 2,420 848 1,571 185 209 170 194 189 197 SEX AND AGE RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX 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 2004, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.