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1 Technical information: Media contact: (202) 691-6378 http://www.bls.gov/cps/ 691-5902 USDL 06-1236 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT Thursday, July 20, 2006 USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: SECOND QUARTER 2006 Median weekly earnings of the nation’s 105.9 million full-time wage and salary workers were $659 in the second quarter of 2006, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 2.5 percent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 4.0 percent in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) over the same period. Data on usual earnings are collected as part of the Current Population Survey, a nationwide sample survey of households in which respondents are asked, among other things, how much each wage and salary worker usually earns. (See the Explanatory Note.) Highlights from the second-quarter data are: —Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $593 per week, or 81.1 percent of the $731 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (89.2 percent) and Hispanics or Latinos (86.1 percent) than among Asians (81.6 percent) or whites (79.9 percent). (See table 1.) —Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $573 per week, 76.1 percent of the median for white men ($753). The difference was less among women, as black women’s median earnings ($511) were 84.9 percent of those for their white counterparts ($602). Overall, median earnings of Hispanics or Latinos who worked full time ($485) were lower than those of blacks ($534), whites ($678), and Asians ($765). (See table 1.) —Among men, those age 55 to 64 and age 45 to 54 had the highest median weekly earnings, $900 and $897, respectively. Among women, earnings were highest for those age 45 to 54 ($646). (See table 2.) —Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,159 for men and $829 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 $420, compared with $591 for high school graduates (no college) and $1,047 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 $2,888 or more per week, compared with $1,994 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 II 2005 II 2006 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 103,332 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ In constant (1982) dollars II 2005 II 2006 II 2005 II 2006 105,881 $643 $659 $319 $315 58,242 6,511 51,730 59,983 6,684 53,299 713 407 762 731 421 783 354 202 378 349 201 374 45,090 4,708 40,382 45,897 4,710 41,188 580 374 608 593 395 619 288 186 301 283 188 295 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 83,903 48,487 35,416 85,831 49,804 36,026 663 732 590 678 753 602 329 363 293 323 359 287 Black or African American ..................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 12,293 5,882 6,411 12,748 6,084 6,664 518 565 487 534 573 511 257 280 241 255 274 244 Asian ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 4,697 2,580 2,118 4,858 2,780 2,078 743 810 664 765 843 688 369 402 329 365 402 328 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity .................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 14,817 9,575 5,242 15,715 10,044 5,671 473 487 437 485 504 434 235 242 217 231 241 207 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 2006, 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 2006 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 ............................................................................... 105,881 11,394 1,804 9,590 94,487 78,777 25,350 27,273 26,153 15,710 13,617 2,093 $659 410 330 427 705 700 617 735 766 728 749 559 59,983 6,684 1,055 5,629 53,299 44,689 14,703 15,639 14,347 8,611 7,341 1,270 $731 421 355 438 783 772 647 815 897 858 900 614 45,897 4,710 749 3,961 41,188 34,088 10,647 11,634 11,807 7,100 6,276 823 $593 395 307 416 619 619 583 638 646 619 633 510 85,831 9,273 76,558 63,423 13,134 678 414 727 723 746 49,804 5,591 44,213 36,883 7,330 753 427 814 800 889 36,026 3,682 32,345 26,540 5,804 602 396 630 630 628 12,748 1,388 11,360 9,768 1,592 534 386 570 575 546 6,084 679 5,405 4,640 765 573 394 595 596 592 6,664 709 5,955 5,128 826 511 375 530 535 517 4,858 304 4,553 3,840 713 765 487 803 810 761 2,780 174 2,605 2,246 359 843 483 897 893 912 2,078 130 1,948 1,594 354 688 496 714 724 664 15,715 2,266 13,449 12,065 1,383 485 378 507 507 506 10,044 1,517 8,526 7,671 855 504 384 533 535 522 5,671 749 4,922 4,394 528 434 362 454 450 485 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 ethnicity 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 2006, 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 2005 II 2006 II 2005 II 2006 36,148 14,664 21,484 14,217 25,379 10,460 14,918 12,337 735 7,061 4,542 15,250 8,373 6,878 37,095 15,267 21,827 14,933 25,860 10,682 15,177 12,430 739 7,204 4,487 15,564 8,576 6,988 $926 979 894 406 577 624 550 616 374 595 692 546 552 536 $967 1,091 911 421 581 615 561 643 388 610 736 554 549 565 17,936 8,131 9,805 6,937 9,623 5,806 3,817 11,793 575 6,873 4,344 11,952 6,026 5,926 18,713 8,669 10,044 7,237 9,827 5,952 3,875 11,947 542 7,071 4,334 12,259 6,153 6,105 1,089 1,144 1,054 473 684 744 608 621 402 599 693 593 607 580 1,159 1,254 1,090 492 669 735 600 648 411 611 734 598 615 587 18,211 6,533 11,679 7,281 15,755 4,655 11,101 545 160 188 197 3,298 2,347 951 18,381 6,598 11,783 7,696 16,032 4,730 11,302 483 197 133 153 3,305 2,423 883 805 838 785 371 523 495 531 438 333 406 659 409 417 391 829 899 781 389 534 491 551 504 305 542 837 424 427 415 TOTAL Management, 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 Management, 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 Management, 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 2006, 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 2006 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 ................................................................................................... 105,881 59,983 45,897 $316 339 296 $441 486 403 $659 731 593 $1,017 1,148 874 $1,542 1,750 1,266 White ...................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 85,831 49,804 36,026 323 349 300 456 497 409 678 753 602 1,042 1,165 887 1,573 1,772 1,277 Black or African American ...................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 12,748 6,084 6,664 287 296 280 384 396 372 534 573 511 783 852 755 1,171 1,259 1,093 Asian ....................................................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 4,858 2,780 2,078 341 375 316 502 533 475 765 843 688 1,273 1,400 1,112 1,900 2,008 1,555 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ..................................................................... Men ....................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................. 15,715 10,044 5,671 277 293 244 349 372 315 485 504 434 696 732 639 1,032 1,119 920 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 higher 2 ............................................................ Bachelor’s degree only ....................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................... 94,487 9,339 28,256 25,905 30,987 20,163 10,824 338 258 314 359 506 480 613 480 319 416 488 721 660 841 705 420 591 676 1,047 968 1,217 1,078 592 836 957 1,563 1,441 1,835 1,604 791 1,160 1,312 2,205 1,925 2,513 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 higher 2 .......................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 53,299 6,328 16,372 13,463 17,136 11,048 6,088 376 287 354 403 545 501 663 520 360 488 554 792 736 954 783 475 669 779 1,200 1,112 1,440 1,206 637 952 1,108 1,839 1,641 2,005 1,842 853 1,283 1,467 2,482 2,253 2,888 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 higher 2 .......................................................... Bachelor’s degree only ..................................................................... Advanced degree ............................................................................. 41,188 3,011 11,883 12,442 13,851 9,115 4,736 311 224 289 329 484 451 582 423 278 373 433 648 612 749 619 356 496 597 923 856 1,026 914 466 675 808 1,287 1,198 1,465 1,338 642 895 1,084 1,770 1,658 1,994 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 2006, 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 2005 II 2006 II 2005 II 2006 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 21,891 21,862 $204 $204 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 6,962 3,339 3,623 6,660 3,433 3,227 194 152 245 190 152 248 Women, 16 years and over ................................................................... 16 to 24 years ...................................................................................... 25 years and over ................................................................................ 14,929 4,633 10,296 15,202 4,746 10,456 209 151 245 210 148 249 White ..................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 18,479 5,839 12,640 18,382 5,508 12,874 205 192 211 206 190 212 Black or African American ..................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,120 697 1,423 2,125 710 1,415 201 206 197 193 187 195 Asian ...................................................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 792 256 536 876 267 609 197 189 201 213 193 228 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity .................................................................... Men ...................................................................................................... Women ................................................................................................ 2,506 868 1,637 2,384 755 1,629 201 209 196 203 219 198 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 2006, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.