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Women in the Labor Force:
A Databook
U.S. Department of Labor
Elaine L. Chao, Secretary
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Katharine P. Utgoff, Commissioner
February 2004
Report 973

Contents

Page
Women in the Labor Force: A Databook .........................................................................................................................
Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................
Highlights ....................................................................................................................................................................
Statistical Tables
1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex, 2002 annual averages ..........
2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over by sex,
1970-2002 annual averages .............................................................................................................................
3. Employment status by race, age, sex, and Hispanic origin, 2002 annual averages ...........................................
4. Employment status by marital status and sex, 2002 annual averages ...............................................................
5. Employment status by sex, presence and age of children, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002 .............................
6. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, marital status, race, and
Hispanic origin, 2002 .......................................................................................................................................
7. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, 1975-2002 ..........................................
8. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 25 to 64 years of age by educational
attainment and sex, 2002 annual averages ......................................................................................................
9. Percent distribution of the civilian labor force 25 to 64 years of age by educational attainment and sex,
March 1970-2002 .............................................................................................................................................
10. Employed persons by major occupation and sex, 1983 and 2002 annual averages ..........................................
11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages .....................................................
12. Percent distribution of employed women by occupation, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002
annual averages ..............................................................................................................................................
13. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (2002) dollars by race,
Hispanic origin, and sex, 1979-2002 annual averages .....................................................................................
14. Median usual weekly earnings of employed full-time wage and salary workers 25 years and over by
educational attainment and sex, 2002 annual averages ..................................................................................
15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and
sex, 2002 annual averages ...............................................................................................................................
16. Employed persons by full- and part-time status and sex, 1970-2002 annual averages .....................................
17. Average weekly hours at work in all industries and in nonagricultural industries by sex,
1976-2002 annual averages .............................................................................................................................
18. Work experience of the population by full- and part-time status and sex, selected years, 1970-2001 ..............
19. Married-couple families by number and relationship of earners, 1967-2001 .....................................................
20. Contribution of wives’ earnings to family income, 1970-2001 ...........................................................................
21. Wives who earn more than their husbands, 1987-2001 .....................................................................................
22. Wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the prevailing Federal
minimum wage by selected characteristics, 2002 annual averages .................................................................
23. Working poor: Poverty status of persons in the labor force 27 weeks or more by age, sex, race, and
Hispanic origin, 2001 .......................................................................................................................................
24. Percent distribution of employed persons by age, sex, and contingent and noncontingent status,
February 2001 ..................................................................................................................................................
25. Percent distribution of employed persons by age, sex, and alternative work arrangement,
February 2001 ..................................................................................................................................................
26. Flexible schedules: Full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, May 2001 .......................

iii

1
1
1

5
8
11
13
14
16
18
21
22
25
27
35
36
38
40
48
51
52
53
55
56
57
58
59
60
61

Contents—Continued
Page
Statistical Tables—Continued
27. Job-related work at home on primary job: All workers by marital status, presence and age of
children, sex, and pay status, May 2001 .........................................................................................................
28. Displaced workers by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and employment status in January 2002 ......................
29. Labor force status of 2001 high school graduates and 2000-01 high school dropouts 16 to 24 years old
by school enrollment and sex, October 2001 ..................................................................................................
30. Labor force status of persons 16 to 24 years old by school enrollment, sex, and educational attainment,
October 2001 ...................................................................................................................................................
31. Multiple jobholders and multiple jobholding rates by sex and race, May of selected years,
1970-2002, not seasonally adjusted ................................................................................................................
32. Unincorporated self-employed persons in nonagricultural industries by sex, 1976-2002
annual averages ..............................................................................................................................................
33. Employment status of the U.S.-born and foreign-born civilian noninstitutional population by age
and sex, 2001 annual averages ........................................................................................................................
34. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by sex, annual averages, 1983-2002 ..........................
Technical Note .................................................................................................................................................................

iv

62
63
64
65
66
67
68
70
72

Women in the Labor Force:
A Databook

Introduction

•

Since 1975, the labor force participation rate of mothers
with children under age 18 has grown from 47 to 72
percent. The biggest increase in labor force participation
among mothers occurred among women with children
under age 3. Fully 61 percent of this group was in the
labor force in 2002, compared with only 34 percent about
a quarter century earlier. Additionally, these proportions
were higher for unmarried mothers than for married
mothers. (See tables 6 and 7.)

•

Both women and men have increased their educational
attainment levels during the past 30 years. About 30
percent of both women and men in the labor force held
college degrees in 2002. However, only about 8 percent
of women age 25 to 64 in the labor force were high school
dropouts in 2002, compared with 34 percent in 1970. (See
tables 8 and 9.)

•

Thirty-four percent of women worked in a managerial or
professional specialty occupation in 2002, compared
with 22 percent in 1983. Nonetheless, women still
accounted for the lion’s share of employment in some of
the relatively lower-paying occupations within this broad
category. For example, although 55 percent of persons
employed in professional specialty occupations were
women, only 11 percent of engineers were women; but
98 percent of preschool and kindergarten teachers were
women. Only 19 percent of dentists were women, whereas
93 percent of registered nurses were women. (See tables
10 and 11.)

•

White women were more likely than black women to work
in managerial or professional specialty occupations
(about 35 percent compared with 26 percent,
respectively) and almost twice as likely as Hispanic
women (about 19 percent) to work in these higher-paying
occupations in 2002. Nearly 4 in 10 employed white,
black, and Hispanic women worked in technical, sales,
and administrative support occupations; but Hispanic
and black women were much more likely than white
women to work in service occupations. Twenty-eight
percent of black and 27 percent of Hispanic women
worked in these occupations, compared with 17 percent
of white women. (See table 12.)

•

In 2002, women’s earnings were 78 percent of men’s, on
average. Overall, women’s real earnings (earnings

O

ver the past three decades, a significantly greater
proportion of women have participated in the
American workforce. In addition, women have made
substantial inroads into higher-paying occupations, during
this time. In 1970, only about 43 percent of women age 16
and older participated in the labor force, but by 2002 this
labor force participation rate had risen to 60 percent.
Moreover, from 1983 to 2002, the proportion of women
employed as managers, administrators, or executives nearly
doubled. As increasing proportions of women moved into
higher-paying job categories, their earnings also advanced.
From 1979 to 2002, women’s real earnings (adjusted for
inflation) increased by 27 percent, while men’s real earnings
increased by only 1 percent. The movement of women into
the labor force and into higher-paying occupations has gone
hand-in-hand with their pursuit of higher education. For
example, in 1970, only 11 percent of women age 25 to 64
years had completed 4 or more years of college; 32 percent
held college degrees, by 2001. (The percentage of men with
a college degree doubled over the same period from 16
percent to 32 percent.)
This report presents historical and current labor force and
earnings data for women and men from the Current Population
Survey (CPS). The CPS is a national monthly survey of
approximately 60,000 households, conducted by the U.S.
Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Unless otherwise noted, data are annual averages from the
CPS. For a detailed description of the source of the data and
an explanation of concepts and definitions used, see the
Technical Note at the end of this report.
Highlights
•

In 2002, about three-fifths of women were in the labor
force. Although the unemployment rate for women rose
from 4.7 percent in 2001 to 5.6 percent in 2002, it remained
low by historical standards. White women’s
unemployment rates continued to be lower than those
of their black, Asian, or Hispanic counterparts. (See
tables 1, 2, and 3.)

•

Since the early 1980s, women and men’s unemployment
rates have been roughly similar. In 2000, the
unemployment rates for both sexes hit 30-year lows at
4.1 and 3.9 percent, respectively. (See table 2.)
1

adjusted for inflation) have increased by 27 percent from
1979 to 2002; increases varied among the race and ethnic
groups. Real earnings of white women increased by 30
percent, while black women’s earnings increased by 22
percent; and Hispanic women’s earnings increased by
10 percent. (See table 13.)
•

•

Black and Hispanic women have more earnings parity
with black and Hispanic men, respectively, than do white
women with white men. While black and Hispanic women
earned 91 percent and 88 percent, respectively, of black
and Hispanic men’s earnings, white women earned 78
percent of white men’s earnings. (See table 13.)
Women and men with college degrees earned about 76
percent more than those with only a high school diploma,
in 2002. Nonetheless, female college graduates who were
full-time wage and salary workers had median earnings
of $809 a week, compared with $1,089 for men. (See
table 14.)

•

Differences between women and men’s earnings reflect,
in part, differences by occupation. For example, women
in professional specialty occupations (which typically
require at least a bachelor’s degree) have earnings that
are about 75 percent those of men’s—a difference due
partly to women’s concentration in lower-paying
professional occupations, such as nursing and
teaching. (See table 15.)

•

In 2002, approximately 25 percent of employed women
usually worked part time, that is, less than 35 hours a
week. This compares to about 11 percent of employed
men. Over the past three decades, the proportion of
women who worked part time has changed little, and the
proportion for men has edged up slightly. (See table 16.)

•

•

In 1970, wives’ earnings accounted for almost 27 percent
(median) of their families’ incomes. By 2001, the
proportion had grown to 34 percent. A growing
proportion of wives also earn more than their husbands.
Eighteen percent of working wives whose husbands also
worked earned more than their spouses, in 1987. In
2001, this proportion was 24 percent. (See tables 20
and 21.)

Although women still worked shorter weeks, women
increased their workweek by 2 hours over the
prior 26 years, while men increased their workweek by
less than half an hour. For example, in 2002, women
employed in nonagricultural industries worked an
average of 36.1 hours per week, although men worked
an average of 41.8 hours. (See table 17.)
Nearly 60 percent of women who worked at some time in
calendar year 2001 worked full time and year round,
compared with 41 percent in 1970. During the same
period, the proportion for men grew from 66 to 73 percent.
(See table 18.) Data were collected in the Annual Social
and Economic Supplement of the CPS and refer to work
experience during the entire prior calendar year.

•

Both wife and husband had earnings from work in 59
percent of married-couple families in 2001, compared with
44 percent in 1967. (See table 19.)

•

Working wives’ contributions to family income grew
about 7 percentage points over the last three decades.
2

•

Overall, around 4 percent of female workers paid hourly
had earnings at or below the Federal minimum wage of
$5.15 an hour. Among those 25 years and over, women
were almost twice as likely as men to have earnings at or
below the minimum wage. (See table 22.) Data are 2002
CPS annual averages.

•

Women who worked 27 weeks or more in 2001 were
slightly more likely than men to live in poverty; 5.5
percent of women were in poverty versus 4.4 percent of
men. Moreover, among those who worked 27 weeks or
more, black and Hispanic women were more than
twice as likely as white women to live below the
poverty level. Poverty rates generally decline with age
among those who worked 27 weeks or more; nearly
1 in 4 women between the ages of 16 and 24 lived
below the poverty level in 2001, compared with 1 in 5
women age 25 and older. (See table 23.) Data are from
the Annual Social and Economic Supplement of
the CPS and reflect earnings and work experience of
the prior calendar year.

•

In February 2001, the proportions of women and men
employed on a contingent basis were about the same,
4.2 percent and 3.8 percent, respectively. Contingent
workers are those who do not expect their jobs to last.
(See table 24.) Data are from the February 2001 Contingent
and Alternative Work Arrangements supplement to the
CPS.

•

Men were slightly more likely than women to have
flexible schedules on their jobs in May 2001, and white
women were more likely to have flexible schedules than
either black or Hispanic women. Unmarried women were
more likely to have flexible schedules on their jobs than
married women, although the reverse was true for men.
(See table 26.) Data are from the May 2001 Work
Schedules supplement to the CPS.

•

About 15 percent of both women and men reported
working at home at least once per week, as part of their
main job in May 2001. Work at home was more common
for parents than for non-parents. Women were slightly
more likely than men to be paid for work they did at
home. Work at home was common among the selfemployed in May 2001; about 27 percent of selfemployed women and 33 percent of self-employed men
worked at home. (See table 27.) Data are from the May
2001 Work Schedules supplement to the CPS.

•

Among those who experienced job displacement between
January 1999 and December 2001, women were about
half again as likely as men to have left the labor force
by January 2002. Moreover, white women were nearly
twice as likely as white men to be out of the labor
force in that month. (See table 28.) Data are from the
January 2002 Displaced Worker supplement to the
CPS.

•

Since 1970, the multiple jobholding rate for women–the
percent of employed women with more than one job–
has grown from approximately 2.2 percent to 5.5 percent
in 2002. (The multiple jobholding rate had reached a
peak of 6.5 percent in 1995.) In contrast, this rate for
men has fallen, from 7 percent in 1970 to 5.1 percent in
2002. (See table 31.) Data were collected in the May
CPS.

•

Among young women who had graduated from high
school in 2001, nearly 79 percent of those not enrolled in
college were in the labor force in October 2001. In
contrast, only about 61 percent of young women who
had dropped out of school during the 2000-01 school
year were working or looking for work. Among young
women overall who were not in school, labor force
participation rates were dramatically lower and
unemployment rates seven times higher for those who
had not completed high school than for those who had
graduated from college. (See tables 29 and 30.) Data are
from the October 2001 School Enrollment supplement to
the CPS.

•

About 5.4 percent of employed women were selfemployed in 2002. This compares with 7.3 percent
of men. During the 1976-2002 period, the percentage
of women who were self-employed increased by 1
percentage point, while the percentage of men who
were self-employed declined by about the same amount.
In 2002, women made up about 40 percent of selfemployed persons, compared with 27 percent in 1976.
(See table 32.) Data are annual averages from the CPS.

•

Foreign-born women were less likely to be in the labor
force than U.S.-born women, in 2001. The reverse was
true for men. (See table 33.)

Women age 16 to 24 who were enrolled in either high
school or college in October 2001 were more likely than
men who were in high school or college to be in the
labor force. Women not in school were less likely than
their male counterparts to be in the labor force. (See
table 30.)

•

Thirteen percent of female wage and salary workers were
represented by unions in 2002, compared with 16 percent
of men. Union attachment for both groups has fallen
since 1983, when unions represented 18 percent of
female wage and salary workers and nearly 28 percent of
men. (See table 34.)

•

3

Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Age

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed

Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Number

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Total, both sexes

217,570

144,863

66.6

136,485

62.7

8,378

16 to 19 years …….……

15,994

7,585

47.4

6,332

39.6

1,253

16.5

8,409

16 to 17 years………..

8,099

2,870

35.4

2,330

28.8

540

18.8

5,229

16 years and over ……...

18 to 19 years…………

5.8

72,707

7,895

4,715

59.7

4,002

50.7

714

15.1

3,180

20 to 24 years………....

19,348

14,781

76.4

13,351

69.0

1,430

9.7

4,567

25 to 54 years……….….

122,077

101,719

83.3

96,823

79.3

4,896

4.8

20,358

25 to 34 years…………

38,472

32,196

83.7

30,306

78.8

1,890

5.9

6,276

25 to 29 years……….

18,188

15,182

83.5

14,204

78.1

978

6.4

3,006

30 to 34 years……….

20,284

17,014

83.9

16,103

79.4

911

5.4

3,270

35 to 44 years………...…

43,894

36,926

84.1

35,235

80.3

1,691

4.6

6,968

35 to 39 years……….…

21,338

17,887

83.8

17,022

79.8

864

4.8

3,451

40 to 44 years……….…

22,556

19,040

84.4

18,213

80.7

827

4.3

3,516

45 to 54 years………..…

39,711

32,597

82.1

31,281

78.8

1,315

4.0

7,114

45 to 49 years…….....…

21,073

17,666

83.8

16,944

80.4

722

4.1

3,407

50 to 54 years……….…

18,638

14,931

80.1

14,337

76.9

594

4.0

3,707

55 to 64 years…………..

26,343

16,309

61.9

15,674

59.5

635

3.9

10,034

55 to 59 years…………

14,901

10,531

70.7

10,125

68.0

405

3.8

4,370

60 to 64 years……….…

11,442

5,779

50.5

5,549

48.5

230

4.0

5,664

65 years and over……....

33,808

4,469

13.2

4,306

12.7

163

3.6

29,339

65 to 69 years……….…

9,492

2,474

26.1

2,379

25.1

95

3.8

7,019

8,507

1,191

14.0

1,144

13.4

47

4.0

7,316

15,809

804

5.1

783

5.0

21

2.6

15,005

70 to 74 years……….…
75 years and over……..

5

Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex, 2002 annual averages
—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Age

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed

Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Number

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Women

16 years and over…….…
16 to 19 years…………

112,985

67,363

59.6

63,582

56.3

3,781

5.6

45,621

7,848

3,715

47.3

3,162

40.3

553

14.9

4,133

16 to 17 years…………

3,959

1,439

36.3

1,200

30.3

238

16.6

2,520

18 to 19 years……...…

3,889

2,277

58.5

1,962

50.4

315

13.8

1,613

20 to 24 years……...….

9,721

7,012

72.1

6,374

65.6

638

9.1

2,710

25 to 54 years…………..

62,137

47,151

75.9

44,900

72.3

2,252

4.8

14,986

25 to 34 years…………

19,435

14,600

75.1

13,733

70.7

866

5.9

4,835

25 to 29 years………..

9,156

6,929

75.7

6,482

70.8

447

6.5

2,228

30 to 34 years………..

10,279

7,671

74.6

7,252

70.6

419

5.5

2,608

35 to 44 years…………..

22,371

17,098

76.4

16,303

72.9

795

4.6

5,273

35 to 39 years………..…

10,867

8,182

75.3

7,763

71.4

419

5.1

2,686

40 to 44 years………..…

11,503

8,916

77.5

8,540

74.2

376

4.2

2,587

45 to 54 years………..…

20,332

15,454

76.0

14,863

73.1

591

3.8

4,878

45 to 49 years………..…

10,784

8,389

77.8

8,064

74.8

325

3.9

2,395

50 to 54 years………..…

9,548

7,065

74.0

6,799

71.2

266

3.8

2,483

55 to 64 years…………..

13,703

7,559

55.2

7,296

53.2

263

3.5

6,144

55 to 59 years……...….

7,700

4,913

63.8

4,743

61.6

170

3.5

2,787

60 to 64 years……...….

6,003

2,645

44.1

2,553

42.5

93

3.5

3,357

65 years and over……....

19,575

1,926

9.8

1,851

9.5

76

3.9

17,649

65 to 69 years……….…

5,104

1,059

20.7

1,013

19.9

46

4.3

4,045

70 to 74 years………....

4,735

527

11.1

507

10.7

20

3.9

4,208

9,736

340

3.5

331

3.4

10

2.8

9,396

75 years and over……..

6

Table 1. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex, 2002 annual averages
—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Age

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed

Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Number

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Men

16 years and over…….…

104,585

77,500

74.1

72,903

69.7

4,597

5.9

27,085

16 to 19 years……...….

8,146

3,870

47.5

3,169

38.9

700

18.1

4,276

16 to 17 years……….…

4,140

1,431

34.6

1,130

27.3

301

21.1

2,709

18 to 19 years…………

4,006

2,439

60.9

2,040

50.9

399

16.4

1,567

20 to 24 years………....

9,627

7,769

80.7

6,978

72.5

792

10.2

1,857

25 to 54 years…………..

59,939

54,568

91.0

51,923

86.6

2,645

4.8

5,372

25 to 34 years……….…

19,037

17,596

92.4

16,573

87.1

1,023

5.8

1,441

25 to 29 years………..

9,031

8,253

91.4

7,722

85.5

531

6.4

778

30 to 34 years………..

10,005

9,343

93.4

8,851

88.5

492

5.3

662

35 to 44 years………..…

21,523

19,828

92.1

18,932

88.0

897

4.5

1,695

35 to 39 years………..…

10,471

9,705

92.7

9,259

88.4

445

4.6

766

40 to 44 years………..…

11,053

10,124

91.6

9,672

87.5

451

4.5

929

45 to 54 years…………..

19,379

17,143

88.5

16,419

84.7

725

4.2

2,236

45 to 49 years………..…

10,289

9,277

90.2

8,881

86.3

397

4.3

1,012

50 to 54 years…………

9,090

7,866

86.5

7,538

82.9

328

4.2

1,224

55 to 64 years…………..

12,641

8,751

69.2

8,378

66.3

373

4.3

3,890

55 to 59 years……….…

7,201

5,617

78.0

5,382

74.7

235

4.2

1,583

60 to 64 years……….…

5,440

3,133

57.6

2,996

55.1

137

4.4

2,307

65 years and over……....

14,233

2,542

17.9

2,455

17.2

87

3.4

11,690

65 to 69 years……….…

4,388

1,415

32.2

1,365

31.1

49

3.5

2,974

70 to 74 years……….…

3,772

664

17.6

637

16.9

27

4.0

3,108

6,073

464

7.6

452

7.4

12

2.5

5,609

75 years and over……...

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

7

Table 2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over by sex, 1970-2002
annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Year

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Total, both sexes
1970…….…

137,085

82,771

60.4

78,678

57.5

4,093

4.9

54,315

1971…….…
1972 1…….

140,216

84,382

60.2

79,367

56.6

5,016

5.9

55,834

144,126

87,034

60.4

82,153

57.0

4,882

5.6

57,091

1973 1…….

147,096

89,429

60.8

85,064

57.8

4,365

4.9

57,667

1974…….…

150,120

91,949

61.3

86,794

57.8

5,156

5.6

58,171

1975…….…

153,153

93,775

61.2

85,846

56.1

7,929

8.5

59,377

1976…….…

156,150

96,158

61.6

88,752

56.8

7,406

7.7

59,991

1977…….…
1978 1…....

159,033

99,009

62.3

92,017

57.9

6,991

7.1

60,025

161,910

102,251

63.2

96,048

59.3

6,202

6.1

59,659

1979………

164,863

104,962

63.7

98,824

59.9

6,137

5.8

59,900

1980………

167,745

106,940

63.8

99,303

59.2

7,637

7.1

60,806

1981…...…

170,130

108,670

63.9

100,397

59.0

8,273

7.6

61,460

1982…...…

172,271

110,204

64.0

99,526

57.8

10,678

9.7

62,067

1983…...…

174,215

111,550

64.0

100,834

57.9

10,717

9.6

62,665

1984…...…

176,383

113,544

64.4

105,005

59.5

8,539

7.5

62,839

1985…...…
1986 1…....

178,206

115,461

64.8

107,150

60.1

8,312

7.2

62,744

180,587

117,834

65.3

109,597

60.7

8,237

7.0

62,752

1987………

182,753

119,865

65.6

112,440

61.5

7,425

6.2

62,888

1988…...…

184,613

121,669

65.9

114,968

62.3

6,701

5.5

62,944

1989……...

186,393

123,869

66.5

117,342

63.0

6,528

5.3

62,523

1990 1….....

189,164

125,840

66.5

118,793

62.8

7,047

5.6

63,324

1991…...…

190,925

126,346

66.2

117,718

61.7

8,628

6.8

64,578

1992…...…

192,805

128,105

66.4

118,492

61.5

9,613

7.5

64,700

1993…...…
1994 1…....

194,838

129,200

66.3

120,259

61.7

8,940

6.9

65,638

196,814

131,056

66.6

123,060

62.5

7,996

6.1

65,758

1995…...…

198,584

132,304

66.6

124,900

62.9

7,404

5.6

66,280

1996…...…
1997 1…....

200,591

133,943

66.8

126,708

63.2

7,236

5.4

66,647

203,133

136,297

67.1

129,558

63.8

6,739

4.9

66,837

1998 1….....

205,220

137,673

67.1

131,463

64.1

6,210

4.5

67,547

1999 1….....

207,753

139,368

67.1

133,488

64.3

5,880

4.2

68,385

2000 1…....

212,577

142,583

67.1

136,891

64.4

5,692

4.0

69,994

2001 ……..

215,092

143,734

66.8

136,933

63.7

6,801

4.7

71,359

2002 ……..

217,570

144,863

66.6

136,485

62.7

8,378

5.8

72,707

See footnotes at end of table.

8

Table 2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over by sex, 1970-2002
annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Year

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Women
1970…….…

72,782

31,543

43.3

29,688

40.8

1,855

5.9

41,239

1971…….…
1972 1…….

74,274

32,202

43.4

29,976

40.4

2,227

6.9

42,072

76,290

33,479

43.9

31,257

41.0

2,222

6.6

42,811

1973 1…….

77,804

34,804

44.7

32,715

42.0

2,089

6.0

43,000

1974…….…

79,312

36,211

45.7

33,769

42.6

2,441

6.7

43,101

1975…….…

80,860

37,475

46.3

33,989

42.0

3,486

9.3

43,386

1976…….…

82,390

38,983

47.3

35,615

43.2

3,369

8.6

43,406

1977…….…
1978 1…….

83,840

40,613

48.4

37,289

44.5

3,324

8.2

43,227

85,334

42,631

50.0

39,569

46.4

3,061

7.2

42,703

1979…….…

86,843

44,235

50.9

41,217

47.5

3,018

6.8

42,608

1980…….…

88,348

45,487

51.5

42,117

47.7

3,370

7.4

42,861

1981…….…

89,618

46,696

52.1

43,000

48.0

3,696

7.9

42,922

1982…….…

90,748

47,755

52.6

43,256

47.7

4,499

9.4

42,993

1983…….…

91,684

48,503

52.9

44,047

48.0

4,457

9.2

43,181

1984…….…

92,778

49,709

53.6

45,915

49.5

3,794

7.6

43,068

1985…….…
1986 1…….

93,736

51,050

54.5

47,259

50.4

3,791

7.4

42,686

94,789

52,413

55.3

48,706

51.4

3,707

7.1

42,376

1987…….…

95,853

53,658

56.0

50,334

52.5

3,324

6.2

42,195

1988…….…

96,756

54,742

56.6

51,696

53.4

3,046

5.6

42,014

1989…...…

97,630

56,030

57.4

53,027

54.3

3,003

5.4

41,601

1990 1….....

98,787

56,829

57.5

53,689

54.3

3,140

5.5

41,957

1991…...…

99,646

57,178

57.4

53,496

53.7

3,683

6.4

42,468

1992…...…

100,535

58,141

57.8

54,052

53.8

4,090

7.0

42,394

1993…...…
1994 1…....

101,506

58,795

57.9

54,910

54.1

3,885

6.6

42,711

102,460

60,239

58.8

56,610

55.3

3,629

6.0

42,221

1995…...…

103,406

60,944

58.9

57,523

55.6

3,421

5.6

42,462

1996…...…
1997 1…....

104,385

61,857

59.3

58,501

56.0

3,356

5.4

42,528

105,418

63,036

59.8

59,873

56.8

3,162

5.0

42,382

1998 1….....

106,462

63,714

59.8

60,771

57.1

2,944

4.6

42,748

1999 1….....

108,031

64,855

60.0

62,042

57.4

2,814

4.3

43,175

2000 1…....

110,613

66,303

59.9

63,586

57.5

2,717

4.1

44,310

2001 …......

111,811

66,848

59.8

63,737

57.0

3,111

4.7

44,962

2002 ……..

112,985

67,363

59.6

63,582

56.3

3,781

5.6

45,621

See footnotes at end of table.

9

Table 2. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years and over by sex, 1970-2002
annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Year

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Men
1970…….…

64,304

51,228

79.7

48,990

76.2

2,238

4.4

13,076

1971…….…
1972 1…….

65,942

52,180

79.1

49,390

74.9

2,789

5.3

13,762

67,835

53,555

78.9

50,896

75.0

2,659

5.0

14,280

1973 …….

69,292

54,624

78.8

52,349

75.5

2,275

4.2

14,667

1974…….…

70,808

55,739

78.7

53,024

74.9

2,714

4.9

15,069

1975…….…

72,291

56,299

77.9

51,857

71.7

4,442

7.9

15,993

1976…….…

73,759

57,174

77.5

53,138

72.0

4,036

7.1

16,585

1977…….…
1978 1…….

75,193

58,396

77.7

54,728

72.8

3,667

6.3

16,797

76,576

59,620

77.9

56,479

73.8

3,142

5.3

16,956

1979…….…

78,020

60,726

77.8

57,607

73.8

3,120

5.1

17,293

1980…….…

79,398

61,453

77.4

57,186

72.0

4,267

6.9

17,945

1981…….…

80,511

61,974

77.0

57,397

71.3

4,577

7.4

18,537

1982…….…

81,523

62,450

76.6

56,271

69.0

6,179

9.9

19,073

1983…….…

82,531

63,047

76.4

56,787

68.8

6,260

9.9

19,484

1984…….…

83,605

63,835

76.4

59,091

70.7

4,744

7.4

19,771

1985…….…
1986 1…….

84,469

64,411

76.3

59,891

70.9

4,521

7.0

20,058

85,798

65,422

76.3

60,892

71.0

4,530

6.9

20,376

1987…….…

86,899

66,207

76.2

62,107

71.5

4,101

6.2

20,692

1988…….…

87,857

66,927

76.2

63,273

72.0

3,655

5.5

20,930

1989…...…

88,762

67,840

76.4

64,315

72.5

3,525

5.2

20,923

1

1990 1…….

90,377

69,011

76.4

65,104

72.0

3,906

5.7

21,367

1991…….…

91,278

69,168

75.8

64,223

70.4

4,946

7.2

22,110

1992…….…

92,270

69,964

75.8

64,440

69.8

5,523

7.9

22,306

1993…….…
1994 1…….

93,332

70,404

75.4

65,349

70.0

5,055

7.2

22,927

94,355

70,817

75.1

66,450

70.4

4,367

6.2

23,538

1995…….…

95,178

71,360

75.0

67,377

70.8

3,983

5.6

23,818

1996…….…
1997 1…….

96,206

72,087

74.9

68,207

70.9

3,880

5.4

24,119

97,715

73,261

75.0

69,685

71.3

3,577

4.9

24,454

1998 1…….

98,758

73,959

74.9

70,693

71.6

3,266

4.4

24,799

1999 1…….

99,722

74,512

74.7

71,446

71.6

3,066

4.1

25,210

2000 1…….

101,964

76,280

74.8

73,305

71.9

2,975

3.9

25,684

2001..…….

103,282

76,886

74.4

73,196

70.9

3,690

4.8

26,396

2002…….…

104,585

77,500

74.1

72,903

69.7

4,597

5.9

27,085

1
The comparability of historical labor force data has been
affected at various times by methodological and conceptual
changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an
explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error

section of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

10

Table 3. Employment status by race, age, sex, and Hispanic origin, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Race, age, sex, and Hispanic
origin

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Not in
labor
force
Percent of
labor force

White
Total, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years………………..…
20 to 24 years……………..……
25 to 54 years………………..…
55 to 64 years………………..…
65 years and over…………..…

179,783
12,596
15,360
99,438
22,540
29,849

120,150
6,366
12,073
83,599
14,148
3,965

66.8
50.5
78.6
84.1
62.8
13.3

114,013
5,441
11,096
80,018
13,630
3,828

63.4
43.2
72.2
80.5
60.5
12.8

6,137
925
977
3,581
518
137

5.1
14.5
8.1
4.3
3.7
3.5

59,633
6,230
3,287
15,839
8,392
25,884

Women, 16 years and over……
16 to 19 years………….....……
20 to 24 years…………….….…
25 to 54 years……………..……
55 to 64 years…………….....…
65 years and over…………....

92,422
6,157
7,611
49,860
11,622
17,173

54,842
3,125
5,628
37,902
6,482
1,704

59.3
50.8
74.0
76.0
55.8
9.9

52,164
2,716
5,214
36,321
6,269
1,644

56.4
44.1
68.5
72.8
53.9
9.6

2,678
409
415
1,582
213
60

4.9
13.1
7.4
4.2
3.3
3.5

37,581
3,032
1,982
11,958
5,139
15,469

Men, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years…………….……
20 to 24 years…………………
25 to 54 years……………..……
55 to 64 years………………..…
65 years and over…………….

87,361
6,439
7,750
49,578
10,918
12,676

65,308
3,241
6,444
45,696
7,665
2,261

74.8
50.3
83.2
92.2
70.2
17.8

61,849
2,725
5,882
43,697
7,360
2,184

70.8
42.3
75.9
88.1
67.4
17.2

3,459
516
562
1,999
305
77

5.3
15.9
8.7
4.4
4.0
3.4

22,053
3,198
1,305
3,882
3,253
10,415

Black
Total, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years………………...
25 to 54 years………………...
55 to 64 years…………………
65 years and over………………

25,578
2,416
2,779
14,988
2,571
2,823

16,565
870
1,908
12,027
1,407
353

64.8
36.0
68.6
80.2
54.7
12.5

14,872
611
1,543
11,055
1,332
332

58.1
25.3
55.5
73.8
51.8
11.8

1,693
260
365
972
76
21

10.2
29.8
19.1
8.1
5.4
5.9

9,013
1,546
871
2,961
1,164
2,470

Women, 16 years and over……
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years…………………
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years…………………
65 years and over………………

14,187
1,221
1,498
8,286
1,434
1,747

8,772
424
1,002
6,431
743
171

61.8
34.7
66.9
77.6
51.8
9.8

7,914
304
819
5,923
708
160

55.8
24.9
54.6
71.5
49.4
9.1

858
120
183
508
35
12

9.8
28.3
18.3
7.9
4.7
6.9

5,415
797
496
1,855
691
1,576

Men, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years………………...
20 to 24 years………………...
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years…………………
65 years and over………………

11,391
1,195
1,281
6,702
1,137
1,075

7,794
446
906
5,596
664
181

68.4
37.3
70.7
83.5
58.4
16.9

6,959
306
725
5,132
624
172

61.1
25.6
56.6
76.6
54.9
16.0

835
140
181
464
40
9

10.7
31.3
20.0
8.3
6.1
5.0

3,597
749
375
1,106
473
894

11

Table 3. Employment status by race, age, sex, and Hispanic origin, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Race, age,sex, and Hispanic
origin

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Not in
Percent of labor force
labor force

Asian
Total, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years…………………
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years………………...
65 years and over…………….

9,833
766
971
6,187
980
930

6,604
255
623
4,975
622
129

67.2
33.3
64.1
80.4
63.5
13.9

6,215
214
559
4,729
589
124

63.2
27.9
57.6
76.4
60.1
13.4

389
41
63
247
33
5

5.9
16.2
10.2
5.0
5.3
3.7

3,229
511
349
1,211
358
800

Women, 16 years and over……
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years………………...
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years……………...…
65 years and over…………….

5,136
365
493
3,221
526
531

3,037
122
298
2,291
282
45

59.1
33.4
60.4
71.1
53.6
8.5

2,866
108
270
2,174
272
41

55.8
29.6
54.7
67.5
51.7
7.8

172
14
28
116
10
4

5.7
11.3
9.4
5.1
3.6
8.0

2,099
243
195
931
244
486

Men, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years……………...…
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years…………………
65 years and over………………

4,697
401
478
2,965
454
399

3,567
133
325
2,685
340
84

75.9
33.2
67.9
90.5
74.9
21.1

3,349
106
289
2,554
317
83

71.3
26.4
60.5
86.1
69.8
20.8

217
27
35
130
23
1

6.1
20.6
10.9
4.9
6.8
1.5

1,130
268
153
281
114
315

Hispanic origin
Total, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years……………….…
20 to 24 years…………………
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years…………………
65 years and over………………

25,963
2,507
3,508
16,110
1,953
1,885

17,943
1,103
2,678
12,847
1,091
224

69.1
44.0
76.3
79.7
55.8
11.9

16,590
882
2,413
12,057
1,029
209

63.9
35.2
68.8
74.8
52.7
11.1

1,353
221
265
790
62
15

7.5
20.1
9.9
6.2
5.7
6.8

8,020
1,404
830
3,263
862
1,661

Women, 16 years and over……
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years…………………
25 to 54 years…………………
55 to 64 years………………...
65 years and over…………….

12,742
1,214
1,617
7,792
1,051
1,068

7,334
471
1,051
5,237
484
90

57.6
38.8
65.0
67.2
46.1
8.5

6,744
378
937
4,886
460
84

52.9
31.1
58.0
62.7
43.7
7.8

590
94
113
352
24
7

8.0
19.9
10.8
6.7
5.0
7.5

5,408
742
567
2,555
567
977

Men, 16 years and over…………
16 to 19 years…………………
20 to 24 years………………...
25 to 54 years………………...
55 to 64 years………………...
65 years and over…………….

13,221
1,293
1,890
8,318
902
817

10,609
632
1,627
7,610
607
134

80.2
48.8
86.1
91.5
67.3
16.3

9,845
504
1,476
7,171
569
125

74.5
39.0
78.1
86.2
63.1
15.3

764
127
151
439
38
8

7.2
20.2
9.3
5.8
6.2
6.3

2,613
662
263
709
295
684

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

12

Table 4. Employment status by marital status and sex, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Marital status and sex

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Total
Total, 16 years and over………...

217,570

144,863

66.6

136,485

62.7

8,378

5.8

72,707

Married, spouse present……….

117,267

81,242

69.3

78,269

66.7

2,973

3.7

36,025

Unmarried, total……………..……

100,303

63,621

63.4

58,216

58.0

5,405

8.5

36,682

Never married……………….…

58,071

40,492

69.7

36,566

63.0

3,926

9.7

17,579

Other marital status……………

42,232

23,129

54.8

21,650

51.3

1,479

6.4

19,103

Divorced……………………..…

20,678

15,225

73.6

14,321

69.3

903

5.9

5,454

Separated………………….…

7,452

5,257

70.5

4,824

64.7

433

8.2

2,195

Widowed……………….……..

14,101

2,647

18.8

2,505

17.8

142

5.4

11,454

Total, 16 years and over………...

112,985

67,364

59.6

63,582

56.3

3,781

5.6

45,621

Married, spouse present……….

58,165

35,477

61.0

34,153

58.7

1,323

3.7

22,688

Unmarried, total……….…………

54,820

31,887

58.2

29,429

53.7

2,458

7.7

22,933

Never married…………...…….

26,999

18,203

67.4

16,583

61.4

1,621

8.9

8,796

Other marital status…………...

27,821

13,683

49.2

12,846

46.2

837

6.1

14,137

Divorced…………………….…

12,158

8,827

72.6

8,343

68.6

484

5.5

3,331

Separated…………………….

4,228

2,788

66.0

2,539

60.1

249

8.9

1,439

Widowed………………….…..

11,435

2,068

18.1

1,964

17.2

104

5.0

9,367

Women

Men
Total, 16 years and over………...

104,585

77,500

74.1

72,903

69.7

4,597

5.9

27,086

Married, spouse present……….

59,102

45,766

77.4

44,116

74.6

1,650

3.6

13,337

Unmarried, total……………….…

45,483

31,734

69.8

28,787

63.3

2,947

9.3

13,749

Never married………………....

31,072

22,289

71.7

19,983

64.3

2,306

10.3

8,783

Other marital status……….…..

14,411

9,445

65.5

8,804

61.1

641

6.8

4,966
2,123

Divorced………………………

8,520

6,398

75.1

5,978

70.2

419

6.6

Separated……………….……

3,224

2,469

76.6

2,285

70.9

184

7.5

756

Widowed…………………..….

2,666

579

21.7

541

20.3

38

6.6

2,087

13

Table 5. Employment status by sex, presence and age of children, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Characteristic

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Not in
labor
force
Percent of
labor force

Total
Women, 16 years and over……………...……

112,626

67,419

59.9

63,649

56.5

3,770

5.6

45,207

With children under 18 years old……………

36,187

26,140

72.2

24,612

68.0

1,529

5.8

10,046

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

20,287

15,948

78.6

15,171

74.8

777

4.9

4,339

With children under 6 years old………….…

15,900

10,193

64.1

9,441

59.4

752

7.4

5,707

Under 3 years old………………….………

9,258

5,600

60.5

5,160

55.7

440

7.9

3,657

With no children under 18 years old……….

76,439

41,278

54.0

39,038

51.1

2,241

5.4

35,161

Men, 16 years and over……………………..…

104,162

76,682

73.6

71,505

68.6

5,177

6.8

27,480

With children under 18 years old………….…

28,042

26,483

94.4

25,301

90.2

1,182

4.5

1,559

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

15,551

14,540

93.5

13,966

89.8

574

3.9

1,011

With children under 6 years old……………

12,491

11,943

95.6

11,335

90.7

608

5.1

548

Under 3 years old……………………….…

7,449

7,146

95.9

6,766

90.8

380

5.3

303

76,120

50,199

65.9

46,204

60.7

3,995

8.0

25,922

With no children under 18 years old…………

White
Women, 16 years and over………………...…

92,188

54,909

59.6

52,255

56.7

2,654

4.8

37,279

With children under 18 years old………….…

28,702

20,586

71.7

19,584

68.2

1,001

4.9

8,116

With children 6 to 17, none younger…….…

16,116

12,657

78.5

12,144

75.4

513

4.1

3,459

With children under 6 years old…….…...…

12,586

7,929

63.0

7,441

59.1

488

6.2

4,657

Under 3 years old…………………….……

7,375

4,405

59.7

4,136

56.1

269

6.1

2,970

63,487

34,323

54.1

32,670

51.5

1,653

4.8

29,163

Men, 16 years and over……………………...…

87,105

64,686

74.3

60,741

69.7

3,945

6.1

22,419

With children under 18 years old…………..

23,769

22,590

95.0

21,696

91.3

894

4.0

1,179

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

13,182

12,425

94.3

12,003

91.1

421

3.4

758

With children under 6 years old……………

10,586

10,165

96.0

9,693

91.6

473

4.7

421

Under 3 years old………………………..…

6,330

6,081

96.1

5,788

91.4

293

4.8

249

63,336

42,096

66.5

39,045

61.6

3,051

7.2

21,240

With no children under 18 years old…………

With no children under 18 years old……….
See note at end of table.

14

Table 5. Employment status by sex, presence and age of children, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002
—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Civilian labor force
Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Not in
Percent of labor force
labor force

Black
Women, 16 years and over……………...……

14,119

8,801

62.3

7,931

56.2

870

9.9

5,318

With children under 18 years old………….…

5,160

4,027

78.0

3,609

69.9

418

10.4

1,133

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

2,925

2,382

81.4

2,172

74.2

210

8.8

543

With children under 6 years old………….…

2,235

1,645

73.6

1,438

64.3

208

12.6

590

Under 3 years old……………………….…

1,255

861

68.6

726

57.8

135

15.7

395

With no children under 18 years old……..…

8,959

4,774

53.3

4,322

48.2

452

9.5

4,185

Men, 16 years and over…………………..……

11,325

7,710

68.1

6,794

60.0

916

11.9

3,616

With children under 18 years old………….…

2,578

2,351

91.2

2,151

83.4

200

8.5

227

With children 6 to 17, none younger…..…

1,476

1,314

89.0

1,208

81.8

106

8.1

162

With children under 6 years old……………

1,102

1,037

94.1

944

85.6

94

9.0

65

Under 3 years old…………………..………

650

623

95.9

563

86.7

60

9.6

26

With no children under 18 years old…………

8,747

5,359

61.3

4,643

53.1

716

13.4

3,388

12,591

7,275

57.8

6,703

53.2

572

7.9

5,316

With children under 18 years old………….…

5,738

3,594

62.6

3,272

57.0

322

9.0

2,144

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

2,677

1,890

70.6

1,737

64.9

153

8.1

787

With children under 6 years old……………

3,061

1,704

55.7

1,535

50.2

169

9.9

1,357

Hispanic origin
Women, 16 years and over………………...…

Under 3 years old…………………………

1,821

925

50.8

836

45.9

89

9.6

896

With no children under 18 years old…………

6,853

3,681

53.7

3,430

50.1

250

6.8

3,172

Men, 16 years and over……………………..…

13,051

10,313

79.0

9,457

72.5

856

8.3

2,738

With children under 18 years old……………

4,307

3,986

92.6

3,753

87.1

233

5.8

321

With children 6 to 17, none younger………

1,923

1,737

90.3

1,664

86.6

73

4.2

186

With children under 6 years old………….…

2,384

2,249

94.3

2,089

87.6

160

7.1

135

Under 3 years old……………………….…

1,464

1,380

94.3

1,279

87.4

102

7.4

83

With no children under 18 years old……….

8,744

6,327

72.4

5,704

65.2

623

9.8

2,417

NOTE:Children
Childrenare
are
"own
children"
and
include
sons,
daugthers,
Hispanics
included
in bothNot
the included
white andare
black
population
groups.
NOTE:
"own
children"
and
include
sons
daugthers
stepchildren
and are
adopted
children
nieces
nephews
stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children. Detail
SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplment 2002, Current
for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals
Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
because data for the "other races" group are not presented and
Statistics

15

Table 6. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, marital status, race, and Hispanic origin, 2002
origin 2002
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Presence and age of children

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed
Total

Percent
of labor
force

Not in
labor
force

Total, 16 years and over………………………………...
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

112,626
36,187
20,287
15,900
9,258
76,439

67,419
26,140
15,948
10,193
5,600
41,278

Total, all marital statuses
56.5
59.9
63,649
72.2
24,612
68.0
78.6
15,171
74.8
64.1
9,441
59.4
60.5
5,160
55.7
54.0
39,038
51.1

3,770
1,529
777
752
440
2,241

5.6
5.8
4.9
7.4
7.9
5.4

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

57,883
26,245
14,456
11,789
7,042
31,638

35,624
18,271
11,105
7,166
4,081
17,353

Total, married, spouse present
61.5
34,295
59.2
1,329
69.6
17,515
66.7
756
76.8
10,711
74.1
394
60.8
6,804
57.7
363
58.0
3,871
55.0
210
54.8
16,780
53.0
573

3.7
4.1
3.5
5.1
5.1
3.3

22,259
7,974
3,351
4,623
2,961
14,285

2,441
772
384
389
230
1,668

7.7
9.8
7.9
12.9
15.2
7.0

22,948
2,073
989
1,084
696
20,876

45,207
10,046
4,339
5,707
3,657
35,161

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

54,743
9,942
5,831
4,110
2,215
44,802

31,795
7,869
4,843
3,026
1,519
23,926

Total, other marital statuses1
58.1
29,354
53.6
79.2
7,097
71.4
83.0
4,459
76.5
73.6
2,637
64.2
68.6
1,289
58.2
53.4
22,258
49.7

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

92,188
28,702
16,116
12,586
7,375
63,487

54,909
20,586
12,657
7,929
4,405
34,323

White, all marital statuses
59.6
52,255
56.7
71.7
19,584
68.2
78.5
12,144
75.4
63.0
7,441
59.1
59.7
4,136
56.1
54.1
32,670
51.5

2,654
1,001
513
488
269
1,653

4.8
4.9
4.1
6.2
6.1
4.8

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

50,270
22,293
12,278
10,015
5,998
27,977

30,681
15,422
9,410
6,012
3,441
15,259

White, married, spouse present
61.0
29,618
58.9
1,062
69.2
14,838
66.6
584
76.6
9,122
74.3
288
60.0
5,716
57.1
296
57.4
3,282
54.7
159
54.5
14,781
52.8
478

3.5
3.8
3.1
4.9
4.6
3.1

19,589
6,871
2,867
4,003
2,556
12,718

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

41,918
6,408
3,838
2,571
1,377
35,510

24,228
5,164
3,246
1,917
963
19,065

White, other marital statuses1
57.8
22,636
54.0
1,592
80.6
4,746
74.1
417
84.6
3,021
78.7
225
74.6
1,725
67.1
192
70.0
854
62.0
110
53.7
17,890
50.4
1,175

6.6
8.1
6.9
10.0
11.4
6.2

17,690
1,245
592
653
414
16,445

See footnotes at end of table.

16

37,279
8,116
3,459
4,657
2,970
29,163

Table 6. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, marital status, race, and Hispanic origin,
2002—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Presence and age of children

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

14,119
5,160
2,925
2,235
1,255
8,959

8,801
4,027
2,382
1,645
861
4,774

Black,
62.3
78.0
81.4
73.6
68.6
53.3

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old……………………..
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old………………………
With no children under 18 years old………………….

4,210
2,106
1,201
905
532
2,103

2,881
1,669
987
682
374
1,212

Total, 16 years and over……………………………….…
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

9,909
3,054
1,724
1,330
723
6,855

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed
Total

all marital statuses
7,931
56.2
3,609
69.9
2,172
74.2
1,438
64.3
726
57.8
4,322
48.2

Percent
of labor
force

Not in
labor
force

870
418
210
208
135
452

9.9
10.4
8.8
12.6
15.7
9.5

5,318
1,133
543
590
395
4,185

Black, married, spouse present
68.4
2,715
64.5
79.2
1,561
74.1
82.2
917
76.4
75.3
644
71.1
70.3
343
64.4
57.6
1,154
54.9

167
108
70
38
31
58

5.8
6.5
7.1
5.6
8.4
4.8

1,328
437
214
223
158
891

5,920
2,358
1,395
963
486
3,562

Black, other marital statuses1
59.7
5,216
52.6
77.2
2,049
67.1
80.9
1,255
72.8
72.4
794
59.7
67.3
383
53.0
52.0
3,168
46.2

704
309
140
169
103
394

11.9
13.1
10.1
17.6
21.3
11.1

3,989
696
329
366
237
3,294

12,591
5,738
2,677
3,061
1,821
6,853

7,275
3,594
1,890
1,704
925
3,681

Hispanic origin, all marital statuses
57.8
6,703
53.2
62.6
3,272
57.0
70.6
1,737
64.9
55.7
1,535
50.2
50.8
836
45.9
53.7
3,430
50.1

572
322
153
169
89
250

7.9
9.0
8.1
9.9
9.6
6.8

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

6,310
4,037
1,819
2,219
1,333
2,273

3,543
2,354
1,214
1,139
614
1,189

Hispanic origin, married, spouse present
56.1
3,307
52.4
235
58.3
2,169
53.7
185
66.8
1,133
62.3
81
51.4
1,035
46.7
104
46.1
566
42.5
48
52.3
1,139
50.1
50

6.6
7.9
6.7
9.1
7.9
4.2

2,767
1,684
605
1,079
718
1,084

Total, 16 years and over…………………………………
With children under 18 years old………………………
With children 6 to 17 years old, none younger………
With children under 6 years old………………………
With children under 3 years old……………………
With no children under 18 years old……………………

6,281
1,701
858
843
488
4,581

3,732
1,241
676
565
311
2,492

Hispanic origin, other marital statuses1
59.4
3,395
54.1
337
73.0
1,103
64.9
137
78.8
604
70.3
72
67.0
500
59.3
65
63.7
270
55.3
41
54.4
2,292
50.0
200

9.0
11.1
10.7
11.5
13.1
8.0

2,549
460
182
278
177
2,089

5,316
2,144
787
1,357
896
3,172

1
Includes never-married, divorced, separated, and widowed persons.

because data for the "other races" group are not presented, and
Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.

NOTE: Children are "own children" and include sons, daughters,
stepchildren, and adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related and unrelated children. Detail
for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals,

SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplement 2002, Current
Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics

17

Table 7. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, 1975-2002
(Numbers in thousands)
With own children under age 18
Civilian labor force
Year
Total

With own children ages 6 to 17

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Employed

Total

Civilian labor force

Percent of
labor force

Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed
Employed

Total

Percent of
labor force

1975...…

14,616

47.4

13,069

1,548

11.0

8,917

54.9

8,218

700

7.9

1976...…

15,073

48.8

13,725

1,346

8.9

9,388

56.2

8,769

621

6.6

1977……

15,669

50.8

14,276

1,393

8.9

10,040

58.3

9,389

650

6.5

1978……

16,385

53.0

15,142

1,242

7.6

10,401

60.0

9,845

556

5.3

1979...…

16,883

54.5

15,624

1,259

7.7

10,646

61.6

10,030

615

5.8

1980……

17,790

56.6

16,526

1,264

7.1

11,252

64.3

10,640

612

5.4

1981...…

18,422

58.1

16,952

1,471

8.0

11,490

65.5

10,725

765

6.7

1982...…

18,744

58.5

16,854

1,890

10.1

11,377

65.8

10,440

936

8.2

1983...…

18,924

58.9

16,792

2,131

11.3

11,340

66.3

10,303

1,037

9.1

1984……

19,555

60.5

17,782

1,773

9.1

11,538

68.1

10,739

799

6.9

1985……

20,041

62.1

18,306

1,735

8.7

11,826

69.9

10,984

842

7.1

1986……

20,620

62.8

18,922

1,698

8.2

12,075

70.4

11,320

756

6.3

1987……

21,422

64.7

19,798

1,624

7.6

12,438

72.0

11,661

778

6.3

1988……

21,545

65.1

20,141

1,404

6.5

12,683

73.3

12,042

641

5.1

1989……

21,936

65.7

20,647

1,289

5.9

12,800

74.2

12,168

632

4.9

1990...…

22,196

66.7

20,865

1,331

6.0

12,799

74.7

12,133

666

5.2

1991...…

22,327

66.6

20,774

1,552

7.0

12,691

74.4

12,017

674

5.3

1992...…

22,756

67.2

21,052

1,704

7.5

13,183

75.9

12,391

793

6.0

1993……

23,063

66.9

21,521

1,541

6.7

13,441

75.4

12,757

684

5.1

1994……

24,191

68.4

22,467

1,724

7.1

13,863

76.0

13,074

789

5.7

1995……

24,695

69.7

23,195

1,500

6.1

14,300

76.4

13,608

691

4.8

1996……

24,720

70.2

23,386

1,334

5.4

14,427

77.2

13,794

633

4.4

1997……

25,604

72.1

24,082

1,522

5.9

14,993

78.1

14,282

711

4.7

1998...…

25,647

72.3

24,209

1,438

5.6

15,028

78.4

14,370

658

4.4

1999……

25,472

72.1

24,307

1,165

4.6

15,150

78.5

14,633

516

3.4

2000...…

25,795

72.9

24,693

1,102

4.3

15,479

79.0

14,931

549

3.5

2001...…

26,269

72.7

25,030

1,239

4.7

15,839

79.4

15,220

619

3.9

2002……

26,140

72.2

24,612

1,529

5.8

15,948

78.6

15,171

777

4.9

See note at end of table.

18

Table 7. Employment status of women by presence and age of youngest child, 1975-2002—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
With own children under age 6
Civilian labor force
Year
Total

Percent of
population

With own children under age 3

Unemployed
Employed

Total

Civilian labor force

Percent of
labor force

Total

Percent of
population

Unemployed
Employed

Total

Percent of
labor force

1975...…

5,699

39.0

4,851

848

14.9

2,824

34.3

2,326

500

17.7

1976……

5,684

40.1

4,957

727

12.8

2,702

34.1

2,285

418

15.5

1977……

5,629

41.2

4,887

742

13.2

2,795

35.4

2,371

424

15.2

1978……

5,983

44.0

5,297

687

11.5

3,179

39.4

2,768

411

12.9

1979……

6,238

45.7

5,594

644

10.3

3,380

41.1

2,979

401

11.9

1980...…

6,538

46.8

5,886

652

10.0

3,565

41.9

3,167

398

11.2

1981...…

6,933

48.9

6,227

706

10.2

3,826

44.3

3,380

446

11.7

1982……

7,367

49.9

6,414

953

12.9

4,133

45.6

3,542

591

14.3

1983...…

7,583

50.5

6,489

1,094

14.4

4,233

46.0

3,551

682

16.1

1984……

8,017

52.1

7,043

974

12.1

4,401

47.6

3,839

562

12.8

1985...…

8,215

53.5

7,322

893

10.9

4,601

49.5

4,089

513

11.1

1986...…

8,545

54.4

7,602

943

11.0

4,786

50.8

4,227

559

11.7

1987...…

8,983

56.7

8,137

846

9.4

5,064

52.9

4,570

494

9.8

1988……

8,862

56.1

8,099

763

8.6

4,947

52.4

4,477

470

9.5

1989……

9,136

56.7

8,478

657

7.2

5,053

52.4

4,671

381

7.5

1990...…

9,397

58.2

8,732

664

7.1

5,216

53.6

4,823

393

7.5

1991……

9,636

58.4

8,758

878

9.1

5,417

54.5

4,868

550

10.1

1992……

9,573

58.0

8,662

911

9.5

5,329

54.5

4,776

553

10.4

1993……

9,621

57.9

8,764

857

8.9

5,349

53.9

4,857

492

9.2

1994...…

10,328

60.3

9,394

935

9.0

5,724

57.1

5,165

559

9.8

1995……

10,395

62.3

9,587

809

7.8

5,650

58.7

5,172

478

8.5

1996……

10,293

62.3

9,592

701

6.8

5,619

59.0

5,222

397

7.1

1997...…

10,610

65.0

9,800

810

7.6

5,839

61.8

5,366

473

8.1

1998...…

10,619

65.2

9,839

780

7.3

5,882

62.2

5,454

428

7.3

1999……

10,322

64.4

9,674

648

6.3

5,645

60.7

5,285

359

6.4

2000……

10,316

65.3

9,763

553

5.4

5,670

61.0

5,350

320

5.6

2001……

10,430

64.4

9,810

620

5.9

5,743

60.7

5,350

393

6.8

2002……

10,193

64.1

9,441

752

7.4

5,600

60.5

5,160

440

7.9

See note at end of table.

19

Table 7. Employment status of women by presence and age
of youngest child, 1975-2002—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
With no own children under age 18
Civilian labor force
Year
Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Employed

Total

Percent of
labor force

1975……

22,365

45.1

20,381

1,984

8.9

1976……

23,327

45.7

21,389

1,938

8.3

1977……

24,385

46.4

22,348

2,037

8.4

1978……

25,362

47.0

23,631

1,731

6.8

1979……

26,962

48.6

25,285

1,677

6.2

1980...…

27,144

48.1

25,375

1,769

6.5

1981……

27,992

48.7

25,934

2,059

7.4

1982……

28,351

48.6

26,041

2,311

8.2

1983……

28,856

48.7

26,373

2,483

8.6

1984……

29,684

49.3

27,652

2,032

6.8

1985……

30,850

50.4

28,814

2,036

6.6

1986……

31,112

50.5

29,107

2,005

6.4

1987……

31,538

50.5

29,688

1,850

5.9

1988……

32,490

51.2

30,911

1,580

4.9

1989……

33,255

51.9

31,761

1,495

4.5

1990...…

33,942

52.3

32,391

1,551

4.6

1991...…

34,047

52.0

32,167

1,880

5.5

1992……

34,487

52.3

32,481

2,006

5.8

1993……

34,495

52.1

32,476

2,020

5.9

1994……

35,455

53.1

33,345

2,110

6.0

1995……

35,843

52.9

34,054

1,789

5.0

1996……

36,509

53.0

34,698

1,811

5.0

1997……

37,295

53.6

35,572

1,723

4.6

1998……

38,253

54.1

36,680

1,573

4.1

1999……

39,314

54.3

37,587

1,727

4.4

2000……
2001……

40,142
40,996

54.8
54.4

38,408
39,363

1,733
1,633

4.3
4.0

2002……

41,278

54.0

39,038

2,241

5.4

NOTE: "Own children" include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted
children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and other related
and unrelated children. Data for 1994 and subsequent years are not directly
comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years because of the introduction
of a major redesign of the Current Population Survey.
SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplements 1975-2002, Current
Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

20

Table 8. Employment status of the civilian noninstitutional population 25 to 64 years of age by educational
attainment and sex, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Employed
Educational attainment and sex

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Percent of
population

Total

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Not in
Percent labor force
of labor
force

Total
148,420

118,028

79.5

112,497

75.8

5,532

4.7

11,805

63.4

10,778

57.9

1,027

8.7

6,815

High school graduates, no college………

18,620
46,749

36,271

77.6

34,341

73.5

1,930

5.3

10,477

Some college or associate degree………

39,827

32,668

82.0

31,184

78.3

1,484

4.5

7,159

College graduates, total………………...

43,224

37,284

86.3

36,194

83.7

1,090

2.9

5,941

Bachelor's degree………………………

28,870

24,700

85.6

23,925

82.9

776

3.1

4,170

Master's degree………………………...

10,154

8,808

86.7

8,555

84.2

253

2.9

1,347

Professional degree……………………
Doctoral degree…………………………

2,379

2,130

89.5

2,096

88.1

34

1.6

249

1,820

1,646

90.4

1,619

88.9

27

1.7

174

21,130

Total, 25 to 64 years………………...……
Less than a high school diploma…………

30,392

Women
Total, 25 to 64 years……………………...

75,840

54,710

72.1

52,196

68.8

2,514

4.6

Less than a high school diploma…………

8,923

4,445

49.8

4,008

44.9

436

9.8

4,479

High school graduates, no college………

23,977

16,757

69.9

15,887

66.3

870

5.2

7,219

Some college or associate degree………

21,450

16,360

76.3

15,628

72.9

733

4.5

5,090

College graduates, total…………………

21,490

17,148

79.8

16,672

77.6

475

2.8

4,342

Bachelor's degree……………………...

14,774

11,619

78.6

11,279

76.3

340

2.9

3,155

Master's degree………………………...

5,251

4,310

82.1

4,202

80.0

108

2.5

941

Professional degree……………………
Doctoral degree…………………………

872

720

82.6

704

80.8

16

2.2

152

593

498

84.1

486

82.0

12

2.4

94

Total, 25 to 64 years………………………

72,580

63,318

87.2

60,301

83.1

3,017

4.8

9,262

Less than a high school diploma……….

9,697

7,361

75.9

6,769

69.8

591

8.0

2,336

High school graduates, no college………

22,772

19,514

85.7

18,454

81.0

1,060

5.4

3,258

Some college or associate degree………

18,377

16,308

88.7

15,556

84.7

751

4.6

2,069

College graduates, total…………………

21,734

20,136

92.6

19,522

89.8

615

3.1

1,598

14,097

13,081

92.8

12,645

89.7

436

3.3

1,016

Master's degree…………………...……

4,903

4,497

91.7

4,352

88.8

145

3.2

405

Professional degree…………………..…
Doctoral degree…………………………

1,507

1,410

93.6

1,392

92.4

18

1.3

97

1,228

1,148

93.5

1,132

92.2

15

1.3

80

Men

Bachelor's degree……………………..…

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

21

Table 9. Percent distribution of the civilian labor force 25 to 64 years of age by
educational attainment and sex, March 1970-2002
Percent distribution
Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

High school
Civilian
labor force Less than 4 4 years, no
years
college

College
1 to 3 years

4 years or
more

Total
1970…...…

61,765

100.0

36.1

38.1

11.8

14.1

1971…...…

62,344

100.0

34.5

38.4

12.3

14.8

1972…...…

63,704

100.0

33.3

38.8

12.4

15.5

1973…...…

64,775

100.0

30.9

39.7

13.0

16.4

1974…...…

66,527

100.0

29.3

39.5

13.7

17.5

1975…...…

67,774

100.0

27.5

39.7

14.4

18.3

1976…...…

69,243

100.0

25.8

39.6

15.2

19.4

1977…...…

71,324

100.0

24.9

39.2

15.7

20.2

1978…...…

73,504

100.0

23.7

39.2

16.5

20.6

1979…...…

75,781

100.0

21.8

39.5

17.3

21.3

1980…...…

78,010

100.0

20.6

39.8

17.6

22.0

1981…...…

80,273

100.0

19.7

40.6

17.7

22.0

1982…...…

81,516

100.0

18.8

40.8

17.3

23.1

1983……...

83,615

100.0

17.8

39.9

18.1

24.2

1984……...

86,001

100.0

16.7

40.2

18.4

24.7

1985…...…

88,424

100.0

15.9

40.2

19.0

24.9

1986…...…

90,500

100.0

15.5

40.2

19.5

24.8

1987…...…

92,966

100.0

14.9

40.2

19.7

25.3

1988……...

94,870

100.0

14.7

39.9

19.7

25.7

1989…...…

97,318

100.0

14.0

39.6

20.0

26.4

1990……...

99,175

100.0

13.4

39.5

20.7

26.4

1991…...…

100,480

100.0

13.0

39.4

21.1

26.5

Some
Less than a High school college, no
Civilian
high school graduates, degree, and
labor force
diploma
no college
associate
degree

College
graduates

Percent distribution

Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

Total
1992…...…

102,387

100.0

12.2

36.2

25.2

26.4

1993…...…

103,504

100.0

11.5

35.2

26.3

27.0

1994…...…

104,868

100.0

11.0

34.0

27.6

27.3

1995……...

106,519

100.0

10.8

33.1

27.8

28.3

1996…...…

108,037

100.0

10.9

32.9

27.7

28.5

1997……...

110,514

100.0

10.9

33.0

27.4

28.6

1998……...

111,857

100.0

10.7

32.8

27.4

29.1

1999…...…

112,542

100.0

10.3

32.3

27.4

30.0

2000…...…

114,052

100.0

9.8

31.8

27.9

30.4

2001…...…
2002…...…

115,073
117,738

100.0
100.0

9.8
10.1

31.4
30.6

28.1
27.7

30.7
31.6

See note at end of table.

22

Table 9. Percent distribution of the civilian labor force 25 to 64 years of age by
educational attainment and sex, March 1970-2002—Continued
Percent distribution
Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

High school
Civilian
labor force Less than 4 4 years, no
years
college

College
1 to 3 years

4 years or
more

Women
1970…...…

22,462

100.0

33.5

44.3

10.9

11.2

1971…...…

22,804

100.0

32.2

44.2

11.9

11.8

1972……...

23,606

100.0

30.7

45.1

11.8

12.4

1973……...

24,158

100.0

28.4

45.9

12.4

13.3

1974…...…

25,203

100.0

26.7

45.3

13.4

14.6

1975…...…

26,146

100.0

26.5

45.5

13.9

14.1

1976…...…

27,166

100.0

24.0

45.1

14.7

16.2

1977…...…

28,369

100.0

22.8

45.1

15.2

16.9

1978…...…

29,738

100.0

22.0

44.9

16.1

17.0

1979…...…

31,151

100.0

20.1

45.0

17.1

17.8

1980…...…

32,593

100.0

18.4

45.4

17.4

18.7

1981…...…

33,910

100.0

17.4

46.1

17.9

18.6

1982…...…

34,870

100.0

16.6

45.6

18.3

19.5

1983…...…

35,712

100.0

15.6

44.8

18.8

20.9

1984……...

37,234

100.0

14.5

44.9

18.9

21.7

1985……...

38,779

100.0

13.7

44.4

19.9

22.0

1986…...…

39,767

100.0

13.2

44.3

20.3

22.2

1987…...…

41,105

100.0

12.5

44.0

20.7

22.8

1988…...…

42,254

100.0

12.4

43.3

21.2

23.1

1989…...…

43,650

100.0

11.9

42.9

20.9

24.3

1990…...…

44,699

100.0

11.3

42.4

21.9

24.5

1991…...…

45,315

100.0

10.9

41.6

22.2

25.2

Percent distribution

Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

Some
Less than a High school college, no
Civilian
high school graduates, degree, and
labor force
diploma
no college
associate
degree

College
graduates

Women
1992…...…

46,469

100.0

10.2

37.9

26.9

1993…...…

46,961

100.0

9.3

36.7

28.2

25.8

1994……...

48,235

100.0

9.1

35.3

29.8

25.8

1995…...…

49,065

100.0

9.1

34.1

30.2

26.6

1996…...…

49,916

100.0

8.8

33.7

29.7

27.8

1997…...…

51,246

100.0

8.7

34.0

29.3

28.0

1998…...…

51,953

100.0

8.8

33.3

29.3

28.6

1999……...

52,512

100.0

8.7

32.7

29.2

29.5

2000…...…

53,541

100.0

8.4

31.8

30.0

29.8

2001……...

53,982

100.0

8.5

31.1

30.1

30.2

2002…...…

54,944

100.0

8.2

30.6

29.7

31.5

See note at end of table.

23

25.0

Table 9. Percent distribution of the civilian labor force 25 to 64 years of age by
educational attainment and sex, March 1970-2002—Continued
Percent distribution
Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

High school

College

Civilian
labor force Less than 4 4 years, no
years
college

1 to 3 years

4 years or
more

Men
1970…...…

39,303

100.0

37.5

34.5

12.2

1971…...…

39,539

100.0

35.9

35.1

12.5

15.7
16.5

1972……...

40,098

100.0

34.8

35.1

12.8

17.3

1973……...

40,617

100.0

32.4

36.0

13.4

18.2

1974…...…

41,344

100.0

30.8

36.0

13.9

19.3

1975…...…

41,628

100.0

28.9

36.1

14.8

20.2

1976……...

42,077

100.0

27.0

36.0

15.5

21.5

1977…...…

42,954

100.0

26.3

35.3

16.1

22.3

1978…...…

43,766

100.0

24.8

35.3

16.9

23.0

1979……...

44,630

100.0

23.0

35.7

17.5

23.8

1980……...

45,417

100.0

22.2

35.7

17.7

24.3

1981…...…

46,363

100.0

21.5

36.5

17.4

24.6

1982……...

47,144

100.0

20.3

36.8

17.5

25.5

1983…...…

47,903

100.0

19.4

36.3

17.7

26.6

1984…...…

48,767

100.0

18.4

36.7

18.0

26.9

1985…...…

49,647

100.0

17.7

36.9

18.3

27.1

1986…...…

50,733

100.0

17.2

37.0

18.9

26.9

1987…...…

51,860

100.0

16.8

37.1

18.9

27.2

1988…...…

52,616

100.0

16.5

37.3

18.5

27.8

1989…...…

53,668

100.0

15.7

36.9

19.2

28.2

1990……...

54,476

100.0

15.1

37.2

19.7

28.0

1991…...…

55,165

100.0

14.7

37.5

20.2

27.6

Percent distribution

Year

Civilian labor
force
(thousands)

Less than a
Civilian
high school
labor force
diploma

Some
High school college, no
graduates, degree, and
no college associate
degree

College
graduate

Men
1992……...

55,917

100.0

13.9

34.7

23.8

27.5

1993…...…

56,544

100.0

13.2

33.9

24.7

28.1

1994…...…

56,633

100.0

12.7

32.9

25.8

28.6

1995…...…

57,454

100.0

12.2

32.3

25.7

29.7

1996…...…

58,121

100.0

12.7

32.2

26.0

29.1

1997…...…

59,268

100.0

12.8

32.2

25.8

29.2

1998…...…

59,905

100.0

12.3

32.3

25.8

29.6

1999….......
2000…...…
2001…...…
2002…...…

60,030
60,510
61,091
62,794

100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0

11.7
11.1
11.0
11.8

32.0
31.8
31.6
30.6

25.8
26.1
26.3
25.9

30.5
30.9
31.1
31.7

NOTE: Since 1992, data on educational attainment have been based on the "highest diploma or degree
received" rather than the "number of years of school completed."
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

24

Table 10. Employed persons by major occupation and sex, 1983 and 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Year
Occupation and sex

1983
Number

2002
Percent

Number

Percent

Total
Total, 16 years and over…………….……………………………

100,834

100.0

136,485

100.0

Managerial and professional specialty………………….…..………

23,592

23.4

42,482

31.1

Executive, administrative, and managerial…………………….

10,772

10.7

20,561

15.1

Professional specialty…………………………………...…………
Technical, sales, and administrative support…………………….
Technicians and related support………………………………..

12,820

12.7

21,921

16.1

31,265

31.0

38,947

28.5

3,053

3.0

4,509

3.3

Sales occupations……………………….…………………………

11,818

11.7

16,254

11.9

Administrative support, including clerical………………………

16,395

16.3

18,184

13.3

Service occupations……………………..……………………………

13,857

13.7

19,219

14.1

Private household…………………………………………………

980

1.0

746

0.5

Protective service…………………………………………………

1,672

1.7

2,596

1.9
11.6

Service, except private household and protective………………

11,205

11.1

15,877

Precision production, craft, and repair……………………………

12,328

12.2

14,660

10.7

Operators, fabricators, and laborers………………………………

16,091

16.0

17,697

13.0

Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors………..………

7,744

7.7

6,488

4.8

Transportation and material moving occupations……………..

4,201

4.2

5,814

4.3

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers………..

4,147

4.1

5,395

4.0

Farming, forestry, and fishing………………………………………

3,700

3.7

3,480

2.5

Total, 16 years and over.………………………………………

44,047

100.0

63,582

100.0

Managerial and professional specialty……………………………

9,659

21.9

21,445

33.7

Executive, administrative, and managerial…………………….

3,490

7.9

9,446

14.9

Women

Professional specialty…………………………………………...

6,169

14.0

11,999

18.9

Technical, sales, and administrative support…………………….

20,187

45.8

24,680

38.8

Technicians and related support………………………………..

1,471

3.3

2,441

3.8

Sales occupations………………………………………………..

5,617

12.8

7,969

12.5

Administrative support, including clerical………………………

13,100

29.7

14,270

22.4

Service occupations…………………………………………………

8,326

18.9

11,518

18.1

Private household…………………………………………………

942

2.1

706

1.1

Protective service…………………………………………………

215

0.5

516

0.8

Service, except private household and protective…………….

7,170

16.3

10,296

16.2

Precision production, craft, and repair……………………………

1,000

2.3

1,201

1.9

Operators, fabricators, and laborers………………………………

4,282

9.7

4,022

6.3

Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors……………..

3,259

7.4

2,290

3.6

Transportation and material moving occupations……………..

326

0.7

603

0.9

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers…………

697

1.6

1,129

1.8

Farming, forestry, and fishing………………………………………

592

1.3

716

1.1

See note at end of table.

25

Table 10. Employed persons by major occupation and sex, 1983 and 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Year
Occupation

1983
Number

2002
Percent

Number

Percent

Men
Total, 16 years and over.………………………………………

56,787

100.0

72,903

100.0

Managerial and professional specialty……………………………

13,933

24.5

21,037

28.9

Executive, administrative, and managerial…………………….

7,282

12.8

11,115

15.2

Professional specialty……………………………………………

6,651

11.7

9,922

13.6

Technical, sales, and administrative support…………………….

11,078

19.5

14,267

19.6

Technicians and related support………………………………..

1,582

2.8

2,068

2.8

Sales occupations………………………………………………..

6,201

10.9

8,285

11.4

Administrative support, including clerical………………………

3,295

5.8

3,914

5.4

Service occupations…………………………………………………

5,530

9.7

7,701

10.6

Private household…………………………………………………

38

0.1

40

0.1

Protective service…………………………………………………

1,457

2.6

2,081

2.9

Service, except private household and protective…………….

4,035

7.1

5,580

7.7

Precision production, craft, and repair……………………………

11,328

19.9

13,459

18.5

Operators, fabricators, and laborers………………………………

11,809

20.8

13,675

18.8

Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors……………..

4,484

7.9

4,198

5.8

Transportation and material moving occupations………………

3,875

6.8

5,211

7.1

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers…………

3,450

6.1

4,265

5.9

Farming, forestry, and fishing………………………………………

3,108

5.5

2,765

3.8

NOTE: Data for 1994 and subsequent years are not
directly comparable with data for 1993 and earlier years
because of the introduction of a major redesign of the Current Population Survey.

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of
Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

26

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Total, 16 years and over……………………...………………………………………

136,485

46.6

Managerial and professional specialty……………………..……….…………………
Executive, administrative, and managerial……………………….…………………
Officials and administrators, public administration…………………….…………
Administrators, protective services…………………………………………………
Financial managers……………………………………………………………..……
Personnel and labor relations managers………………………………………….
Purchasing managers……………………………………………………………….
Managers, marketing, advertising, and public relations………………………….
Administrators, education and related fields………………………………….……
Managers, medicine and health……………………………………………..………
Postmasters and mail superintendents……………………………………..………
Managers, food serving and lodging establishments…………………….………
Managers, properties and real estate…………………………………….…………
Funeral directors……………………………………………………………...………
Management-related occupations………………………………………………….
Accountants and auditors…………………………………………………...………
Underwriters………………………………………………………………..…………
Other financial officers……………………………………………………..………
Management analysts………………………………………………………….……
Personnel, training, and labor relations specialists…………………………..…
Buyers, wholesale and retail trade, except farm products………………………
Construction inspectors………………………………………………………...……
Inspectors and compliance officers, except construction…………………...…

42,482
20,561
720
54
803
219
140
735
849
828
51
1,494
618
58
5,182
1,702
101
880
545
624
229
72
247

50.5
45.9
52.6
25.3
50.5
66.0
43.3
38.4
64.6
78.4
50.0
46.5
50.0
23.9
58.2
59.4
67.4
50.0
42.2
74.9
55.3
5.0
36.4

Professional specialty………………………………………………………………...…
Engineers, architects, and surveyors………………………………………..………
Architects………………………………………………………………...……………
Engineers………………………………………………………………….…………
Aerospace engineers…………………………………………………….…………
Chemical engineers…………………………………………………….…………
Civil engineers………………………………………………….…………..………
Electrical and electronic engineers……………………………………….………
Industrial engineers……………………………………………………..…………
Mechanical engineers………………………………………………………….…
Mathematical and computer scientists…………………………………………..…
Computer systems analysts and scientists…………………………………..……
Operations and systems researchers and analysts…………………………….
Natural scientists…………………………………………………………………….…
Chemists, except biochemists………………………………………………..……
Agricultural and food scientists……………………………………………….……
Biological and life scientists…………………………………………………..……
Medical scientists………………………………………………………………..…
Health diagnosing occupations…………………………………………………...…
Physicians……………………………………………………………………….……
Dentists…………………………………………………………………………….…

21,921
2,249
197
2,028
90
77
267
677
235
301
2,030
1,742
238
545
130
51
119
89
1,176
825
180

54.7
11.6
20.1
10.8
8.1
16.5
10.8
10.3
17.2
6.9
30.8
27.8
48.9
35.1
29.8
34.6
44.0
60.4
29.2
30.6
19.4

See note at end of table.

See note at end of table.

27

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Health assessment and treating occupations…………………………..…………
Registered nurses………………………………………………………….…………
Pharmacists………………………………………………………………….………
Dietitians……………………………………………………………………….………
Therapists………………………………………………………………...…………
Respiratory therapists………………………………………………….…………
Occupational therapists………………………………………………….…………
Physical therapists………………………………………………………..………
Speech therapists………………………………………………………..…………
Physicians' assistants…………………………………………………………….…
Teachers, college and university………………………………………..……………
Teachers, except college and university………………………………..…………
Teachers, prekindergarten and kindergarten……………………………...………
Teachers, elementary school……………………………………………………...
Teachers, secondary school……………………………………………..…………
Teachers, special education……………………………...…………………………
Counselors, educational and vocational……………………….……………………
Librarians, archivists, and curators……………………………...…………………
Librarians…………………………………………………………...…………………
Social scientists and urban planners……………………………….………………
Economists…………………………………………………..………………………
Psychologists………………………………………….………………………………
Social, recreation, and religious workers………………..…………………………
Social workers………………………………….……………………………………
Recreation workers………………………………..…………………………………
Clergy…………………………………………………...……………………………
Lawyers and judges…………………………………….……………………………
Lawyers………………………………………………..………………………………
Writers, artists, entertainers, and athletes…………………….……………………
Authors…………………………………………………………...……………………
Technical writers………………………………………...……………………………
Designers…………………………………………………...…………………………
Musicians and composers……………………….…………………………………
Actors and directors………………………….………………………………………
Painters, sculptors, craft artists, and artist printmakers………………………..
Photographers…………………………………………...……………………………
Editors and reporters……………………………...…………………………………
Public relations specialists…………………………..………………………………
Announcers…………………………………….……………………………………
Athletes…………………………………………..……………………………………

3,267
2,311
231
74
562
97
78
167
117
89
1,015
5,652
647
2,341
1,289
374
282
231
207
457
123
277
1,556
848
129
393
963
929
2,498
139
68
770
161
155
225
178
280
211
52
95

86.4
92.9
51.7
90.2
77.5
58.4
89.1
70.2
94.3
59.5
42.7
75.0
97.7
83.0
58.1
85.4
74.3
78.8
81.7
59.6
55.0
65.9
57.3
74.0
74.2
14.1
29.3
29.2
49.8
54.7
61.5
56.4
36.4
38.2
47.9
33.2
48.5
68.2
16.4
25.8

Technical, sales, and administrative support………………..…………………………
Technicians and related support……………………..………………………………
Health technologists and technicians………………….……………………………
Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians……………………...…………
Dental hygienists……………………………………………….……………………
Radiologic technicians…………………………….…………………………………
Licensed practical nurses…………………………...………………………………
Engineering and related technologists and technicians…………………….……

38,947
4,509
1,879
384
133
182
382
980

63.4
54.1
81.5
76.5
98.1
74.4
94.9
20.8

See note at end of table.

28

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Electrical and electronic technicians……………………..………………………
Drafting occupations………………………………….………………………………
Surveying and mapping technicians…………………….…………………………
Science technicians……………………………………….…………………………
Biological technicians………………………...……………………………………
Chemical technicians…………………….…………………………………………
Technicians, except health, engineering, and science…………………………..
Airplane pilots and navigators…………………….…………………………………
Computer programmers……………………….……………………………………
Legal assistants……………………………………..………………………………

433
247
65
291
131
64
1,359
129
605
401

19.1
21.6
9.1
47.2
59.5
33.6
41.8
4.2
25.6
82.2

Sales occupations……………………………….………………………………………
Supervisors and proprietors……………………..……………………………………
Sales representatives, finance and business services…………………..………
Insurance sales……………………………………………………………….………
Real estate sales………………………………..……………………………………
Securities and financial services sales……………………...……………………
Advertising and related sales………………………...……………………………
Sales occupations, other business services………………...……………………
Sales representatives, commodities, except retail……………………….………
Sales representatives, mining, manufacturing, and wholesale…………………
Sales workers, retail and personal services……………………………...…………
Sales workers, motor vehicles and boats……………………………….…………
Sales workers, apparel………………………………………...……………………
Sales workers, shoes……………………………………….………………………
Sales workers, furniture and home furnishings………………….………………
Sales workers, radio, television, hi-fi, and appliances…………………….……
Sales workers, hardware and building supplies……………………..……………
Sales workers, parts…………………………………………….……………………
Sales workers, other commodities……………………….…………………………
Sales counter clerks…………………………………….……………………………
Cashiers………………………………………...……………………………………
Street and door-to-door sales workers……………….……………………………
News vendors……………………………………………..…………………………
Sales-related occupations………………………...…………………………………
Demonstrators, promoters, and models…………………...………………………

16,254
4,828
2,944
612
839
568
181
744
1,563
1,526
6,811
358
390
97
181
309
296
153
1,467
183
2,942
334
103
107
77

49.0
39.6
44.8
45.0
55.1
28.6
61.8
41.3
25.2
25.6
62.7
11.3
77.7
52.8
50.7
27.2
23.3
8.6
66.2
59.8
76.7
72.9
36.7
71.0
73.1

Administrative support occupations, including clerical………………….…………
Supervisors, administrative support……………………………...…………………
Supervisors, general office…………………………….……………………………
Supervisors, financial records processing………………...………………………
Supervisors, distribution, scheduling, and adjusting clerks…………………….
Computer equipment operators……………………………………….……………
Computer operators………………………...………………………………………
Secretaries, stenographers, and typists…………………...………………………
Secretaries…………………………………………….………………………………
Stenographers………………………………………………...……………………
Typists…………………………………………….…………………………………
Information clerks…………………………………….………………………………
Interviewers……………………………………...……………………………………
Hotel clerks……………………………………….…………………………………
Transportation ticket and reservation agents…………………….………………

18,184
717
402
107
185
308
301
3,020
2,302
146
571
2,053
169
131
237

78.5
60.5
69.4
81.6
31.6
47.1
46.9
97.6
98.6
95.2
93.9
89.0
82.2
70.1
72.7

See note at end of table. See note at end of table.

29

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Receptionists……………………………………….…………………………………
Records processing, except financial…………………...…………………………
Order clerks………………………………………………….………………………
Personnel clerks, except payroll and timekeeping………………………………
Library clerks……………………………………………………….…………………
File clerks…………………………………………………..…………………………
Records clerks…………………………………………….…………………………
Financial records processing…………………………….…………………………
Bookkeepers, accounting, and auditing clerks…………………….……………
Payroll and timekeeping clerks…………………………………..…………………
Billing clerks……………………………………………………..……………………
Cost and rate clerks………………………………………….………………………
Billing, posting, and calculating machine operators…………………….………
Duplicating, mail, and other office machine operators…………………….………
Communications equipment operators……………………………………….……
Telephone operators……………………………………………………….………
Mail and message distributing………………………….……………………………
Postal clerks, except mail carriers……………………..…………………………
Mail carriers, postal service…………………………...……………………………
Mail clerks, except Postal Service………………………...………………………
Messengers………………………………………………..…………………………
Material recording, scheduling, and distributing clerks……………………..……
Dispatchers…………………………………………………...………………………
Production coordinators…………………………….………………………………
Traffic, shipping, and receiving clerks………………...……………………………
Stock and inventory clerks……………………………….…………………………
Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers………………….………………
Expediters…………………………………………………………….………………
Adjusters and investigators………………………...…………………………………
Insurance adjusters, examiners, and investigators……………………..………
Investigators and adjusters, except insurance…………………….………………
Eligibility clerks, social welfare…………………………….………………………
Bill and account collectors………………………….………………………………
Miscellaneous administrative support occupations………………………...………
General office clerks……………………………………………………...…………
Bank tellers……………………………………….…………………………………
Data-entry keyers……………………………………...……………………………
Statistical clerks……………………………………….……………………………
Teachers' aides…………………………………..…………………………………

1,068
995
289
70
130
288
206
2,205
1,592
175
229
51
159
58
138
119
907
274
338
165
130
1,995
258
230
623
463
53
310
1,929
497
1,135
86
212
3,858
842
477
595
97
813

97.1
80.5
74.9
79.1
79.2
81.5
87.4
91.8
92.7
91.2
89.7
81.2
89.8
55.1
83.6
85.4
39.7
49.5
29.9
52.5
28.1
45.9
55.0
57.4
30.9
43.9
51.6
65.7
73.8
71.9
74.5
87.3
68.5
84.2
83.3
87.3
81.8
85.1
91.6

Service occupations………………………………...……………………………………
Private household…………………………………..……………………………………
Childcare workers………………………………..……………………………………
Cleaners and servants…………………………………..……………………………
Protective service……………………………………..…………………………………
Supervisors……………………………………………..………………………………
Police and detectives………………………………….……………………………
Guards………………………………………...………………………………………
Firefighting and fire prevention…………………….…………………………………
Firefighting……………………………………………...……………………………
Police and detectives……………………………...…………………………………
Police and detectives, public service………………….……………………………

19,219
746
229
500
2,596
237
126
66
262
248
1,076
586

59.9
94.7
97.6
93.7
19.9
13.3
15.7
17.7
4.1
3.4
18.3
15.5

See note at end of table.

30

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages —Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Sheriffs, bailiffs, and other law enforcement officers……………….……………
Correctional institution officers………………………………………….…………
Guards……………………………………………………...…………………………
Guards and police, except public services……………………..…………………

162
328
1,022
885

19.3
23.0
27.0
21.9

Service occupations, except private household and protective services…………
Food preparation and service occupations………………………………..………
Supervisors, food preparation and service…………………..……………………
Bartenders………………………………………………………...…………………
Waiters and waitresses……………………………...………………………………
Cooks………………………………………………...………………………………
Food counter, fountain, and related occupations…………………….…………
Kitchen workers, food preparation…………………..……………………………
Waiters' and waitresses' assistants………………….……………………………
Miscellaneous food preparation occupations…………………….………………
Health service occupations……………………………………...……………………
Dental assistants…………………………………….………………………………
Health aides, except nursing……………………….………………………………
Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants…………………….……………………
Cleaning and building service occupations…………………..……………………
Supervisors………………………………………………….………………………
Maids and housemen………………………………….……………………………
Janitors and cleaners……………………………….………………………………
Pest control……………………………………..……………………………………
Personal service occupations……………………...…………………………………
Supervisors……………………………………………...……………………………
Barbers…………………………………………...……………………………………
Hairdressers and cosmetologists…………………….……………………………
Attendants, amusement and recreation facilities…………………………..……
Public transportation attendants……………………………..……………………
Welfare service aides……………………………………...………………………
Family childcare providers…………………………..………………………………
Early childhood teachers' assistants………………………...……………………

15,877
6,614
488
341
1,430
2,264
398
338
696
659
2,817
224
350
2,243
3,162
183
709
2,199
63
3,284
143
91
908
267
129
113
457
536

64.9
55.8
67.0
55.1
74.9
40.3
66.0
68.5
52.5
50.4
89.2
98.0
78.6
89.9
45.7
31.7
82.3
36.4
1.4
80.7
69.5
23.4
89.7
40.3
80.0
82.8
99.4
93.8

Precision production, craft, and repair…………………...……………………………
Mechanics and repairers………………………………….……………………………
Supervisors…………………………………………..…………………………………
Mechanics and repairers, except supervisors……………….……………………
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics and repairers…………………..……
Automobile mechanics……………………………………………….……………
Bus, truck, and stationary engine mechanics…………………..………………
Aircraft engine mechanics………………………………….………………………
Small engine repairers……………………………………….……………………
Automobile body and related repairers……………………….…………………
Heavy equipment mechanics………………………..……………………………
Industrial machinery repairers……………………….……………………………
Electrical and electronic equipment repairers………………….…………………
Electronic repairers, communications and industrial equipment………………
Data processing equipment repairers………………………….…………………
Telephone installers and repairers……………………….………………………
Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics……………………..……

14,660
4,760
237
4,523
1,831
867
343
126
53
212
180
460
870
193
283
240
357

8.2
4.5
7.4
4.4
1.3
1.4
.7
2.2
.7
2.2
.4
3.2
12.0
5.8
16.7
15.9
.6

See note at end of table. See note at end of table.

31

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Construction trades…………………………………...…………………………………
Supervisors………………………………………..……………………………………
Construction trades, except supervisors………………...…………………………
Brickmasons and stonemasons………………………….…………………………
Tile setters, hard and soft…………………………..………………………………
Carpet installers……………………………………...………………………………
Carpenters……………………………...……………………………………………
Drywall installers……………………………...………………………………………
Electricians…………………………………………….………………………………
Electrical power installers and repairers………………….………………………
Painters, construction and maintenance…………………...……………………
Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters……………………….……………………
Concrete and terrazzo finishers……………………………..……………………
Insulation workers………………………………………….…………………………
Roofers…………………………………………………….…………………………
Structural metalworkers……………………………….……………………………
Extractive occupations…………………………………...……………………………
Precision production occupations……………………….……………………………
Supervisors……………………………………………...……………………………
Precision metalworking occupations…………………..……………………………
Tool and die makers……………………………………..…………………………
Machinists…………………………………………...………………………………
Sheet-metal workers…………………………….…………………………………
Precision woodworking occupations…………………..……………………………
Cabinet makers and bench carpenters………………….…………………………
Precision textile, apparel, and furnishings machine workers………………….…
Dressmakers………………………………………………………….………………
Upholsterers…………………………...……………………………………………
Precision workers, assorted materials………………….……………………………
Optical goods workers………………………...……………………………………
Dental laboratory and medical appliance technicians………………………..…
Electrical and electronic equipment assemblers…………………..……………
Precision food production occupations…………………………...…………………
Butchers and meat cutters…………………………………….……………………
Bakers……………………………………………..…………………………………
Food batchmakers………………………………….………………………………
Precision inspectors, testers, and related workers………………………….……
Inspectors, testers, and graders…………………………….………………………
Plant and system operators…………………………….……………………………
Water and sewage treatment plant operators………………...…………………
Stationary engineers……………………………………………….………………

6,304
963
5,341
236
104
140
1,563
187
862
126
654
548
104
60
235
67
115
3,481
1,056
826
99
470
125
104
74
189
81
58
449
72
66
237
431
229
148
54
156
149
271
77
114

2.4
2.4
2.4
.4
1.2
3.8
1.8
2.1
2.5
3.2
4.9
1.5
1.2
10.8
2.4
1.4
1.9
23.8
19.9
6.8
2.3
5.4
3.0
11.4
6.4
53.0
86.7
20.5
54.0
68.0
44.5
63.1
36.6
20.8
50.3
65.9
23.9
23.8
5.0
4.1
2.9

Operators, fabricators, and laborers………………..…………………………………
Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors………………...…………………
Machine operators and tenders, except precision………………….………………
Metalworking and plastic working machine operators…………………….……
Punching and stamping press machine operators……………………..………
Grinding, abrading, buffing, and polishing machine operators…………………
Metal and plastic processing machine operators…………………………….…
Molding and casting machine operators……………………………..…………
Woodworking machine operators………………………………….………………
Sawing machine operators……………………………………….………………

17,697
6,488
4,065
286
69
91
136
86
114
71

22.7
35.3
34.6
17.2
26.7
20.5
19.5
23.8
12.9
10.2

See note at end of table.

32

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages —Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Printing machine operators………………………..………………………………
Printing press operators………………………….………………………………
Textile, apparel, and furnishings machine operators…………………...………
Textile sewing machine operators……………………………………...…………
Pressing machine operators………………………………..……………………
Laundering and drycleaning machine operators…………………….…………
Machine operators, assorted materials……………………………….……………
Packaging and filling machine operators………………….……………………
Mixing and blending machine operators………………………..………………
Separating, filtering, and clarifying machine operators…………………….…
Painting and paint spraying machine operators…………………………..……
Furnace, kiln, and oven operators, except food………………………..………
Slicing and cutting machine operators……………………………..……………
Photographic process machine operators……………………...………………
Fabricators, assemblers, and hand working occupations………………….……
Welders and cutters…………………………………………..……………………
Assemblers…………………………………………………………...……………
Production inspectors, testers, samplers, and weighers……………………….
Production inspectors, checkers, and examiners…………………….…………
Production testers………………………………………………………………...
Graders and sorters, except agricultural…………………………...……………

353
274
757
352
81
204
2,401
268
113
66
154
50
138
89
1,769
511
1,108
654
472
54
124

25.2
18.1
67.6
77.2
69.5
59.3
29.5
55.9
11.2
9.9
13.9
7.4
23.5
60.5
31.7
5.1
42.2
49.4
50.6
20.3
57.8

Transportation and material moving occupations………………...…………………
Motor vehicle operators…………………………………………...……………………
Supervisors……………………………………………...……………………………
Truckdrivers…………………………………………….………………………………
Drivers—sales workers……………………………….………………………………
Busdrivers……………………………………………...………………………………
Taxicab drivers and chauffeurs………………………….……………………………
Parking lot attendants………………………………….………………………………
Transportation occupations, except motor vehicles…………………….…………
Rail transportation……………………………………………….……………………
Locomotive operating occupations……………………………..…………………
Water transportation…………………………………….……………………………
Material moving equipment operators…………………...……………………………
Operating engineers…………………………………...………………………………
Crane and tower operators………………………...…………………………………
Excavating and loading machine operators…………………….…………………
Grader, dozer, and scraper operators………………………..……………………
Industrial truck and tractor equipment operators………………...…………………

5,814
4,482
97
3,234
153
605
332
53
169
111
54
58
1,163
265
72
106
52
563

10.4
12.1
25.5
4.9
10.5
48.4
12.4
14.3
4.5
4.1
3.5
5.2
4.6
1.1
.4
1.0
5.2
7.1

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers…………………...……………
Helpers, construction and extractive occupations………………...…………………
Helpers, construction trades…………………………………..……………………
Construction laborers…………………………………………...……………………
Production helpers……………………………………………...……………………
Freight, stock, and material handlers……………………….……………………
Stock handlers and baggers………………………………….……………………
Machine feeders and offbearers……………………………..……………………
Garage and service station related occupations……………………..……………

5,395
123
114
1,089
54
1,949
1,105
62
171

20.9
6.5
6.5
3.9
23.9
25.4
33.8
51.0
8.8

See note at end of table.

33

Table 11. Employed persons by detailed occupation and sex, 2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Occupation

Total employed Percent women

Vehicle washers and equipment cleaners………………...………………………
Hand packers and packagers……………………………….………………………
Laborers, except construction…………………………...…………………………
Farming, forestry, and fishing…………………………...………………………………
Farm operators and managers…………………………...……………………………
Farmers, except horticultural…………………………….……………………………
Horticultural specialty farmers……………………………………...………………
Farm managers, except horticultural………………………….……………………
Other agricultural and related occupations………………...…………………………
Farm occupations, except managerial………………………….……………………
Farm workers…………………………………………………….…………………
Related agricultural occupations………………………...…………………………
Supervisors, related agricultural occupations………………...…………………
Groundskeepers and gardeners, except farm……………………...……………
Animal caretakers, except farm……………………………………...……………
Graders and sorters, agricultural products……………………..…………………
Forestry and logging occupations………………………………...…………………
Timber cutting and logging occupations………………………..…………………

NOTE: Generally, data for occupations with fewer than
50,000 employed are not published separately but are
included in the totals for the appropriate broad occupation group shown.

34

306
397
1,267

10.6
60.1
21.8

3,480
1,168
898
76
169
2,181
779
716
1,403
188
973
170
68
85
54

20.6
24.5
25.5
13.5
22.4
19.2
21.4
21.0
18.1
7.7
7.8
68.1
67.7
7.3
1.6

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

Table 12. Percent distribution of employed women by occupation, race, and Hispanic origin,
2002 annual averages

Occupation

White

Black

Hispanic
origin

Total, 16 years and over (thousands)……………..……………

52,164

7,914

6,744

Percent……………………………………………………..……

100.0

100.0

100.0

Managerial and professional specialty………………….…………

34.8

26.3

18.8

Executive, administrative, and managerial………………………

15.5

11.2

9.3

Professional specialty…………………………………………….

19.3

15.1

9.5

Technical, sales, and administrative support…………………….

39.5

36.4

36.2

Technicians and related support……………………………..…

3.9

3.7

2.6

Sales occupations…………………………………………………

13.0

10.1

12.5

Administrative support, including clerical………………………

22.7

22.6

21.2

Service occupations…………………………………………..………

16.7

26.6

27.8

Private household…………………………………….……………

1.1

1.1

3.6

Protective service…………………………………….……………

0.7

1.9

0.8

Service, except private household and protective ……………

15.0

23.6

23.5

Precision production, craft, and repair……………………………

1.8

1.6

2.9

Operators, fabricators, and laborers………………………...……

5.8

8.8

12.4

Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors………………

3.2

5.3

7.9

Transportation and material moving occupations………………

0.9

1.6

0.9

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers…………

1.7

1.9

3.6

Farming, forestry, and fishing………………………………………

1.3

0.2

1.7

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

35

Table 13. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (2002) dollars by race,
Hispanic origin, and sex, 1979-2002 annual averages
Total, both sexes
Year

Total

White

Women

Black

Hispanic
origin

Total

White

Black

Hispanic
origin

1979…..

$551

$567

$454

$445

$418

$422

$388

$360

1980…..

540

554

438

432

415

420

382

356

1981…..

535

548

442

421

414

418

389

359

1982…..

539

551

437

428

426

432

387

362

1983……

536

546

447

428

432

435

397

368

1984…..

537

553

443

427

437

441

397

367

1985……

547

566

442

430

442

448

402

367

1986¹……

560

579

456

434

456

460

413

377

1987…..

565

580

456

430

459

465

418

380

1988…..

562

576

459

424

460

464

421

380

1989……

559

573

447

417

459

468

422

377

1990¹….

550

566

439

406

462

471

411

371

1991…..

549

569

448

402

471

480

416

376

1992……

553

575

448

404

477

486

421

379

1993……

563

582

452

406

482

491

426

384

1994¹….

561

581

445

389

479

490

415

366

1995……

561

579

449

386

476

486

416

357

1996……

559

577

442

387

477

488

413

361

1997¹……

562

580

447

392

482

496

419

355

1998¹….

576

600

469

408

502

516

441

371

1999¹……

592

618

480

415

510

521

441

376

2000¹……

601

617

489

414

513

522

448

380

2001……
20022…

606

622

495

421

519

529

458

391

609

624

498

423

530

549

474

396

See footnotes at end of table.

36

Table 13. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers in constant (2002) dollars by race,
Hispanic origin, and sex, 1979-2002 annual averages— Continued
Men
Year

Total

White

Women's earnings as a percent of men's
Black

Hispanic
origin

Total

White

Black

Hispanic
origin

1979……

$670

$684

$521

$503

62.3

61.7

74.4

71.7

1980……

647

661

504

484

64.2

63.4

75.8

73.5

1981……

642

661

506

474

64.4

63.1

76.9

75.7

1982……

649

669

496

480

65.7

64.5

78.1

75.5

1983……

649

663

504

469

66.5

65.6

78.9

78.5

1984……

646

661

499

473

67.6

66.8

79.5

77.7

1985……

649

666

486

472

68.1

67.2

82.6

77.7

1986¹……

656

678

499

468

69.5

67.9

82.8

80.6

1987……

657

681

495

463

69.8

68.2

84.4

82.0

1988……

656

679

508

450

70.2

68.4

82.8

84.4

1989……

655

675

487

441

70.1

69.3

86.5

85.4

1990¹……

642

659

482

424

71.9

71.5

85.3

87.4

1991……

635

652

483

416

74.2

73.7

86.1

90.4

1992……

629

646

477

426

75.8

75.3

88.2

89.1

1993……

625

642

480

424

77.1

76.5

88.8

90.5

1994¹……

627

657

480

412

76.4

74.6

86.5

88.9

1995……

630

663

482

410

75.5

73.3

86.4

87.1

1996……

636

662

470

406

75.0

73.8

87.9

88.8

1997¹……

647

665

483

415

74.4

74.6

86.8

85.7

1998¹……

659

678

516

430

76.3

76.1

85.5

86.4

1999¹……

667

688

527

438

76.5

75.7

83.8

85.7

2000¹……

675

699

525

432

76.0

74.7

85.3

87.9

2001……
20022…

683

705

526

445

76.0

75.1

87.1

87.9

680

702

523

449

77.9

78.2

90.6

88.2

2003" in the February 2003 issue of Employment and
Earnings.

¹ The comparability of historical labor force data has been
affected at various times by methodological and conceptual
changes in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an
explanation, see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of
Error section of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS
periodical.
2
Data for 2002 are based on new population controls from
the 2000 census. Data from 1990-2001 are based on 1990
population controls. For additional information, see "Revisions to the Current Population Survey Effective in January

NOTE: Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race;
thus, they are included in both the white and black population groups. The Consumer Price Index research series
using current methods (CPI-U-RS) is used to convert current dollars to constant dollars.
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of
Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

37

Table 14. Median usual weekly earnings of employed full-time wage and
salary workers 25 years and over by educational attainment and sex,
2002 annual averages

Total employed
(in thousands)

Median weekly
earnings

Total……………….………………………………

89,067

$647

Less than a high school diploma…………...

8,544

388

Less than 1 year of high school………….…

3,184

358

1-3 years of high school………….…………

4,392

403

4 years of high school, no diploma………..

969

421

High school graduate or more…………….…

80,523

685

High school graduates, no college……….…

27,148

536

Some college, no degree…………….………

15,970

617

Associate degree………………….…………

8,653

657

Occupational program…………...…………

4,585

642

Academic program…………….……………

4,068

673

College graduates…………………..………

28,751

941

Educational attainment and sex

Total, both sexes 25 years and over

Bachelor's degree……………….…………

19,004

876

Master's degree…………………...……….

7,030

1,026

Professional degree…..……………..…….

1,448

1,297

Doctoral degree…………...……………….

1,269

1,345

Women, 25 years and over
Total……………………………..………………

38,956

570

Less than a high school diploma…………...

2,879

323

Less than 1 year of high school………….…
1-3 years of high school…………………...…

979

305

1,559

335

4 years of high school, no diploma………..

341

364

High school graduate or more………….……

36,077

593

High school graduates, no college…………

11,760

459

Some college, no degree……………….……

7,299

524

Associate degree……………………….……

4,282

578

Occupational program…………….………

2,190

565

Academic program…………….……………

2,092

590

College graduates……………….……………

12,736

809

Bachelor's degree……………...………….

8,519

755

Master's degree………………...………….

3,342

901

Professional degree……………….………

506

1,060

Doctoral degree……………………..………

369

1,126

38

Table 14. Median usual weekly earnings of employed full-time wage and
salary workers 25 years and over by educational attainment and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued

Total employed
(in thousands)

Median weekly
earnings

Total……………………….………………………

50,111

$732

Less than a high school diploma…………..…

5,665

421

Less than 1 year of high school………….…

2,204

387

1-3 years of high school……………...…….

2,833

459

Educational attainment and sex

Men, 25 years and over

4 years of high school, no diploma…………

628

488

High school graduate or more…………..……

44,446

776

High school graduates, no college………..

15,389

616

Some college, no degree………………….…

8,671

715

Associate degree…………….………………

4,371

759

Occupational program………….…………

2,395

739

Academic program………………….………

1,976

783

College graduates…………….………………

16,015

1,089

Bachelor's degree………………….………

10,485

1,001

Master's degree……………...…………….

3,688

1,201

Professional degree…………...…………..

942

1,448

Doctoral degree………………….…………

900

1,429

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics

39

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes

Women

Men
Total
employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings
as percent
of men's

$530

56,431

$680

77.9

16,469
7,633
361
14
363
138
56
244
453
549
487
211
2,524
851
67
363
137
417
84
2
90

756
736
766
(1)
837
855
910
874
832
750
517
616
709
734
741
718
996
711
628
(1)
774

16,225
8,432
328
39
362
73
78
427
275
164
544
171
1,751
573
26
383
161
137
85
64
144

1,058
1,081
1,124
(1)
1,170
1,207
1,181
1,262
1,183
1,110
696
817
970
980
(1)
1,127
1,226
919
707
851
984

71.5
68.1
68.1
(1)
71.5
70.8
77.1
69.3
70.3
67.6
74.3
75.4
73.1
74.9
(1)
63.7
81.2
77.4
88.8
(1)
78.7

8,836
235
27
206
8
10
28
67
38
19
549
405
124
166
40
42
44
197
169
2,070
1,597
84
47

773
968
(1)
1,011
(1)
(1)
(1)
1,133
(1)
(1)
945
962
897
879
(1)
(1)
(1)
918
947
869
870
1,311
(1)

7,793
1,811
112
1,683
76
68
202
569
195
271
1,259
1,120
116
310
83
58
35
431
370
375
140
86
4

1,037
1,170
1,102
1,180
1,377
1,393
1,105
1,231
1,085
1,167
1,165
1,172
1,056
1,025
1,136
926
(1)
1,549
1,626
959
957
1,473
(1)

74.5
82.7
(1)
85.7
(1)
(1)
(1)
92.0
(1)
(1)
81.1
82.1
84.9
85.8
(1)
(1)
(1)
59.3
58.2
90.6
90.9
89.0
(1)

Total
employed

Median
weekly
earnings

$609

43,773

Managerial and professional specialty……………….…………
32,694
Executive, administrative, and managerial…………………..… 16,065
690
Administrators and officials, public administration……………
Administrators, protective services…………………………...
52
725
Financial managers………………………………………..……
Personnel and labor relations managers…………………..…
211
134
Purchasing managers…………………………………..………
Managers, marketing, advertising, and public relations……
671
Administrators, education and related fields………………..…
727
Managers, medicine and health………………………………
714
Managers, food serving and lodging establishments………… 1,031
382
Managers, properties and real estate…………………………
4,275
Management-related occupations………………………….…
Accountants and auditors…………………………..…………
1,424
93
Underwriters…………………………………….………………
Other financial officers………………………………..………
746
Management analysts………………………..………………
298
554
Personnel, training, and labor relations specialists…………
Buyers, wholesale and retail trade, except farm products…
169
Construction inspectors………………………………………
66
Inspectors and compliance officers, except construction…
233

884
890
910
965
973
970
1,074
1,115
954
803
602
687
778
799
746
917
1,077
753
669
842
874

Professional specialty……………………………………………
16,629
2,046
Engineers, architects, and surveyors………………..…………
140
Architects…………………………………………………….…
Engineers………………………………………..………………
1,889
Aerospace engineers……………………….………………
83
Chemical engineers……………………………..……………
78
Civil engineers……………………………….………………
230
636
Electrical and electronic engineers………………...………
Industrial engineers………………………………..…………
233
291
Mechanical engineers…………………………...……………
Mathematical and computer scientists………………….……
1,808
1,525
Computer systems analysts and scientists…………………
240
Operations and systems researchers and analysts…………
Natural scientists…………………………………………………
475
123
Chemists, except biochemists…………………………….…
Biological and life scientists…………….……………...……
100
Medical scientists……………………………………..………
79
Health diagnosing occupations……….…………….…………
628
Physicians…………………………………………...…………
538
2,445
Health assessment and treating occupations…………………
1,737
Registered nurses……………………..………………………
Pharmacists……………………………………...……………
170
Dietitians…………………………………...……………………
51

879
1,151
1,004
1,161
1,365
1,313
1,055
1,222
1,032
1,163
1,096
1,125
953
958
1,013
932
969
1,406
1,475
883
876
1,367
591

Occupation

Total, 16 years and over………………………….……………

Total
employed

Median
weekly
earnings

100,204

See footnotes at end of table.

40

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes
Occupation

Total
Employed

Women

Median
weekly
earnings

Men

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

Therapists……………………………………...………………
Respiratory therapists……………………..…………………
Occupational therapists………………………..……………
Physical therapists…………………………...………………
Speech therapists………………………..……………………
Physicians' assistants…………………………...……………
Teachers, college and university……………………..………
Teachers, except college and university………………….……
Teachers, prekindergarten and kindergarten………………
Teachers, elementary school……………………..…………
Teachers, secondary school………………….……………
Teachers, special education……………………..…………
Counselors, educational and vocational………………..……
Librarians, archivists, and curators…………………….………
Librarians…………………………………………………..…
Social scientists and urban planners…………………..……
Economists…………………………………………...………
Psychologists…………………………………………...……
Social, recreation, and religious workers…………………..
Social workers……………………………………………….
Recreation workers……………………………………….…
Clergy………………………………………………..…………
Lawyers and judges…………………………...………………
Lawyers…………………………………….…………………
Writers, artists, entertainers, and athletes………………..…
Technical writers……………………………………….……
Designers……………………………..………………………
Actors and directors………………………..…………………
Painters, sculptors, craft artists, and artist printmakers…
Photographers…………………………………………………
Editors and reporters………………………………..………
Public relations specialists………………………….………

411
83
52
121
82
77
713
4,457
449
2,039
1,135
327
228
179
157
312
103
168
1,307
753
84
342
635
605
1,395
56
468
96
100
64
221
161

$851
761
901
907
874
1,031
1,028
746
455
764
797
758
821
758
746
805
847
764
654
651
437
716
1,488
1,492
738
903
753
840
668
614
755
754

298
43
45
78
76
45
271
3,276
440
1,677
639
277
166
138
124
187
61
111
723
553
58
41
215
205
645
31
229
39
44
14
94
108

$832
(1)
(1)
926
874
(1)
896
720
451
750
767
751
786
748
743
738
779
719
615
632
432
(1)
1,206
1,237
657
(1)
635
(1)
(1)
(1)
697
731

113
40
6
43
6
32
442
1,181
10
362
496
50
62
41
33
126
42
57
584
200
26
301
420
400
750
25
240
57
56
50
126
52

$879
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
1,140
828
(1)
836
842
810
874
(1)
(1)
996
(1)
966
728
741
(1)
727
1,615
1,610
809
(1)
855
881
819
702
813
866

94.7
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
78.6
87.0
(1)
89.7
91.1
92.7
89.9
(1)
(1)
74.1
(1)
74.4
84.5
85.3
(1)
(1)
74.7
76.8
81.2
(1)
74.3
(1)
(1)
(1)
85.7
84.4

Technical, sales, and administrative support……………………
Technicians and related support…………………………..……
Health technologists and technicians…………………...……
Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians…………
Radiologic technicians…………………………………………
Licensed practical nurses………………………..……………
Engineering and related technologists and technicians……
Electrical and electronic technicians…………………………
Drafting occupations……………………………………………
Surveying and mapping technicians………………………..
Science technicians…………………………………………..…
Biological technicians……………………………………...…
Chemical technicians……………………………………..……
Technicians, except health, engineering, and science………

27,829
3,660
1,395
309
139
296
842
378
212
54
249
99
62
1,174

550
694
585
664
714
571
752
793
718
699
656
601
683
854

16,960
1,834
1,093
233
100
274
157
61
46
3
104
55
19
480

490
591
550
614
671
566
620
673
(1)
(1)
576
507
(1)
688

10,869
1,827
302
76
39
22
685
317
166
51
145
44
42
695

699
841
724
828
(1)
(1)
781
824
756
703
733
(1)
(1)
1,010

70.1
70.3
76.0
74.2
(1)
(1)
79.4
81.7
(1)
(1)
78.6
(1)
(1)
68.1

See footnotes at end of table.

41

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes

Women

Men
Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

(1)
$902
629

103
414
60

$1,258
1,048
697

(1)
86.1
90.2

4,444
1,313
868
211
223
132
92
210
326
1,907
35
110
53
65
37
12
422
50
1,036
64

441
507
633
580
712
737
677
582
673
326
(1)
326
469
435
(1)
(1)
353
315
307
458

5,731
1,988
1,083
197
176
297
58
354
1,036
1,612
286
32
77
160
174
123
284
40
351
43

742
766
937
872
945
1,149
875
856
909
488
677
(1)
555
622
518
507
466
(1)
324
(1)

59.4
66.2
67.6
66.5
75.3
64.1
77.4
68.0
74.0
66.8
(1)
(1)
84.5
69.9
(1)
(1)
75.8
(1)
94.8
(1)

10,683
425
277
87
53
134
132
2,197
1,709
77
410
1,236
87
69
125
688
584
184
47
51
136
157

488
607
594
688
586
510
511
496
496
515
491
442
453
359
519
429
477
509
(1)
442
425
483

3,312
260
122
20
106
143
140
52
23
7
22
169
19
29
65
21
141
64
14
8
37
18

583
711
734
(1)
632
624
628
544
(1)
(1)
(1)
533
(1)
(1)
623
(1)
547
571
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

83.7
85.4
80.9
(1)
92.7
81.7
81.4
91.2
(1)
(1)
(1)
82.9
(1)
(1)
83.3
(1)
87.2
89.1
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

$1,245
1,020
642

5
130
287

10,175
Sales occupations………………………………………..………
Supervisors and proprietors……………………….……………
3,301
1,951
Sales representatives, finance and business services………
Insurance sales…………………………………………………
408
Real estate sales………………………………………...……
399
430
Securities and financial services sales…………………...…
Advertising and related sales………………………………..
150
Sales occupations, other business services……………….
564
1,362
Sales representatives, commodities, except retail……………
Sales workers, retail and personal services…………………
3,519
Sales workers, motor vehicles and boats……………………
321
Sales workers, apparel…………………………………………
142
Sales workers, furniture and home furnishings……………
130
Sales workers, radio, television, hi-fi, and appliances………
225
Sales workers, hardware and building supplies……………
211
Sales workers, parts……………………………………………
135
Sales workers, other commodities………………………..…
706
Sales counter clerks……………………………………………
91
Cashiers…………………………………………………….…… 1,387
Street and door-to-door sales workers………………...……
107

601
655
780
674
799
979
723
754
854
380
665
341
509
561
498
487
387
350
311
481

13,994
Administrative support, including clerical……………………...
Supervisors…………………………………………………...…
686
General office……………………………………………………
398
Financial records processing…………………..……………
107
Distribution, scheduling, and adjusting clerks………………
159
Computer equipment operators……………………………….
277
Computer operators……………………………………………
272
Secretaries, stenographers, and typists………………………
2,249
Secretaries………………………………………………………
1,732
Stenographers…………………………………………………
84
Typists…………………………………………...………………
432
Information clerks…………………………………...……………
1,404
Interviewers……………………………………….……………
106
Hotel clerks………………………………………...……………
98
Transportation ticket and reservation agents………………
191
Receptionists……………………………………………………
709
Records processing, except financial…………………….……
724
Order clerks……………………………………………..………
248
Personnel clerks, except payroll and timekeeping…………
62
Library clerks……………………………………………………
59
File clerks…………………………………………….…………
172
Records clerks…………………………………..………………
175

503
637
620
718
619
579
581
497
496
520
495
450
449
366
572
429
486
520
506
476
431
487

Occupation

Median
weekly
earnings

108
544
348

Total
Employed

Airplane pilots and navigators…………………………………
Computer programmers………………………………………
Legal assistants…………………………………………………

See footnotes at end of table.

42

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Women

Both sexes
Median
weekly
earnings

1,502
1,011
145
174
128
115
95
778
259
316
123
79
1,728
240
207
583
379
224
1,708
468
972
81
187
2,777
579
318
476
80
456

Service occupations……………………………………...………… 11,542
Private household…………………………………………..……
338
Child care workers………………………………………….……
109
Cleaners and servants………………………………..…………
225
2,300
Protective services…………………………………….…………
222
Supervisors…………………………………………….…………
Police and detectives………………………………..…………
120
61
Guards…………………………………………………..………
Firefighting and fire prevention……………………….…………
238
225
Firefighting………………………………………………………
Police and detectives………………………………………..…
1,072
Police and detectives, public service……………………….
598
Sheriffs, bailiffs, and other law enforcement officers………
155
Correctional institution officers………………………………
319
Guards……………………………………………………………
767
722
Guards and police, except public service……………………

Occupation

Total
Employed

Financial records processing………………………..…………
Bookkeepers, accounting, and auditing clerks………………
Payroll and timekeeping clerks…………………….…………
Billing clerks………………………………………….…………
Billing, posting, and calculating machine operators…………
Communications equipment operators………………………
Telephone operators………………………………………….
Mail and message distributing………………………...………
Postal clerks, except mail carriers……………………..……
Mail carriers, postal service………………………………..…
Mail clerks, except postal service……………………..………
Messengers………………………………………………….…
Material recording, scheduling, and distributing clerks………
Dispatchers……………………………………………………
Production coordinators…………………………..……………
Traffic, shipping, and receiving clerks………………..………
Stock and inventory clerks………………………………..……
Expediters………………………………………………..………
Adjusters and investigators……………………….……………
Insurance adjusters, examiners, and investigators…………
Investigators and adjusters, except insurance………………
Eligibility clerks, social welfare………………………………
Bill and account collectors………………………..……………
Miscellaneous administrative support occupations…………
General office clerks……………………………………………
Bank tellers……………………………………...………………
Data-entry keyers………………………………..……………
Statistical clerks……………………………………...…………
Teachers' aides…………………………………….…………

See footnotes at end of table.

43

Men
Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

$500
500
573
487
485
478
477
627
726
697
387
(1)
487
523
574
460
495
440
509
570
495
570
483
460
474
394
477
$475
366

134
83
12
16
15
23
17
487
134
230
62
61
977
109
89
423
214
78
453
133
249
9
61
451
94
28
87
14
39

$563
525
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
720
773
761
485
586
518
595
755
484
520
442
586
738
534
(1)
492
545
521
(1)
502
(1)
(1)

88.8
95.2
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
87.1
93.9
91.6
79.8
(1)
94.0
87.9
76.0
95.0
95.2
99.5
86.9
77.2
92.7
(1)
98.2
84.4
91.0
(1)
95.0
(1)
(1)

343
276
251
288
501
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
593
721
(1)
505
414
430

5,554
25
24
1,892
196
103
52
230
219
885
507
127
251
581
555

$445
(1)
(1)
689
904
965
637
843
846
744
805
691
642
480
485

77.1
(1)
(1)
72.7
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
79.7
89.6
(1)
78.7
86.3
88.7

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

$505
502
576
493
491
467
468
691
748
745
420
557
505
562
624
478
509
440
519
596
504
576
486
474
482
399
481
$491
367

1,368
928
133
158
113
92
78
290
125
86
61
18
752
131
118
161
165
146
1,255
334
723
72
126
2,327
486
289
389
67
417

384
278
251
288
647
866
913
613
842
847
726
786
680
602
460
469

5,988
312
109
201
408
27
17
9
8
6
187
91
28
67
187
167

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes

Women

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

$339
309
349
367
311
303
254
316
302
304
372
461
367
367
324
383
311
336
356
(1)
372
382
604
401
301

3,637
1,740
118
87
183
908
39
54
167
184
237
3
64
170
1,356
116
103
1,077
55
305
30
41
73
18
12
10

$379
349
409
397
357
355
(1)
326
325
306
385
(1)
380
386
407
494
350
404
420
441
(1)
(1)
425
(1)
(1)
(1)

89.4
88.5
85.3
92.4
87.1
85.4
(1)
96.9
92.9
99.3
96.6
(1)
96.6
95.1
79.6
77.5
88.9
83.2
80.7
(1)
(1)
89.9
(1)
(1)
(1)

939
194
17
177
23
11
3
4
4
1
13
101

479
593
(1)
585
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
666

10,867
3,881
204
3,677
1,480
642
306
117
168
164
414
679

645
677
817
670
637
583
673
804
637
712
691
766

74.3
87.6
(1)
87.3
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
86.9

9
41
42
1
39
4

(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

159
195
187
287
803
58

669
736
866
660
633
884

(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Median
weekly
earnings

Total
Employed

8,904
3,370
261
171
624
1,395
106
166
318
329
1,992
134
255
1,603
2,249
170
469
1,548
55
1,293
61
366
137
80
72
265

$355
325
375
382
322
333
260
320
314
305
374
460
370
369
372
451
317
383
421
375
564
377
399
611
415
301

5,268
1,630
143
84
441
486
67
112
152
146
1,755
131
191
1,434
894
54
366
471
989
31
325
64
61
60
255

Precision production, craft, and repair………………….………… 11,806
4,075
Mechanics and repairers……………………………….…………
221
Supervisors…………………………………………….…………
Mechanics and repairers, except supervisors………………… 3,854
1,504
Vehicle and mobile equipment mechanics and repairers…
653
Automobile mechanics………………………………………
308
Bus, truck, and stationary engine mechanics………………
121
Aircraft engine mechanics……………………………………
172
Automobile body and related repairers………………….…
Heavy equipment mechanics………………………………
165
427
Industrial machinery repairers…………………………………
780
Electrical and electronic equipment repairers………………
Electronic repairers, communications and industrial
equipment………………………………………..…………
169
235
Data processing equipment repairers………………………
229
Telephone installers and repairers…………………………
287
Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics……
843
Miscellaneous mechanics and repairers……………………
61
Millwrights…………………………………………………….

629
674
807
666
633
581
670
796
628
710
685
752
656
722
825
659
627
880

Occupation

Total
Employed

Service occupations, except private household
and protective…………………………………………………...
Food preparation and service occupations……………………
Supervisors………………………………………………...……
Bartenders…………………………………………..…………
Waiters and waitresses…………………………….…………
Cooks, except short order………………………………..……
Food counter, fountain, and related occupations……………
Kitchen workers, food preparation……………………………
Waiters' and waitresses' assistants……………………….…
Miscellaneous food preparation occupations………………
Health service occupations……………………………………
Dental assistants………………………………………………
Health aides, except nursing……………………………...…
Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants…………………...
Cleaning and building service occupations……………………
Supervisors………………………………………………………
Maids and housemen………………………………...………
Janitors and cleaners………………………………….………
Pest control………………………………………………..……
Personal service occupations………………………………..…
Supervisors…………………………………………………….
Hairdressers and cosmetologists……………………………
Attendants, amusement and recreation facilities……………
Public transportation attendants………………………………
Welfare service aides…………………………………………
Early childhood teachers' assistants…………………………

See footnotes at end of table.

44

Men

Median
weekly
earnings

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes

Women

Men
Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

4,440
538
3,902
175
65
73
1,081
117
740
114
371
455
92
48
137
63
103
2,442
802
719
94
421
111
60

$606
784
586
580
559
414
554
489
730
725
453
698
509
(1)
503
771
828
663
744
670
770
657
580
486

91.3
(1)
85.5
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
67.1
72.3
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

406
425
(1)
423
365
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

62
177
19
79
231
159
57
117
114
273
76
124

420
555
(1)
499
474
481
436
709
702
763
667
784

96.7
76.6
(1)
84.8
77.0
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

3,147
1,965
1,207
48
19

385
386
374
(1)
(1)

11,499
3,876
2,499
231
50

511
520
509
540
516

75.3
74.2
73.5
(1)
(1)

16
24
20

(1)
(1)
(1)

68
106
62

520
528
540

(1)
(1)
(1)

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Total
Employed

4,534
554
3,980
175
66
76
1,100
117
757
117
390
459
93
53
138
65
104
3,092
985
758
96
441
115
65

$605
778
585
580
551
412
553
489
730
730
447
699
510
602
504
769
831
612
703
658
762
646
574
475

94
16
78
1
3
19
17
2
18
5
1
5
1
2
1
650
182
39
2
19
3
5

$553
(1)
501
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
445
538
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

113
388
54
220
346
203
105
150
147
288
79
128

412
483
507
451
428
447
400
684
677
755
658
777

51
210
35
140
115
44
48
33
33
15
4
4

Operators, fabricators, and laborers……………………………… 14,645
5,841
Machine operators, assemblers, and inspectors………………
3,706
Machine operators and tenders, except precision……………
279
Metalworking and plastic working machine operators………
Punching and stamping press machine operators………
70
Grinding, abrading, buffing, and polishing machine
operators…………………………………………….……...
85
130
Metal and plastic processing machine operators……………
82
Molding and casting machine operators……………………

482
474
461
524
484
518
492
452

Occupation

Construction trades…………………………………………….…
Supervisors………………………………………………….……
Construction trades, except supervisors…………………….…
Brickmasons and stonemasons………………………………
Tile setters, hard and soft…………………………………..…
Carpet installers…………………………………………...……
Carpenters………………………………………………...……
Drywall installers……………………………………….………
Electricians……………………………………………...………
Electrical power installers and repairers……………………
Painters, construction and maintenance………………...…
Plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters, and apprentices………
Concrete and terrazzo finishers………………………………
Insulation workers…………………………………………….
Roofers……………………………………………………...…
Structural metalworkers……………………………….………
Extractive occupations…………………………………...………
Precision production occupations………………………..………
Supervisors…………………………………………………..……
Precision metalworking occupations………………………...…
Tool and die makers………………………………………...…
Machinists……………………………………………………..
Sheet-metal workers…………………………………..………
Precision woodworking occupations…………………..………
Precision textile, apparel, and furnishings machine
workers………………………………………………...……...
Precision workers, assorted materials…………………………
Optical goods workers…………………………………………
Electrical and electronic equipment assemblers……………
Precision food production occupations………………………
Butchers and meat cutters…………………………………..
Bakers……………………………………………………..……
Precision inspectors, testers, and related workers…………
Inspectors, testers, and graders………………………………
Plant and system operators……………………………………
Water and sewage treatment plant operators………………
Stationary engineers……………………………………………

See footnotes at end of table.

45

Median
weekly
earnings

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes
Occupation

Total
Employed

Women

Median
weekly
earnings

Men

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

Woodworking machine operators……………………………
Sawing machine operators…………………………………
Printing machine operators……………………………………
Printing press operators…………………………………….
Textile, apparel, and furnishings machine operators………
Textile sewing machine operators…………………………
Pressing machine operators…………………………………
Laundering and dry cleaning machine operators…………
Machine operators, assorted materials………………………
Packaging and filling machine operators…………………
Mixing and blending machine operators……………………
Separating, filtering, and clarifying machine operators……
Painting and paint spraying machine operators……………
Slicing and cutting machine operators………………………
Photographic process machine operators…………………
Fabricators, assemblers, and hand working occupations…
Welders and cutters…………………………………………
Assemblers………………………………………...…………
Production inspectors, testers, samplers, and weighers…
Production inspectors, checkers, and examiners…………
Production testers……………………………………………
Graders and sorters, except agricultural………………….

103
71
304
244
640
318
54
152
2,239
246
102
66
133
129
57
1,549
449
1,011
586
438
50
96

$445
451
548
579
331
316
315
324
481
389
508
624
475
467
365
490
565
459
492
511
618
333

13
6
70
42
421
238
36
89
626
131
12
7
17
28
31
465
22
410
292
224
11
56

(1)
(1)
$428
(1)
316
314
(1)
300
399
354
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
400
(1)
401
410
432
(1)
308

91
65
233
202
219
81
18
63
1,613
115
90
58
116
101
27
1,084
427
601
294
214
38
40

$451
468
608
615
386
322
(1)
414
511
421
503
740
486
492
(1)
533
573
507
596
609
(1)
(1)

(1)
(1)
70.4
(1)
81.9
97.5
(1)
72.5
78.1
84.1
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
75.0
(1)
79.1
68.8
70.9
(1)
(1)

Transportation and material moving occupations………………
Motor vehicle operators…………………………………………
Supervisors……………………………………………………...
Truckdrivers…………………………………………………….…
Drivers—sales workers……………………………………….…
Busdrivers…………………………………………………..……
Taxicab drivers and chauffeurs……………………………..…
Transportation occupations, except motor vehicles……………
Rail transportation………………………………………………
Locomotive operating occupations……………………………

4,651
3,423
75
2,601
114
390
204
156
106
59

579
582
688
600
600
493
476
884
866
863

367
315
18
102
4
162
26
5
4
2

449
434
(1)
443
(1)
431
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

4,284
3,108
56
2,499
109
228
178
151
103
57

591
595
712
604
603
527
500
902
872
881

76.0
72.9
(1)
73.3
(1)
81.8
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

Material moving equipment operators…………………………
Operating engineers……………………………………………
Crane and tower operators………………………………………
Excavating and loading machine operators…………………
Industrial truck and tractor equipment operators……………

1,072
248
69
78
547

539
618
720
641
491

(1)
(1)

544
616
718
645
491

(1)
(1)

(1)
(1)

1,024
246
69
77
509

(1)
(1)

Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and laborers…………
Helpers, construction and extractive occupations……………
Helpers, construction trades……………………………………
Construction laborers……………………………………..………
Production helpers…………………………………………………
Freight, stock, and material handlers…………………...………
Stock handlers and baggers…………………………..………

4,153
109
101
906
50
1,304
625

400
375
376
431
419
393
343

359
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
363
341

3,339
105
97
876
42
1,004
414

411
373
374
435
(1)
403
345

87.3
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
90.1
98.8

See footnotes at end of table.

46

48
2
1
39
814
4
4
30
8
300
211

-

-

Table 15. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by detailed occupation and sex,
2002 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes
Occupation

Total
Employed

Women

Median
weekly
earnings

Men

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Total
Employed

Median
weekly
earnings

Women's
earnings as
percent of
men's

Machine feeders and offbearers…………………………….…
Garage and service station related occupations………………
Vehicle washers and equipment cleaners………………………
Hand packers and packagers……………………………………
Laborers, except construction…………………………………..

53
133
216
347
1,048

$410
376
346
357
413

24
11
22
213
219

(1)
(1)
(1)
$349
361

30
122
194
134
830

(1)
$382
352
370
430

(1)
(1)
(1)
94.3
84.0

Farming, forestry, and fishing…………………………………..…
Farm operators and managers………………………….………
Farm managers…………………………………………...……
Other agricultural and related occupations…………………...…
Farm occupations, except managerial……………………….
Farm workers………………………………………………….
Related agricultural occupations……………………..…………
Supervisors, related agricultural occupations………………
Groundskeepers and gardeners, except farm………………
Animal caretakers, except farm………………………………
Graders and sorters, agricultural products…………………
Forestry and logging occupations………………………………

1,687
85
68
1,530
613
562
917
92
681
82
55
52

363
487
488
354
322
318
379
561
375
343
296
473

270
24
19
243
107
94
135
4
30
57
43
2

308
(1)
(1)
304
292
289
314
(1)
(1)
313
(1)
(1)

1,417
61
49
1,287
505
468
781
88
651
26
13
49

376
571
(1)
368
333
327
390
568
375
(1)
(1)
(1)

81.9
(1)
(1)
82.6
87.7
88.4
80.5
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)
(1)

- Dash indicates data not available.
1
Data not shown where base is less than 50,000.

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

47

Table 16. Employed persons by full- and part-time status and sex, 1970-2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Total, both sexes
Year

Total employed

1

Usually full time

Usually part time2

Percent usually
full time

Percent usually
part time

1970…………...….

78,678

66,753

11,925

84.8

1971………...…….
19723………...……

79,367

66,973

12,393

84.4

15.2
15.6

82,153

69,214

12,939

84.3

15.7
15.6

19733………...……

85,064

71,803

13,262

84.4

1974……...……….

86,794

73,093

13,701

84.2

15.8

1975…………...….

85,846

71,586

14,260

83.4

16.6

1976………...…….

88,752

73,964

14,788

83.3

16.7

1977………...…….
19783…………...…

92,017

76,625

15,391

83.3

16.7

96,048

80,193

15,855

83.5

16.5

1979………..…….

98,824

82,654

16,171

83.6

16.4

1980……..……….

99,303

82,562

16,740

83.1

16.9

1981……..……….

100,397

83,243

17,154

82.9

17.1

1982………..…….

99,526

81,421

18,106

81.8

18.2

1983…..………….

100,834

82,322

18,511

81.6

18.4

1984…..………….

105,005

86,544

18,462

82.4

17.6

1985……...……….
19863….…..………

107,150

88,534

18,615

82.6

17.4

109,597

90,529

19,069

82.6

17.4

1987……...….…….

112,440

92,957

19,483

82.7

17.3

1988……...……….

114,968

95,214

19,754

82.8

17.2

1989……...……….

117,342

97,369

19,973

83.0

17.0
16.9

19903……...………

118,793

98,666

20,128

83.1

1991……...……….

117,718

97,190

20,528

82.6

17.4

1992………...…….

118,492

97,664

20,828

82.4

17.6

1993……….………
19943………...……

120,259

99,114

21,145

82.4

17.6

123,060

99,772

23,288

81.1

18.9

1995………...…….

124,900

101,679

23,220

81.4

18.6

1996….……………
19973………..…….

126,708

103,537

23,170

81.7

18.3

129,558

106,334

23,224

82.1

17.9

19983……...………

131,463

108,202

23,261

82.3

17.7

19993…………….…

133,488

110,302

23,186

82.6

17.4

20003………...……

136,891

113,846

23,044

83.2

16.8

2001…………..……

136,933

113,573

23,361

82.9

17.1

2002……………….

136,485

112,700

23,785

82.6

17.4

See footnotes at end of table.

48

Table 16. Employed persons by full- and part-time status and sex, 1970-2002 annual averages―Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Women
Year

Total employed

1

Usually full time

Usually part time2

Percent usually
full time

Percent usually
part time

1970………….……

29,688

21,929

7,758

73.9

26.1

1971……….………
19723………….……

29,976

21,950

8,026

73.2

26.8

31,257

22,842

8,416

73.1

26.9

19733………….……

32,715

23,960

8,756

73.2

26.8

1974……….………

33,769

24,714

9,055

73.2

26.8

1975………...…….

33,989

24,598

9,391

72.4

27.6

1976……...……….

35,615

25,814

9,799

72.5

27.5

1977………...…….
19783…………….…

37,289

27,076

10,213

72.6

27.4

39,569

28,912

10,658

73.1

26.9

1979………….……

41,217

30,227

10,990

73.3

26.7

1980……...……….

42,117

30,845

11,270

73.2

26.8

1981…………...….

43,000

31,337

11,664

72.9

27.1

1982…………...….

43,256

31,086

12,170

71.9

28.1

1983………...…….

44,047

31,679

12,367

71.9

28.1

1984……...……….

45,915

33,473

12,441

72.9

27.1

1985………...…….
19863…………...…

47,259

34,672

12,587

73.4

26.6

48,706

35,845

12,862

73.6

26.4

1987……...……….

50,334

37,210

13,124

73.9

26.1

1988……...……….

51,696

38,398

13,298

74.3

25.7

1989……...……….

53,027

39,484

13,544

74.5

25.5

19903……...………

53,689

40,165

13,524

74.8

25.2

1991…………...….

53,496

39,783

13,713

74.4

25.6

1992…...………….

54,052

40,301

13,751

74.6

25.4

1993…………...….
19943………..……

54,910

40,991

13,919

74.7

25.3

56,610

40,940

15,670

72.3

27.7

1995……..……….

57,523

41,743

15,779

72.6

27.4

1996………………
3
1997 ……….…….

58,501

42,776

15,725

73.1

26.9

59,873

44,076

15,797

73.6

26.4

19983……..………

60,771

45,014

15,757

74.1

25.9

19993……..………

62,042

46,372

15,670

74.7

25.3

20003………...……

63,586

47,916

15,670

75.4

24.6

2001………….……

63,737

47,950

15,788

75.2

24.8

2002………….……

63,582

47,494

16,088

74.7

25.3

See footnotes at end of table.

49

Table 16. Employed persons by full- and part-time status and sex, 1970-2002 annual averages―Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Men
Year

Total employed

1

Usually part time2

Usually full time

Percent usually
full time

Percent usually
part time

1970……...……….

48,990

44,825

4,166

91.5

8.5

1971……...……….
19723………….……

49,390

45,023

4,367

91.2

8.8

50,896

46,373

4,523

91.1

8.9

19733…………….…

52,349

47,843

4,507

91.4

8.6

1974……...……….

53,024

48,378

4,646

91.2

8.8

1975…...………….

51,857

46,988

4,870

90.6

9.4

1976…………...….

53,138

48,150

4,988

90.6

9.4

1977………...…….
19783…………….…

54,728

49,551

5,178

90.5

9.5

56,479

51,281

5,198

90.8

9.2

1979…………….…

57,607

52,427

5,180

91.0

9.0

1980…………….…

57,186

51,717

5,471

90.4

9.6

1981……….………

57,397

51,906

5,492

90.4

9.6

1982…….…………

56,271

50,334

5,937

89.4

10.6

1983……….………

56,787

50,643

6,145

89.2

10.8

1984……….………

59,091

53,070

6,020

89.8

10.2

1985…………….…
19863…………….…

59,891

53,862

6,028

89.9

10.1

60,892

54,685

6,207

89.8

10.2

1987………….……

62,107

55,746

6,360

89.8

10.2

1988……………..…

63,273

56,816

6,457

89.8

10.2

1989…………….…

64,315

57,885

6,430

90.0

10.0

19903…………….…

65,104

58,501

6,604

89.9

10.1

1991…….…………

64,223

57,407

6,815

89.4

10.6

1992……….………

64,440

57,363

7,077

89.0

11.0

1993……….………
19943…………….…

65,349

58,123

7,226

88.9

11.1

66,450

58,832

7,617

88.5

11.5

1995……….………

67,377

59,936

7,441

89.0

11.0

1996……..…………
19973…………..….

68,207

60,762

7,445

89.1

10.9

69,685

62,258

7,427

89.3

10.7

19983…………….…

70,693

63,189

7,504

89.4

10.6

19993……….………

71,446

63,930

7,516

89.5

10.5

20003…………..……

73,305

65,930

7,375

89.9

10.1

2001……………..…

73,196

65,623

7,573

89.7

10.3

2002…………..……

72,903

65,205

7,697

89.4

10.6

1
Prior to 1994, total includes persons who usually work parttime but who worked 35 or more hours during the reference
week; for 1994 and later years, such persons were included in
the part-time total. In all years, the total includes those who
usually work full time but who worked less than 35 hours during
the reference week for noneconomic reasons, such as illness
or holiday, and those absent from work for the entire reference
week. These groups are not shown separately.
2
For all years, total includes those who usually work less
than 35 hours a week but who were absent from work for the
entire reference week and for 1994 and later years, those who

worked 35 or more hours during the reference week. These
groups are not shown separately.
3
The comparability of historical labor force data has been affected at various times by methodological and conceptual changes
in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation, see
the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

50

Table 17. Average weekly hours at work in all industries and in nonagricultural
industries by sex, 1976-2002 annual averages
All industries

Nonagricultural industries

Year
Total

Women

Men

Total

Women

Men

1976……...

38.7

34.1

41.7

38.4

34.1

41.4

1977……...

38.8

34.2

41.9

38.5

34.2

41.6

1978……...

39.0

34.5

42.1

38.7

34.4

41.8

1979…...…

38.9

34.5

42.0

38.6

34.4

41.7

1980……...

38.5

34.5

41.5

38.3

34.4

41.2

1981……...

38.1

34.1

41.1

37.9

34.1

40.7

1982…...…

38.0

34.1

40.9

37.7

34.0

40.6

1983……...

38.3

34.5

41.2

38.1

34.4

41.0

1984………

38.8

34.9

41.8

38.6

34.9

41.5

1985…...…

39.0

35.2

42.0

38.9

35.2

41.8

1986……...

39.1

35.4

42.1

38.9

35.3

41.9

1987……...

39.0

35.3

42.0

38.8

35.3

41.8

1988……...

39.4

35.7

42.4

39.3

35.7

42.2

1989…...…

39.6

35.8

42.6

39.4

35.8

42.4

1990……...

39.4

35.8

42.3

39.3

35.8

42.1

1991…...…

39.2

35.8

42.0

39.1

35.8

41.9

1992……...

38.9

35.6

41.7

38.8

35.6

41.6

1993………

39.4

36.0

42.2

39.3

36.0

42.1

1994……...

39.2

35.5

42.2

39.1

35.6

42.1

1995……...

39.3

35.6

42.3

39.2

35.7

42.2

1996………

39.3

35.7

42.3

39.2

35.7

42.2

1997……...

39.5

36.0

42.4

39.4

36.0

42.3

1998……...

39.3

35.8

42.2

39.2

35.9

42.2

1999…...…

39.6

36.2

42.4

39.5

36.2

42.4

2000……...

39.7

36.4

42.5

39.7

36.5

42.5

2001…...…

39.2

36.1

41.9

39.2

36.1

41.9

2002……...

39.2

36.0

41.8

39.1

36.1

41.8

NOTE: Data for 1994 and later years are
not directly comparable with data for 1993 and
earlier years due to the introduction of a major
redesign of the CPS questionnaire and
collection methodology.

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S.
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor
Statistics

51

Table 18. Work experience of the population by sex and full- and part-time status, selected years, 1970-2001
(Percent distribution)
With work experience
Year

Population
(in
thousands)

Total (in
thousands)

Percent of
population

With work experience
Usually work full time
Total

Usually work part time

Total

50 to 52
weeks

1 to 49
weeks

Total

50 to 52
weeks

1 to 49
weeks

Total, both sexes
1970………….………

138,953

93,850

67.5

100.0

79.4

55.6

23.8

20.6

6.7

13.9

1975………….………

153,180

102,603

67.0

100.0

78.9

54.3

24.6

21.2

7.5

13.7

1980…….……………

169,452

115,752

68.3

100.0

78.5

56.1

22.4

21.4

7.7

13.7

1985………….………

179,944

123,466

68.6

100.0

78.2

58.7

19.5

21.9

8.3

13.6

1990……….…………

189,238

132,562

70.1

100.0

78.8

60.4

18.4

21.3

8.7

12.6

1995………….………

199,925

138,971

69.5

100.0

78.6

62.9

15.7

21.3

9.1

12.2

2000……….…………

214,292

150,787

70.4

100.0

80.4

66.7

13.7

19.5

9.3

10.2

2001………….………

216,788

150,286

69.3

100.0

80.6

66.3

14.3

19.4

9.3

10.1

1970………….………

73,657

38,809

52.7

100.0

67.9

40.7

27.2

32.2

10.1

22.1

1975…….……………

80,834

43,511

53.8

100.0

67.1

41.4

25.7

32.8

11.7

21.1

1980……….…………

89,259

51,492

57.7

100.0

67.7

44.7

23.0

32.3

11.9

20.4

1985…….……………

94,490

56,165

59.4

100.0

68.1

48.9

19.2

31.8

12.3

19.5

1990………….………

98,970

61,494

62.1

100.0

69.8

51.5

18.3

30.2

12.8

17.4

1995……….…………

104,058

65,304

62.8

100.0

70.2

54.3

15.9

29.7

13.3

16.4

2000……….…………

111,440

71,341

64.0

100.0

72.9

58.4

14.5

27.1

13.4

13.7

2001……….…………

112,626

70,986

63.0

100.0

72.9

58.6

14.3

27.1

13.7

13.4

1970………….………

65,296

55,041

84.3

100.0

87.6

66.1

21.5

12.4

4.4

8.0

1975………….………

72,346

59,091

81.7

100.0

87.5

63.8

23.7

12.5

4.4

8.1

1980……….…………

80,193

64,260

80.1

100.0

87.2

65.2

22.0

12.8

4.4

8.4

1985……….…………

85,454

67,301

78.8

100.0

86.5

66.8

19.7

13.5

4.8

8.7

1990………….………

90,269

71,068

78.7

100.0

86.4

68.0

18.4

13.5

5.1

8.4

1995……….…………

95,867

73,667

76.8

100.0

86.2

70.6

15.6

13.9

5.5

8.4

2000………….………

102,853

79,446

77.2

100.0

87.5

74.2

13.3

12.6

5.5

7.1

2001………….………

104,162

79,300

76.1

100.0

87.4

73.2

14.2

12.4

5.4

7.0

Women

Men

NOTE: See Technical Note for an explanation of the work experience concept.

SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplements, 1971-2002,
Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of
Labor Statistics

52

Table 19. Married-couple families by number and relationship of earners, 1967-2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Married-couple families
One earner
Year
Total

No
earners

Total

Husband
only

Two earners or more

Other
family
member

Wife
only

Total

Husband
and
wife

Husband
and other
family
member

Wife and
other
family
member

Husband
and wife
are not
earners

1967……..…

43,292

2,943

16,490

15,429

716

345

23,859

18,888

4,639

-

-

1968……...

43,842

2,888

16,375

15,310

730

335

24,579

19,743

4,522

-

-

1969……...

44,436

3,022

16,268

15,133

797

339

25,145

20,327

4,517

-

-

1970…...…

44,832

3,252

16,117

14,931

867

320

25,464

20,510

4,622

-

-

1971…...…

45,939

3,471

16,847

15,502

1,004

340

25,621

20,641

4,651

-

-

1972……...

46,594

3,632

16,787

15,387

1,003

398

26,175

21,279

4,553

-

-

1973…...…

47,185

4,027

16,080

14,547

1,110

423

27,078

22,152

4,535

-

-

1974…...…

47,438

4,325

15,795

14,122

1,216

457

27,319

22,451

4,442

-

-

1975…...…

47,878

4,943

16,217

14,343

1,394

481

26,717

22,338

3,861

-

-

1976……...

48,150

4,962

15,630

13,690

1,424

516

27,559

23,104

3,829

-

-

1977…...…

48,131

5,177

15,119

13,153

1,456

512

27,835

23,474

3,812

-

-

1978…...…

48,532

5,226

14,456

12,434

1,509

513

28,850

24,655

3,609

-

-

1979…...…

49,132

5,559

13,912

11,934

1,499

480

29,660

25,595

3,476

-

-

1980……...

49,316

5,903

13,900

11,621

1,707

573

29,513

25,557

3,380

-

-

1981……...

49,669

6,213

13,832

11,524

1,680

628

29,624

25,729

3,212

-

-

1982……...

49,947

6,427

14,235

11,575

2,048

613

29,285

25,387

3,149

-

-

1983…...…

50,134

6,549

13,692

11,100

1,944

647

29,893

26,119

2,996

-

-

1984……...

50,395

6,630

12,952

10,472

1,852

628

30,814

27,035

2,891

-

-

1985…...…

50,978

6,693

12,961

10,406

1,897

658

31,324

27,787

2,764

-

-

1986……...

51,574

6,731

12,565

9,984

1,917

664

32,278

28,811

2,730

-

-

1987……...

51,847

6,741

12,435

9,787

1,946

702

32,671

29,369

2,576

-

1988……...

52,149

6,754

11,876

9,463

1,777

636

33,519

30,536

2,303

532

148

1989…...…

52,385

6,812

11,748

9,212

1,840

695

33,825

30,879

2,373

435

138

1990……...

52,241

6,770

11,630

9,107

1,826

698

33,841

30,829

2,369

479

164

1991……...

52,549

7,091

11,523

8,873

1,993

657

33,935

31,049

2,161

527

197

1992……...

53,254

7,256

11,977

9,114

2,145

718

34,021

31,268

1,940

624

199

1993…...…

53,248

7,282

11,842

8,745

2,411

687

34,123

31,302

2,051

614

156

1994…...…

53,929

7,227

11,774

8,719

2,374

681

34,928

32,125

2,048

603

151

1995……...

53,621

7,278

11,739

8,821

2,253

664

34,604

32,061

1,878

539

127

1996……...

53,654

7,148

11,556

8,671

2,214

671

34,950

32,406

1,899

522

123

1997……...

54,362

7,289

11,728

8,792

2,302

634

35,345

32,764

1,853

569

158

1998…...…

54,829

7,257

12,279

9,198

2,419

662

35,293

32,810

1,726

616

141

1999……...

55,352

7,163

12,328

9,093

2,595

640

35,861

33,360

1,815

519

167

2000…...…

56,643

7,463

12,717

9,515

2,601

600

36,463

33,892

1,865

566

139

2001……...

56,798

7,666

12,907

9,621

2,698

588

36,224

33,696

1,898

501

129

See note at end of table.

53

-

Table 19. Married-couple families by number and relationship of earners, 1967-2001—Continued
(Percent distribution)
Married-couple families
One earner
Year

Total

No earners

Total

Husband
only

Other
family
member

Wife
only

Total

Two earners or more
Husband
and wife

Husband
and other
family
member

Wife and
other
family
member

Husband
and wife
are not
earners

1967…..……

100.0

6.8

38.1

35.6

1.7

0.8

55.1

43.6

10.7

-

-

1968…...…

100.0

6.6

37.4

34.9

1.7

.8

56.1

45.0

10.3

-

-

1969…...…

100.0

6.8

36.6

34.1

1.8

.8

56.6

45.7

10.2

-

-

1970…...…

100.0

7.3

35.9

33.3

1.9

.7

56.8

45.7

10.3

-

-

1971…...…

100.0

7.6

36.7

33.7

2.2

.7

55.8

44.9

10.1

-

-

1972…...…

100.0

7.8

36.0

33.0

2.2

.9

56.2

45.7

9.8

-

-

1973………

100.0

8.5

34.1

30.8

2.4

.9

57.4

46.9

9.6

-

-

1974…...…

100.0

9.1

33.3

29.8

2.6

1.0

57.6

47.3

9.4

-

-

1975…...…

100.0

10.3

33.9

30.0

2.9

1.0

55.8

46.7

8.1

-

-

1976…...…

100.0

10.3

32.5

28.4

3.0

1.1

57.2

48.0

8.0

-

-

1977……...

100.0

10.8

31.4

27.3

3.0

1.1

57.8

48.8

7.9

-

-

1978……...

100.0

10.8

29.8

25.6

3.1

1.1

59.4

50.8

7.4

-

-

1979……...

100.0

11.3

28.3

24.3

3.1

1.0

60.4

52.1

7.1

-

-

1980……...

100.0

12.0

28.2

23.6

3.5

1.2

59.8

51.8

6.9

-

-

1981……...

100.0

12.5

27.8

23.2

3.4

1.3

59.6

51.8

6.5

-

-

1982……...

100.0

12.9

28.5

23.2

4.1

1.2

58.6

50.8

6.3

-

-

1983……...

100.0

13.1

27.3

22.1

3.9

1.3

59.6

52.1

6.0

-

-

1984……...

100.0

13.2

25.7

20.8

3.7

1.2

61.1

53.6

5.7

-

-

1985……...

100.0

13.1

25.4

20.4

3.7

1.3

61.4

54.5

5.4

-

-

1986……..…

100.0

13.1

24.4

19.4

3.7

1.3

62.6

55.9

5.3

-

-

1987……...

100.0

13.0

24.0

18.9

3.8

1.4

63.0

56.6

5.0

-

1988……...

100.0

13.0

22.8

18.1

3.4

1.2

64.3

58.6

4.4

1.0

0.3

1989……...

100.0

13.0

22.4

17.6

3.5

1.3

64.6

58.9

4.5

0.8

.3

1990…...…

100.0

13.0

22.3

17.4

3.5

1.3

64.8

59.0

4.5

.9

.3

1991…...…

100.0

13.5

21.9

16.9

3.8

1.3

64.6

59.1

4.1

1.0

.4

1992…...…

100.0

13.6

22.5

17.1

4.0

1.3

63.9

58.7

3.6

1.2

.4

1993…...…

100.0

13.7

22.2

16.4

4.5

1.3

64.1

58.8

3.9

1.2

.3

1994……...

100.0

13.4

21.8

16.2

4.4

1.3

64.8

59.6

3.8

1.1

.3

1995……...

100.0

13.6

21.9

16.5

4.2

1.2

64.5

59.8

3.5

1.0

.2

1996……...

100.0

13.3

21.5

16.2

4.1

1.3

65.1

60.4

3.5

1.0

.2

1997……...

100.0

13.4

21.6

16.2

4.2

1.2

65.0

60.3

3.4

1.0

.3

1998……...

100.0

13.2

22.4

16.8

4.4

1.2

64.4

59.8

3.1

1.1

.3

1999……...

100.0

12.9

22.3

16.4

4.7

1.2

64.8

60.3

3.3

.9

.3

2000…...…

100.0

13.2

22.5

16.8

4.6

1.1

64.4

59.8

3.3

1.0

.2

2001……...

100.0

13.5

22.7

16.9

4.8

1.0

63.8

59.3

3.3

.9

.2

NOTE: These data, collected in the Annual Social and Economic
Supplement, reflect the earnings and work experience of the entire
year.

-

SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplement 1968-2002
Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of
Labor Statistics

54

Table 20. Contribution of wives' earnings to family
income, 1970-2001
Contribution to family income
(median percent)

Year

1970………………….……………

26.6

1971…………………….…………

27.5

1972…………...…………………

26.7

1973……………….………………

26.0

1974……………….………………

25.4

1975…………….…………………

26.3

1976………………….……………

26.4

1977………………….……………

26.1

1978……...………………………

26.1

1979……………...………………

26.0

1980………….……………………

26.7

1981……...………………………

27.3

1982……………...………………

28.4

1983……………….………………

28.8

1984………………….……………

28.4

1985……………….………………

28.3

1986………………...……………

29.0

1987……………………...………

29.5

1988……………………...………

29.6

1989……………………….………

29.9

1990………………….……………

30.7

1991………………….……………

31.3

1992…………………….…………

32.4

1993………….……………………

32.2

1994…………….…………………

31.9

1995……………….………………

31.9

1996……………………….………

32.6

1997…………………….…………

32.7

1998……………….………………

32.8

1999……………………….………

32.8

2000……………………….………

33.5

2001……………………….………

34.4

SOURCE: Data from the Annual Social and Economic Supplements
to the Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau
of Labor Statistics

55

Table 21. Wives who earn more than their husbands, 1987-2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Families in which both wives and husbands
have earnings

Families in which wives have earnings
but husbands may not
Married-couple
families in which
wife (but not
necessarily
husband) had
earnings from
work

1987…...…
1988…...…

Wives who earn
more than their
1
husbands

Percent of wives
who earn more
than
1
their husbands

Married-couple
families in which
both wife and
husband had
earnings from
work

Wives who earn
more than their
2
husbands

Percent of wives
who earn more
than
2
their husbands

32,025

7,581

23.7

29,755

5,311

17.8

32,810

7,827

23.9

30,503

5,520

18.1

1989…...…

33,119

8,068

24.4

30,848

5,796

18.8

1990…...…

33,093

8,221

24.8

30,794

5,923

19.2

1991…...…

33,516

8,983

26.8

30,998

6,465

20.9

1992…...…

33,987

9,715

28.6

31,221

6,948

22.3

1993…...…

34,286

10,000

29.2

31,264

6,978

22.3

1994…...…

35,066

10,184

29.0

32,091

7,209

22.5

1995…...…

34,819

9,822

28.2

32,030

7,033

22.0

1996…...…

35,120

10,070

28.7

32,389

7,340

22.7

1997……...

35,613

10,309

28.9

32,745

7,441

22.7

1998……...

35,806

10,467

29.2

32,782

7,443

22.7

1999……...

36,454

10,548

28.9

33,340

7,434

22.3

2000……...

37,037

11,070

29.9

33,873

7,906

23.3

2001……...

36,864

11,329

30.7

33,665

8,130

24.1

Year

1
Includes families in which husband had no earnings from
work.
2
Excludes families in which husband had no earnings from
work.

Economic Supplement, reflect the earnings and work experience of the entire year.
SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplements, 19882002, Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

NOTE: These data, collected in the Annual Social and

56

Table 22. Wage and salary workers paid hourly rates with earnings at or below the prevailing Federal minimum wage by
selected characteristics, 2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Workers paid hourly rates
Total at or below prevailing minimum wage
Characteristic

Percent of
hourly paid
workers

Total
Total

At prevailing Below prevailing
Federal
Federal
minimum wage minimum wage

Sex and age
Total, 16 years and over………………..……………….

72,720

2,168

3.0

570

1,598

16 to 24 years………………………..………………….

16,191

1,158

7.2

340

818

25 years and over……………………..………………..

56,529

1,010

1.8

230

780

Women, 16 years and over……………..………………

36,585

1,368

3.7

352

1,016

16 to 24 years………………………..………………….

7,949

705

8.9

194

511

25 years and over……………………..………………..

28,636

663

2.3

158

505

Men, 16 years and over………………………..…………

36,135

800

2.2

218

582

16 to 24 years…………………………………..……….

8,242

453

5.5

146

307

25 years and over…………………………..…………..

27,893

347

1.2

72

275

White, 16 years and over…………………...……………

59,199

1,781

3.0

452

1,329

Women…………………………………..………………

29,370

1,155

3.9

290

865

Men………………………………………..……………..

29,829

626

2.1

162

464

Black, 16 years and over……………….……………….

Race and Hispanic origin

9,692

276

2.8

89

187

Women…………………………………...………………

5,224

147

2.8

45

102

Men…………………………………………..…………..

4,469

129

2.9

44

85

Hispanic origin, 16 years and over………….………….

11,206

305

2.7

110

195

Women…………………………………………...………

4,582

162

3.5

64

98

Men…………………………………………………..…..

6,624

144

2.2

47

97

Full- and part-time status1
Full-time workers……………………..…………………..

55,029

851

1.5

169

682

Women……………………………….……………………

24,557

483

2.0

87

396

Men……………………………………..………………..

30,472

367

1.2

82

285

Part-time workers…………………..…………………….

17,568

1,309

7.5

401

908

Women……………………………...……………………

11,969

879

7.3

265

614

Men…………………………..…………………………..

5,599

430

7.7

136

294

1
The distinction between full- and part-time workers is
based on hours usually worked. These data will not sum to
totals because full- or part-time status on the principal job
is not identifiable for a small number of multiple jobholders.

the Fair Labor Standards Act, as there are exceptions to
the minimum wage provisions of the law. In addition, some
survey respondents might have rounded hourly earnings
to the nearest dollar, and, as a result, reported hourly
earnings below the minimum wage even though they
earned the minimum wage or higher. 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.

NOTE: The prevailing Federal minimum wage was $5.15
per hour in 2002. Data are for wage and salary workers,
excluding the incorporated self-employed. They refer to a
person's earnings on his or her sole or principal job, and
pertain only to workers who are paid hourly rates. Salaried
workers and other nonhourly workers are not included.
The presence of workers with hourly earnings below the
minimum wage does not necessarily indicate violations of

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Deparment of
Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

57

Table 23. Working poor: Poverty status of persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more by age, sex, race, and
Table 23. Working poor: Poverty status of persons in the labor force for 27 weeks or more by age, sex, race,
Hispanic origin, 2001
and Hispanic origin, 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Total
Sex and age

Total

Total, 16 years and older…… 138,143

1

Below poverty level

White

Black

Hispanic
origin

Total

White

Black

Poverty rate

Hispanic
Total White
origin
1,659

Black

Hispanic
origin

114,874

15,657

16,463

6,802

4,906

1,503

4.9

4.3

9.6

10.1

16 to 19 years……………

4,848

4,136

519

710

506

362

121

102 10.4

8.8

23.3

14.3

20 to 24 years…………...

13,011

10,667

1,648

2,350

1,292

934

282

254

9.9

8.8

17.1

10.8

25 to 34 years…………...

31,307

25,314

3,966

5,349

1,988

1,432

474

607

6.3

5.7

11.9

11.3

35 to 44 years……………

36,368

29,874

4,399

4,229

1,581

1,134

336

441

4.3

3.8

7.6

10.4

45 to 54 years……………

32,128

27,034

3,363

2,530

922

660

190

173

2.9

2.4

5.6

6.8

55 to 64 years……………

16,008

13,902

1,386

1,081

443

339

78

70

2.8

2.4

5.6

6.5

65 years and older………

4,473

3,948

377

215

70

45

23

12

1.6

1.1

6.2

5.6

Women, 16 years and older…

63,827

51,976

8,363

6,677

3,526

2,344

983

667

5.5

4.5

11.8

10.0

16 to 19 years……………

2,365

2,017

258

305

274

192

68

43 11.6

9.5

26.5

14.0

20 to 24 years…………...

6,157

4,958

886

898

747

517

197

101 12.1

10.4

22.3

11.3

25 to 34 years………...…

14,059

11,028

2,122

1,999

1,035

657

337

230

7.4

6.0

15.9

11.5

35 to 44 years……………

16,757

13,384

2,389

1,728

799

518

216

166

4.8

3.9

9.1

9.6

45 to 54 years……………

15,179

12,562

1,790

1,182

421

276

112

91

2.8

2.2

6.3

7.7

55 to 64 years……………

7,409

6,357

736

479

212

160

37

31

2.9

2.5

5.0

6.5

65 years and older………

1,900

1,669

181

85

38

24

14

4

2.0

1.4

7.9

5.2

Men, 16 years and older……… 74,316

62,899

7,295

9,787

3,275

2,562

520

992

4.4

4.1

7.1

10.1

2,119

261

405

232

170

53

59

9.4

8.0

20.2

14.5

16 to 19 years……………

2,483

20 to 24 years……………

6,854

5,708

761

1,451

545

417

85

153

7.9

7.3

11.1

10.6

25 to 34 years……………

17,248

14,286

1,843

3,350

953

775

137

377

5.5

5.4

7.4

11.3

35 to 44 years…………...

19,611

16,490

2,010

2,501

782

616

119

275

4.0

3.7

5.9

11.0

45 to 54 years……………

16,949

14,471

1,572

1,348

501

384

77

81

3.0

2.7

4.9

6.0

55 to 64 years……………

8,599

7,545

651

602

231

179

41

39

2.7

2.4

6.3

6.5

65 years and older………

2,572

2,279

196

129

32

21

9

8

1.2

0.9

4.5

5.9

1
Number below the poverty level in the labor force for 27 weeks
or more as a percent of the total in the labor force for 27 weeks or
more.

NOTE: Detail for 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.
SOURCE: Annual Social and Economic Supplement, Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

58

Table 24. Percent distribution of employed persons by age, sex, and contingent and noncontingent
status, February 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Contingent workers1
Age and sex

Total employed

Total, 16 years and over…………

Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Noncontingent
workers1

134,605

1.7

2.2

4.0

96.0

16 to 19 years……………….……

6,597

6.3

6.7

9.1

91.0

20 to 24 years………………...…

13,259

4.6

4.9

7.9

92.1

25 to 34 years……………………

30,079

1.8

2.3

4.0

96.0

35 to 44 years………………….…

36,740

0.9

1.5

3.0

97.0

45 to 54 years………………...…

29,946

0.8

1.3

2.8

97.2

55 to 64 years……………………

13,955

0.8

1.2

2.8

97.2

65 years and over……………….

4,029

1.2

1.7

4.9

95.1

Women, 16 years and over………

63,229

1.8

2.4

4.2

95.8

16 to 19 years……………………

3,277

7.5

7.9

10.7

89.3

20 to 24 years……………………

6,481

4.6

5.0

7.9

92.1

25 to 34 years……………………

13,844

1.5

2.3

4.0

96.0

35 to 44 years……………………

17,071

1.1

1.7

3.2

96.8

45 to 54 years……………….……

14,379

0.9

1.4

2.9

97.1

55 to 64 years……………….……

6,506

0.9

1.3

3.2

96.9

65 years and over…………...……

1,671

1.1

1.7

5.9

94.1

Men, 16 years and over……………

71,376

1.6

2.1

3.8

96.2

16 to 19 years……………………

3,320

5.1

5.6

7.4

92.6

20 to 24 years……………………

6,778

4.7

4.7

7.8

92.2

25 to 34 years………………….…

16,235

2.0

2.3

4.1

95.9

35 to 44 years……………………

19,668

0.8

1.3

2.7

97.3

45 to 54 years……………………

15,567

0.7

1.3

2.7

97.3

55 to 64 years……………………

7,449

0.8

1.1

2.5

97.5

65 years and over………………

2,358

1.2

1.7

4.2

95.8

1
Contingent workers are those who do not have an implicit
or explicit contract for ongoing employment. Persons who
do not expect to continue in their jobs for personal reasons,
such as retirement or returning to school, are not considered contingent workers, provided that they would have the
option of continuing in the job were it not for these personal
reasons. Estimate 1 includes wage and salary workers who
expect their jobs will last for an additional year or less and
who had worked at their jobs for 1 year or less. Estimate 2
includes wage and salary workers, the self-employed, and
independent contractors who expect their employment to

last for an additional year or less and who had worked at
their jobs (or been self-employed) for 1 year or less. Estimate 3 includes all workers who do not expect their jobs to
last. This is the broadest definition of contingency, and estimates 1 and 2 of contingency are included in estimate 3.
Noncontingent workers are those workers who do not fall
into any of the three definitions of contingency.
SOURCE: Contingent and alternative work arrangements
supplement to the Current Population Survey, February 2001,
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

59

Table 25. Percent distribution of employed persons by age, sex, and alternative work arrangements, February 2001
Percent of workers with alternative arrangements1

Total
employed (in
thousands)

Total

Independent
contractors

On-call
workers

Total, 16 years and over………..…

134,605

100.0

6.4

1.6

0.9

0.5

16 to 19 years……………..………

6,597

100.0

1.6

3.1

.6

.1

94.2

20 to 24 years…………...………

13,259

100.0

1.8

2.3

1.7

.5

93.2

25 to 34 years…………….………

30,079

100.0

4.4

1.2

1.0

.5

92.8

35 to 44 years……………..………

36,740

100.0

6.8

1.5

.8

.5

90.3

45 to 54 years………..……………

29,946

100.0

8.0

1.2

.6

.5

89.6

55 to 64 years………………..……

13,955

100.0

9.7

1.4

.9

.3

87.6

65 years and over………….……

4,029

100.0

16.9

3.0

.4

.7

79.3

Women, 16 years and over………

63,229

100.0

4.8

1.6

1.1

.3

92.1
94.0

Age and sex

Temporary help
agency workers

Workers
provided by
contract firms

Workers with
traditional
arrangements

90.6

16 to 19 years…………………..…

3,277

100.0

1.3

3.7

.8

-

20 to 24 years……………..………

6,481

100.0

1.8

2.0

2.1

.2

93.6

25 to 34 years……………..………

13,844

100.0

3.9

.8

1.3

.2

93.7

35 to 44 years…………………..…

17,071

100.0

5.0

1.7

.8

.3

92.2

45 to 54 years………………...…

14,379

100.0

6.0

1.3

.8

.5

91.2

55 to 64 years…………..…………

6,506

100.0

6.9

1.4

1.3

.1

90.3

65 years and over…………….…

1,671

100.0

11.3

2.6

.7

.8

84.9

Men, 16 years and over……….…

71,376

100.0

7.8

1.6

.7

.6

89.2

16 to 19 years……………..………

3,320

100.0

1.8

2.5

.5

.2

94.5

20 to 24 years…………..…………

6,778

100.0

1.8

2.6

1.2

.8

92.8

25 to 34 years……………..………

16,235

100.0

4.8

1.5

.8

.7

92.0

35 to 44 years……….……………

19,668

100.0

8.3

1.3

.8

.7

88.8

45 to 54 years………….…………

15,567

100.0

9.9

1.2

.3

.5

88.0

55 to 64 years………………….…

7,449

100.0

12.2

1.3

.6

.5

85.3

65 years and over…………….…

2,358

100.0

20.8

3.2

.3

.6

75.3

1 1 Independent contractors are workers who were identified as
independent contractors, independent consultants, or freelance
workers, whether they were self-employed or wage and salary
workers. On-call workers are workers who are called to work only
as needed, although they can be scheduled to work for several
days or weeks in a row. Temporary help agency workers are

workers who were paid by a temporary help agency, whether or
not their job was temporary. Workers provided by contract firms
are workers who are employed by a company that provides them
or their services to others under contract and who are usually
assigned to only one customer and usually work at the customer's
worksite.

60

Table 26. Flexible schedules: Full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, May 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes
Characteristic

Total1

Number

Men

Women

With flexible schedules2

With flexible schedules2
Total1

Percent of
total

Number

Percent of
total

With flexible schedules2
Total1

Number

Percent of
total

Age
Total 16 years and over………………… 99,631

28,724

28.8

43,566

11,931

27.4

56,066

16,792

1,761

339

19.2

773

171

22.2

988

167

16.9

20 years and over…………..……… 97,871

28,385

29.0

42,793

11,760

27.5

55,078

16,625

30.2
23.0

16 to 19 years……………..……….
20 to 24 years…………………

30.0

9,343

2,327

24.9

4,124

1,124

27.2

5,219

1,203

25 to 34 years………………… 24,552

7,434

30.3

10,494

3,064

29.2

14,058

4,370

31.1

35 to 44 years…………..……… 28,702

8,578

29.9

12,180

3,458

28.4

16,522

5,120

31.0

45 to 54 years………………… 23,946

6,990

29.2

11,044

2,958

26.8

12,902

4,032

31.2

55 to 64 years…………………

9,971

2,633

26.4

4,440

1,043

23.5

5,531

1,590

28.8

65 years and over…………….

1,357

423

31.2

510

112

22.0

847

311

36.7

16 to 24 years……..…………….… 11,104

2,665

24.0

4,897

1,295

26.4

6,206

1,370

22.1

25 to 54 years……..……...……….. 77,200

23,002

29.8

33,718

9,481

28.1

43,482

13,521

31.1

55 years and over……………………11,328

3,056

27.0

4,950

1,155

23.3

6,377

1,901

29.8

31.0

Race and Hispanic origin
White………………………………… 82,205

24,647

30.0

34,707

9,913

28.6

47,498

14,734

Black………………..……………… 12,390

2,629

21.2

6,614

1,420

21.5

5,776

1,209

20.9

Hispanic origin……………………… 11,919

2,356

19.8

4,614

1,011

21.9

7,305

1,344

18.4

Marital status
Married, spouse present…………… 57,728

17,264

29.9

22,789

6,032

26.5

34,939

11,231

32.1

Never married….……..….….……… 24,877

6,817

27.4

10,847

3,081

28.4

14,030

3,736

26.6

Other marital status………………… 17,026

4,643

27.3

9,930

2,818

28.4

7,096

1,825

25.7

With no own children under 18…… 60,026

16,927

28.2

26,461

7,306

27.6

33,565

9,621

28.7

With own children under 18…..…… 39,605

11,796

29.8

17,105

4,625

27.0

22,500

7,171

31.9

With own children 6 to 17…………22,697

6,648

29.3

10,737

2,813

26.2

11,960

3,836

32.1

With own children under 6……… 16,908

5,148

30.4

6,368

1,812

28.5

10,540

3,336

31.6

Presence and age of children

1
Includes persons who did not provide information on flexible
schedules.
2
Persons with flexible schedules are able to vary or make
changes in the their beginning and ending hours of work, whether
or not they have a formal flexitime program on their job.

cause data for the "other races" group are not presented, and
Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted
children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and
other related and unrelated children. Data reflect revised population controls used in the Current Population Survey effective with
the January 1997 estimates.

NOTE: Data relate to the sole or principal job of full-time wage
and salary workers who were at work during the survey reference week and exclude all self-employed persons, regardless of
whether or not their businesses were incorporated. Detail for the
above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals be-

SOURCE: May 2001 Flexible schedules and Shift Work supplement to the Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

61

Table 26. Flexible schedules: Full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, May 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Both sexes
Characteristic

Total1

Number

Men

Women

With flexible schedules2

With flexible schedules2
Total1

Percent of
total

Number

Percent of
total

With flexible schedules2
Total1

Number

Percent of
total

Age
Total 16 years and over………………… 99,631

28,724

28.8

43,566

11,931

27.4

56,066

16,792

1,761

339

19.2

773

171

22.2

988

167

16.9

20 years and over…………..……… 97,871

28,385

29.0

42,793

11,760

27.5

55,078

16,625

30.2
23.0

16 to 19 years……………..……….
20 to 24 years…………………

30.0

9,343

2,327

24.9

4,124

1,124

27.2

5,219

1,203

25 to 34 years………………… 24,552

7,434

30.3

10,494

3,064

29.2

14,058

4,370

31.1

35 to 44 years…………..……… 28,702

8,578

29.9

12,180

3,458

28.4

16,522

5,120

31.0

45 to 54 years………………… 23,946

6,990

29.2

11,044

2,958

26.8

12,902

4,032

31.2

55 to 64 years…………………

9,971

2,633

26.4

4,440

1,043

23.5

5,531

1,590

28.8

65 years and over…………….

1,357

423

31.2

510

112

22.0

847

311

36.7

16 to 24 years……..…………….… 11,104

2,665

24.0

4,897

1,295

26.4

6,206

1,370

22.1

25 to 54 years……..……...……….. 77,200

23,002

29.8

33,718

9,481

28.1

43,482

13,521

31.1

55 years and over……………………11,328

3,056

27.0

4,950

1,155

23.3

6,377

1,901

29.8

31.0

Race and Hispanic origin
White………………………………… 82,205

24,647

30.0

34,707

9,913

28.6

47,498

14,734

Black………………..……………… 12,390

2,629

21.2

6,614

1,420

21.5

5,776

1,209

20.9

Hispanic origin……………………… 11,919

2,356

19.8

4,614

1,011

21.9

7,305

1,344

18.4

Marital status
Married, spouse present…………… 57,728

17,264

29.9

22,789

6,032

26.5

34,939

11,231

32.1

Never married….……..….….……… 24,877

6,817

27.4

10,847

3,081

28.4

14,030

3,736

26.6

Other marital status………………… 17,026

4,643

27.3

9,930

2,818

28.4

7,096

1,825

25.7

With no own children under 18…… 60,026

16,927

28.2

26,461

7,306

27.6

33,565

9,621

28.7

With own children under 18…..…… 39,605

11,796

29.8

17,105

4,625

27.0

22,500

7,171

31.9

With own children 6 to 17…………22,697

6,648

29.3

10,737

2,813

26.2

11,960

3,836

32.1

With own children under 6……… 16,908

5,148

30.4

6,368

1,812

28.5

10,540

3,336

31.6

Presence and age of children

1
Includes persons who did not provide information on flexible
schedules.
2
Persons with flexible schedules are able to vary or make
changes in the their beginning and ending hours of work, whether
or not they have a formal flexitime program on their job.

cause data for the "other races" group are not presented, and
Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and adopted
children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren, and
other related and unrelated children. Data reflect revised population controls used in the Current Population Survey effective with
the January 1997 estimates.

NOTE: Data relate to the sole or principal job of full-time wage
and salary workers who were at work during the survey reference week and exclude all self-employed persons, regardless of
whether or not their businesses were incorporated. Detail for the
above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals be-

SOURCE: May 2001 Flexible schedules and Shift Work supplement to the Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

61

Table 27. Job-related work at home on primary job: All workers by marital status, presence and age of children,
sex, and pay status, May 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Persons who usually worked at home1
Characteristic

Percent distribution by class of worker 2
Wage and salary

3

Total employed

Rate

Total

Paid

Unpaid

Self-employed 4

Total
Total, 16 years and over……………………

131,803

19,759

15.0

17.4

52.0

29.7

Married, spouse present………...……

75,248

13,916

18.5

16.9

51.1

30.9

56,555

5,843

10.3

18.6

54.2

26.7

Never married…………………….

35,196

3,086

8.8

19.8

60.0

19.6

Other marital status………………

21,358

2,757

12.9

17.2

47.6

34.7

With own children under 18…………..

50,744

8,638

17.0

19.6

51.6

27.9

21,517

3,580

16.6

21.8

49.9

27.2

81,059

11,121

13.7

15.7

52.3

31.0

Total, 16 years and over……………………

62,144

9,468

15.2

18.9

53.7

26.5

Married, spouse present………...……

33,095

6,300

19.0

18.6

51.2

29.1

Not married……….....…………………

29,049

3,168

10.9

19.7

58.6

21.3

Never married………………………

16,253

1,516

9.3

19.7

67.3

12.6

Other marital status………………

12,796

1,652

12.9

19.6

50.6

29.3

With own children under 18………..…

24,710

4,111

16.6

21.6

50.0

27.4

9,699

1,705

17.6

24.8

43.1

30.7

37,434

5,357

14.3

16.9

56.5

25.8

Total, 16 years and over……………………

69,659

10,291

14.8

16.0

50.5

32.6

Married, spouse present………….……

42,153

7,616

18.1

15.5

51.1

32.3

Not married…………..……...…………

27,506

2,675

9.7

17.3

48.9

33.2

Never married………………………

18,943

1,571

8.3

19.8

52.9

26.4

Other marital status………………

8,562

1,104

12.9

13.7

43.2

42.8

With own children under 18…….……

26,034

4,527

17.4

17.7

53.1

28.4

11,818

1,875

15.9

19.1

56.1

23.9

43,625

5,763

13.2

14.6

48.5

35.8

Not married……………...………………

With own children under 6………
With no own children under 18………
Women

With own children under 6………
With no own children under 18………
Men

With own children under 6………
With no own children under 18………

1
Persons who usually work at home are defined as those who
work at home at least once per week as part of their primary job.
2
Unpaid family workers and wage and salary workers who did
not report pay status are included in total but not shown separately.
3
Includes persons who did not provide information on work at
home.
4
Includes both the incorporated and unincorporated selfemployed.

NOTE: Data refer to employed persons in nonagricultural industries. Own children include sons, daughters, stepchildren, and
adopted children. Not included are nieces, nephews, grandchildren,
and other related and unrelated children.
SOURCE: May 2001 Work at Home supplement to the Current
Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

62

Table 28. Displaced workers1 by age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, and employment status in January 2002

(Numbers in thousands)
Percent distribution by employment status
Age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin

Total

Total

Employed

Unemployed

Not in the labor
force

Total
Total, 20 years and over…………...………

3,969

100.0

63.6

21.2

15.2

20 to 24 years…………………...…………

132

100.0

68.7

15.4

15.8

25 to 54 years……………...………………

3,117

100.0

67.5

21.7

10.8

55 to 64 years…………...…………………

593

100.0

50.9

20.3

28.8

65 years and over…………...……………

127

100.0

19.8

20.7

59.5

Women, 20 years and over…………..……

1,783

100.0

61.6

19.3

19.1

20 to 24 years……………………...………

77

100.0

65.8

17.9

16.3

25 to 54 years………………..……………

1,377

100.0

65.7

20.2

14.2

55 to 64 years…………………..…………

266

100.0

45.8

17.3

36.8

65 years and over………………..………

62

100.0

(2)

(2)

(2)

Men, 20 years and over……………..……

2,186

100.0

65.2

22.8

12.0

20 to 24 years……………………..………

55

100.0

(2)

(2)

(2)

25 to 54 years……………..………………

1,740

100.0

69.0

22.9

8.1

55 to 64 years…………..…………………

326

100.0

55.0

22.7

22.3

65 years and over…………..……………

65

100.0

(2)

(2)

(2)

Total, 20 years and over…………..………

3,351

100.0

64.7

20.8

14.5

Women……………………………….……

1,491

100.0

62.8

17.8

19.4

Men…………………………………………

1,861

100.0

66.2

23.2

10.5

White

Black
Total, 20 years and over………………….

474

100.0

57.7

22.3

20.0

Women………………………………..……

236

100.0

54.6

27.0

18.4

Men…………………………….……………

238

100.0

60.7

17.7

21.6

335

100.0

55.0

31.0

14.0

Hispanic origin
Total, 20 years and over………….………
Women…………………………..…………

177

100.0

55.0

30.6

14.4

Men……………………………..…………

158

100.0

55.0

31.4

13.6

1
Data refer to persons who had 3 or more years of tenure
on a job they had lost or left between January 1999 and
December 2001 because of plant or company closings or
moves, insufficient work, or the abolishment of their positions or shifts.
2
Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.

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.
SOURCE: January 2002 Displaced Worker supplement to
the Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

NOTE: Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin

63

Table 29. Labor force status of 2001 high school graduates and 2000-01 high school dropouts 16 to 24 years old
by school enrollment and sex, October 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Characteristic

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in
labor
force

Total, 2001 high school graduates……….…

2,545

1,522

59.8

1,252

49.2

270

17.7

1,024

Women…………………….…………………….

1,270

775

61.0

633

49.8

143

18.4

495

Men……………………….………………………

1,275

746

58.5

619

48.6

127

17.0

529

Enrolled in college………...……………………

1,569

735

46.8

630

40.1

105

14.3

834

Women…………………………..…………….

808

412

51.0

347

43.0

65

15.8

395

Men………………………….………………….

762

323

42.4

283

37.1

40

12.5

439

Not enrolled in college……………..……………

976

787

80.6

622

63.8

164

20.9

190

Women…………………………………..…….

463

363

78.5

286

61.7

77

21.3

100

Men……………………………………….…….

513

423

82.5

337

65.6

87

20.5

90

506

324

64.0

207

41.0

116

35.9

182

Women…………………………..…………….

207

126

60.6

77

37.2

48

38.6

82

Men………………………………….………….

298

198

66.5

130

43.7

68

34.2

100

Total, 2000-01 high school dropouts1

1
Data refer to persons who dropped out of school between
October 2000 and October 2001.

SOURCE: October 2001 Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

NOTE: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not
equal totals.

64

Table 30. Labor force status of persons 16 to 24 years old by school enrollment, sex, and educational attainment, October 2001
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force

Characteristic

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in
labor force

Enrolled in school…………………...……

18,949

9,047

47.7

8,174

43.1

873

9.6

9,902

Enrolled in high school1…………...………

8,990

3,326

37.0

2,863

31.8

463

13.9

5,664

Women……………………………….……

4,224

1,628

38.4

1,443

34.0

185

11.4

2,616

Men……………………………….………

4,747

1,699

35.8

1,420

29.9

278

16.4

3,048

Enrolled in college……………..…………

9,958

5,721

57.4

5,311

53.3

410

7.2

4,238

Women…………………….………………

5,374

3,217

59.9

2,993

55.7

224

7.0

2,156

Men…………………….…………………

4,585

2,503

54.6

2,317

50.5

186

7.4

2,081

Not enrolled in school……………..……

16,246

13,411

82.5

11,822

72.8

1,588

11.8

2,835

Women…………………………….………

7,932

6,037

76.1

5,347

67.4

690

11.4

1,895

Less than a high school diploma………

1,623

967

59.6

736

45.3

231

23.9

656

High school graduate, no college………

3,559

2,651

74.5

2,328

65.4

323

12.2

908

Less than a bachelor's degree………..

1,842

1,567

85.1

1,460

79.3

107

6.8

275

College graduate……………………...…

907

852

93.9

823

90.7

29

3.4

55

Men……………………………………...…

8,314

7,374

88.7

6,475

77.9

898

12.2

940

Less than a high school diploma………

2,151

1,787

83.1

1,459

67.8

328

18.3

364

High school graduate, no college………

3,836

3,386

88.3

2,969

77.4

417

12.3

450

Less than a bachelor's degree………..

1,675

1,580

94.3

1,473

87.9

107

6.8

95

652

621

95.2

574

88.0

47

7.5

31

College graduate…………………………

1
Includes a small number of persons enrolled in grades below
high school.

SOURCE: October 2001 Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics

NOTE: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not
equal totals.

65

Table 31. Multiple jobholders and multiple jobholding rates by sex and race, May of selected years, 1970-2002,
not seasonally adjusted
(Numbers in thousands)

Year

Total
employed

Multiple jobholders
Women
Total

Number

Percent of
all multiple
jobholders

Multiple jobholding rate¹

Men

Total

Women

Men

White

Black²

1970…..….

78,358

4,048

636

15.7

3,412

5.2

2.2

7.0

5.3

4.4

1971…...…

78,708

4,035

765

19.0

3,270

5.1

2.6

6.7

5.3

3.8

1972…...…

81,224

3,770

735

19.5

3,035

4.6

2.4

6.0

4.8

3.7

1973……...

83,758

4,262

869

20.4

3,393

5.1

2.7

6.6

5.1

4.7

1974…...…

85,786

3,889

867

22.3

3,022

4.5

2.6

5.8

4.6

3.8

1975…...…

84,146

3,918

956

24.4

2,962

4.7

2.9

5.8

4.8

3.7

1976……...

87,278

3,948

911

23.1

3,037

4.5

2.6

5.8

4.7

2.8

1977…...…

90,482

4,558

1,241

27.2

3,317

5.0

3.4

6.2

5.3

2.6

1978…...…

93,904

4,493

1,281

28.5

3,212

4.8

3.3

5.8

5.0

3.1

1979……...

96,327

4,724

1,407

29.8

3,317

4.9

3.5

5.9

5.1

3.0

1980…...…

96,809

4,759

1,549

32.5

3,210

4.9

3.8

5.8

5.1

3.2

1985…...…

106,878

5,730

2,192

38.3

3,537

5.4

4.7

5.9

5.7

3.2

1989…...…

117,084

7,225

3,109

43.0

4,115

6.2

5.9

6.4

6.5

4.3

1991…..……

116,626

7,183

3,129

43.6

4,054

6.2

5.9

6.4

6.4

4.9

1994…..….

122,946

7,316

3,343

45.7

3,973

6.0

5.9

6.0

6.1

4.9

1995….……

124,554

7,952

3,727

46.9

4,225

6.4

6.5

6.3

6.6

5.2

1996…..….

126,391

7,846

3,494

44.5

4,352

6.2

6.0

6.4

6.4

5.1

1997…..….

129,565

8,197

3,800

46.4

4,398

6.3

6.4

6.3

6.5

5.7

1998…..….

131,476

8,126

3,688

45.4

4,438

6.2

6.1

6.3

6.3

5.5

1999…..….

133,411

7,895

3,778

47.9

4,117

5.9

6.1

5.8

6.0

5.5

2000…..….

136,685

7,751

3,667

47.3

4,084

5.7

5.8

5.6

5.9

4.9

2001..…….

137,121

7,540

3,626

48.1

3,914

5.5

5.7

5.3

5.6

5.3

2002…..….

136,559

7,247

3,511

48.4

3,736

5.3

5.5

5.1

5.5

4.7

1
Multiple jobholders as a percent of all employed persons in
specified group.
2
Data for years prior to 1977 refer to the black-and-other population group.

Data section of the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error in
Employment and Earnings. Comprehensive surveys of multiple
jobholders were not conducted in 1981-84, 1986-88, 1990, and 199293.

NOTE: Not strictly comparable with data for prior years. For an
explanation, see "Historical Comparability" under the Household

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

66

Table 32. Unincorporated self-employed persons in nonagricultural industries by sex, 1976-2002 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Total
Year

Women
Selfemployed as
Total
a percent of employed
total

Men

SelfSelfemployed as
Total
employed a percent of employed
total

Selfemployed
women as
SelfSelfemployed as percent of
employed a percent of total selfemployed
total

Total
employed

Selfemployed

1976……

85,421

5,782

6.8

35,027

1,549

4.4

50,394

4,233

8.4

26.8

1977…..

88,734

6,115

6.9

36,677

1,692

4.6

52,057

4,423

8.5

27.7

1978…..

92,661

6,428

6.9

38,900

1,814

4.7

53,761

4,614

8.6

28.2

1979…..

95,477

6,792

7.1

40,556

1,982

4.9

54,921

4,810

8.8

29.2

1980…..

95,938

7,001

7.3

41,461

2,097

5.1

54,477

4,904

9.0

30.0

1981…..

97,030

7,097

7.3

42,333

2,192

5.2

54,697

4,905

9.0

30.9

1982…..

96,125

7,263

7.6

42,591

2,309

5.4

53,534

4,954

9.3

31.8

1983…..

97,450

7,575

7.8

43,367

2,439

5.6

54,083

5,136

9.5

32.2

1984……

101,685

7,785

7.7

45,262

2,566

5.7

56,423

5,219

9.2

33.0

1985…..

103,971

7,810

7.5

46,615

2,603

5.6

57,356

5,207

9.1

33.3

1986…..

106,435

7,881

7.4

48,054

2,610

5.4

58,381

5,271

9.0

33.1

1987…..

109,232

8,201

7.5

49,668

2,778

5.6

59,564

5,423

9.1

33.9

1988……

111,800

8,519

7.6

51,020

2,955

5.8

60,780

5,564

9.2

34.7

1989…..

114,143

8,605

7.5

52,341

3,043

5.8

61,802

5,562

9.0

35.4

1990……

115,570

8,719

7.5

53,011

3,122

5.9

62,559

5,597

8.9

35.8

1991…..

114,449

8,850

7.7

52,815

3,150

6.0

61,634

5,700

9.2

35.6

1992…..

115,246

8,576

7.4

53,380

2,963

5.6

61,866

5,613

9.1

34.5

1993…..

117,144

8,959

7.6

54,273

3,065

5.6

62,871

5,894

9.4

34.2

1994…..

119,651

9,003

7.5

55,755

3,443

6.2

63,896

5,560

8.7

38.2

1995…..

121,460

8,901

7.3

56,642

3,440

6.1

64,818

5,461

8.4

38.6

1996…..

123,264

8,971

7.3

57,630

3,506

6.1

65,634

5,465

8.3

39.1

1997…..

126,159

9,056

7.2

59,026

3,550

6.0

67,133

5,506

8.2

39.2

1998…..

128,085

8,962

7.0

59,945

3,482

5.8

68,140

5,480

8.0

38.9

1999…..

130,207

8,790

6.8

61,193

3,424

5.6

69,014

5,366

7.8

39.0

2000…..

133,509

8,765

6.6

62,706

3,453

5.5

70,803

5,312

7.5

39.4

2001…..

133,702

8,677

6.5

62,859

3,434

5.5

70,843

5,243

7.4

39.6

2002……

133,145

8,490

6.4

62,715

3,366

5.4

70,430

5,124

7.3

39.6

Employment and Earnings, a monthly BLS periodical.

NOTE: The comparability of historical labor force data has been
affected at various times by methodological and conceptual changes
in the Current Population Survey (CPS). For an explanation,
see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of

SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

67

1

2

Table 33. Employment status of the U.S.-born and foreign-born civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex,
2001 annual averages
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Country of birth, age, and
sex

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Percent of
labor force

Total

Not in labor
force

Both sexes

U.S. born:

1

16 years and over……..….

184,410

123,400

66.9

117,627

63.8

5,773

4.7

61,009

16 to 24 years………..….

31,229

20,323

65.1

18,149

58.1

2,174

10.7

10,906

25 to 34 years………….…

30,555

26,134

85.5

24,949

81.7

1,185

4.5

4,421

35 to 44 years………...……

37,923

32,265

85.1

31,143

82.1

1,122

3.5

5,658

45 to 54 years………….…

33,683

27,867

82.7

27,047

80.3

820

2.9

5,816

55 to 64 years………...……

21,416

12,900

60.2

12,540

58.6

360

2.8

8,517

65 years and over…….….

29,603

3,911

13.2

3,800

12.8

112

2.9

25,692

2

Foreign born:

16 years and over……..….

27,455

18,415

67.1

17,445

63.5

969

5.3

9,040

16 to 24 years……….……

3,796

2,318

61.1

2,102

55.4

217

9.3

1,478

25 to 34 years……..…….

6,501

5,010

77.1

4,748

73.0

261

5.2

1,491

35 to 44 years……..…….

6,467

5,319

82.3

5,083

78.6

237

4.4

1,148

45 to 54 years………….…

4,658

3,697

79.4

3,545

76.1

152

4.1

962

55 to 64 years……….……

2,787

1,679

60.2

1,593

57.2

86

5.1

1,108

65 years and over………..

3,246

392

12.1

375

11.5

17

4.3

2,854

37,627

Women
U.S. born:

1

16 years and over……..….

96,158

58,531

60.9

55,910

58.1

2,621

4.5

16 to 24 years…………..…

15,754

10,024

63.6

9,060

57.5

964

9.6

5,730

25 to 34 years……...…….

15,740

12,383

78.7

11,803

75.0

580

4.7

3,356

35 to 44 years……...…….

19,384

15,173

78.3

14,658

75.6

515

3.4

4,212

45 to 54 years……….……

17,222

13,326

77.4

12,954

75.2

371

2.8

3,897

55 to 64 years………..……

11,129

5,961

53.6

5,817

52.3

144

2.4

5,168

65 years and over…….....

16,928

1,664

9.8

1,617

9.5

47

2.9

15,264

13,849

7,541

54.5

7,082

51.1

458

6.1

6,308

2

Foreign born:

16 years and over……..….
16 to 24 years………..……

1,706

835

48.9

748

43.8

87

10.4

872

25 to 34 years……...…….

3,168

1,943

61.3

1,807

57.0

136

7.0

1,225

35 to 44 years……...…….

3,142

2,190

69.7

2,068

65.8

122

5.6

953

45 to 54 years……….……

2,402

1,664

69.3

1,594

66.4

70

4.2

738

55 to 64 years………….…

1,530

752

49.1

714

46.7

38

5.0

779

65 years and over………..

1,899

157

8.3

151

8.0

6

3.7

1,742

See footnotes at end of table.

68

1
2
Table 33. Employment status of the U.S.-born and foreign-born civilian noninstitutional population by age and sex,

2001 annual averages—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Civilian labor force
Country of birth, age, and
sex

Civilian
noninstitutional
population

Employed
Total

Percent of
population

Total

Unemployed

Percent of
population

Total

Percent of
labor force

Not in labor
force

Men
1

U.S. born:

16 years and over………...

88,252

64,869

73.5

61,717

69.9

3,152

4.9

23,382

16 to 24 years………….…

15,475

10,299

66.6

9,088

58.7

1,210

11.8

5,176

25 to 34 years………...….

14,815

13,751

92.8

13,146

88.7

605

4.4

1,064

35 to 44 years………...….

18,539

17,093

92.2

16,486

88.9

607

3.6

1,446

45 to 54 years……….……

16,461

14,541

88.3

14,093

85.6

448

3.1

1,920

55 to 64 years……….……

10,287

6,939

67.5

6,722

65.3

217

3.1

3,348

65 years and over…….....

12,675

2,247

17.7

2,183

17.2

64

2.9

10,428

16 years and over………....

13,606

10,874

79.9

10,363

76.2

511

4.7

2,732

16 to 24 years……….……

2,090

1,484

71.0

1,354

64.8

129

8.7

606

25 to 34 years……...…….

3,332

3,066

92.0

2,941

88.3

126

4.1

266

35 to 44 years………...….

3,325

3,129

94.1

3,015

90.7

115

3.7

195

45 to 54 years………….…

2,257

2,033

90.1

1,950

86.4

82

4.0

224

55 to 64 years……….……

1,257

927

73.8

879

70.0

48

5.2

330

65 years and over…….....

1,347

235

17.4

224

16.6

11

4.8

1,112

Foreign born:

2

1
U.S.-born persons are those who were born in the United States
or a U.S. Island Area, such as Puerto Rico, or born abroad of a U.S.citizen parent.
2
Foreign born refers to people residing in the United States who
were born outside the United States or one of its outlying areas,
such as Puerto Rico or Guam, to parents neither of whom was a

U.S. citizen. This group primarily includes legally admitted immigrants
but also includes refugees, students, temporary workers, and undocumented aliens.
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor,
Bureau of Labor Statistics

69

Table 34. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by sex, annual averages, 1983-2002
(Numbers in thousands)
Total, both sexes
Year

Total
employed

Members of unions1
Percent of
Total
employed

Women

Represented by unions2
Total
Percent of
employed
Total
employed

Members of unions1
Percent of
Total
employed

Represented by unions2
Percent of
Total
employed

1983………

88,290

17,717

20.1

20,532

23.3

40,433

5,908

14.6

7,262

18.0

1984…...…

92,194

17,340

18.8

19,932

21.6

42,172

5,829

13.8

7,100

16.8

1985…….
19863……

94,521

16,996

18.0

19,358

20.5

43,506

5,732

13.2

6,910

15.9

96,903

16,975

17.5

19,278

19.9

44,961

5,802

12.9

6,961

15.5

1987…...…

99,303

16,913

17.0

19,051

19.2

46,365

5,842

12.6

6,907

14.9

1988…….

101,407

17,002

16.8

19,241

19.0

47,495

5,982

12.6

7,109

15.0

1989…...… 103,480
19903…… 104,876

16,960

16.4

19,198

18.6

48,691

6,141

12.6

7,243

14.9

16,776

16.0

19,105

18.2

49,323

6,179

12.5

7,330

14.9

1991...…… 103,723

16,612

16.0

18,790

18.1

49,105

6,142

12.5

7,247

14.8

1992…….

104,668

16,418

15.7

18,578

17.7

49,842

6,274

12.6

7,411

14.9

1993…….
19943……

106,101

16,627

15.7

18,682

17.6

50,626

6,516

12.9

7,610

15.0

107,989

16,748

15.5

18,850

17.5

51,419

6,642

12.9

7,740

15.1

1995…….

110,038

16,360

14.9

18,346

16.7

52,369

6,430

12.3

7,479

14.3

1996…...… 111,960
19973…… 114,533
19983…… 116,730

16,269

14.5

18,158

16.2

53,488

6,410

12.0

7,397

13.8

16,110

14.1

17,923

15.6

54,708

6,347

11.6

7,304

13.4

16,211

13.9

17,918

15.4

55,757

6,362

11.4

7,280

13.1

19993……

118,963

16,477

13.9

18,182

15.3

57,050

6,528

11.4

7,425

13.0

2000…….

120,786

16,258

13.5

17,944

14.9

57,933

6,680

11.5

7,590

13.1

2001…….
20023……

122,482

16,387

13.4

18,114

14.8

58,726

6,809

11.6

7,704

13.1

122,007

16,107

13.2

17,771

14.6

58,624

6,772

11.6

7,636

13.0

70

Table 34. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by
sex, annual averages, 1983-2002—Continued
(Numbers in thousands)
Men
Year

Total
employed

Members of unions1
Percent of
Total
employed

Represented by unions2
Percent of
Total
employed

1983………

47,856

11,809

24.7

13,270

27.7

1984…….

50,022

11,511

23.0

12,832

25.7

1985…….
19863……

51,015

11,264

22.1

12,448

24.4

51,942

11,173

21.5

12,317

23.7

1987…...…

52,938

11,071

20.9

12,144

22.9

1988…...…

53,912

11,019

20.4

12,132

22.5

1989…….
19903……

54,789

10,820

19.7

11,955

21.8

55,553

10,597

19.1

11,775

21.2

1991………

54,618

10,470

19.2

11,542

21.1

1992…….

54,826

10,144

18.5

11,167

20.4

1993…...…
19943……

55,475

10,112

18.2

11,072

20.0

56,570

10,106

17.9

11,110

19.6

1995…….

57,669

9,929

17.2

10,868

18.8

1996………
19973……

58,473

9,859

16.9

10,761

18.4

59,825

9,763

16.3

10,619

17.7

19983……

60,973

9,850

16.2

10,638

17.4

19993……

61,914

9,949

16.1

10,758

17.4

2000…...…

62,853

9,578

15.2

10,355

16.5

2001…….
20023……

63,756

9,578

15.0

10,410

16.3

63,383

9,335

14.7

10,135

16.0

1
Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar
to a union.
2
Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar
to a union, as well as workers who are not members but whose jobs are
covered by a union or employee association contract.
3
Not strictly comparable with data for prior years. For an explanation, see
"Historical Comparability" under the Household Data section of the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error in Employment and Earnings.

NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and part-time workers. All
self-employed workers are excluded, regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.
SOURCE: Current Population Survey, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of
Labor Statistics

71

Technical Note

T

he estimates in this report were obtained from the
Current Population Survey (CPS), a national monthly
sample survey of approximately 60,000 households,
which provides a wide range of information on the labor
force, employment, and unemployment. Earnings data are
collected from one-fourth of the CPS monthly sample. The
survey is conducted for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by
the U.S. Census Bureau, using a scientifically selected
national sample, with coverage in all 50 States and the District
of Columbia.
Over its history, numerous changes have been made in
the CPS questionnaire, methodology, and estimation
procedures, to improve the quality of the data the survey
produces. The most recent change—which affects the data
for 2000, 2001, and 2002 presented in this report—was the
inclusion of population controls, based on data from the
2000 census in the estimation procedure. As a result, estimates
for the years shown in this report may differ from those
published earlier. For more information on recent changes,
see “Revisions to the Current Population Survey Effective in
January 2003” in the February 2003 issue of Employment
and Earnings, available on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/
cps/rvcps03.pdf. For more detail about prior changes to the
CPS, including sampling reliability and more complete
definitions than those below, see the Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error section of Employment and Earnings,
published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics or “The
Current Population Survey: Design and Methodology,”
Technical Paper 63 Revised (Washington, U.S. Census Bureau
and Bureau of Labor Statistics, March 2002), available on the
Internet at http://www.census.gov/prod/2002pubs/tp63rv.pdf.
Material in this report is in the public domain and, with
appropriate credit, may be reproduced without permission.
This information is available to sensory impaired individuals
upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; TDD message
referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Unemployed persons are those who had no employment
during the survey week, were available for work at that time,
and made specific efforts to find employment sometime in
the prior 4 weeks. Persons laid off from their former jobs and
awaiting recall need not be looking for work to be classified
as unemployed.
The civilian labor force participation rate is the civilian
labor force as a percent of the civilian noninstitutional
population.
The unemployment rate represents the number unemployed
as a percent of the civilian labor force.
Hispanic origin refers to all persons who identify
themselves as Mexican, Puerto Rican (living on the mainland),
Cuban, Central or South American, or other Hispanic origin
or descent. Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race.
A family is a group of two or more persons residing
together who are related by birth, marriage, or adoption.
Families are classified as either married-couple families, or as
families maintained by women or men without spouses.
Usual weekly earnings. Data are collected on wages and
salaries before taxes and other deductions and include any
overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually received (at the
principal job in the case of multiple jobholders). Selfemployed workers are excluded, regardless of whether their
businesses are incorporated. 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 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.

Concepts and Definitions
Principal concepts and definitions used in this report are
described below.
The civilian labor force comprises all persons classified
as employed or unemployed.
The employed are all persons who during the survey week:
(a) did any work at all as paid civilians; (b) worked in their
own business or profession or on their own farm; (c) worked
15 hours or more as unpaid workers in a family business; or
(d) were temporarily absent from their jobs due to illness,
vacation, bad weather, etc.

Medians of weekly earnings. The median is the amount that
divides a given earnings distribution into two equal groups,
one having earnings above the median, and the other having
earnings below the median. The BLS estimating procedure
for determining the median of an earnings distribution places
each reported or calculated weekly earnings value into a $50wide interval that is centered around a multiple of $50. The
value of the median is estimated through a linear interpolation
of the interval in which the median lies. Over-the-year
changes in the medians for specific groups may not
72

necessarily be consistent with the movements estimated for
the overall group 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 age 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. This could be caused
by survey observations that are clustered at rounded values,
for example, $250, $300, or $400. An estimate lying in a $50wide centered interval containing such a cluster, or “spike,”
tends to change more slowly than one in other intervals.
Medians, for example, measure the central tendency of a
multipeaked distribution that shifts over time. As the
distribution shifts, the median does not necessarily move at
the same rate. Specifically, the median takes relatively more
time to move through a frequently reported interval but once
above the upper limit of such an interval, it can move relatively
quickly to the next frequently reported earnings interval. BLS
procedures for estimating medians mitigate such irregular
movements of the measures; however, users should be
cautious of these effects when evaluating short-term changes
in the medians, as well as in ratios of the medians.

workers are those who usually worked 35 hours or more (at
all jobs combined). This group will include some individuals
who worked less than 35 hours in the reference week for
either economic or noneconomic reasons and those who are
temporarily absent from work. Similarly, part-time workers
are those who usually work less than 35 hours per week (at
all jobs), regardless of the number of hours worked in the
reference week. This may include some individuals who
actually worked more than 34 hours in the reference week, as
well as those who are temporarily absent from work.
Wage and salary workers. These are 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 purposes of the earnings series,
excludes all self-employed persons, regardless of whether
their businesses are incorporated.
Hourly paid workers. Workers who are paid an hourly wage
are a subset of wage and salary workers, representing
approximately three-fifths of all wage and salary workers.
Workers paid by the hour are, therefore, included in the fulland part-time worker tables in this report, along with salaried
workers and other workers not paid by the hour. (Data for
workers paid at hourly rates are presented separately.)

Constant dollars. The Consumer Price Index research series
using current methods (CPI-U-RS) is used to convert current
dollars to constant dollars. BLS has made numerous
improvements to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the
past quarter century. While these improvements make the
present and future CPI more accurate, historical price index
series are not adjusted to reflect the improvements. However,
many researchers have expressed interest in having a
historical series that measures price change consistently over
the entire period. Accordingly, the CPI-U-RS presents an
estimate of the CPI that incorporates most of the
methodological improvements made since 1978 into the entire
series. For further information, see “CPI research series using
current methods, 1978-98” by Kenneth J. Stewart and Stephen
B. Reed, Monthly Labor Review, June 1999, pp. 29-38.

Work experience. These data reflect the work activity during
the calendar year and are obtained from the Annual Social
and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population
Survey. Persons who worked were those that answered “yes”
to the following questions from the ASEC: “Did you work at
a job or business at any time during (the year)?” or “Did you
do any temporary, part-time, or seasonal work even for a few
days during (the year)?” Since the reference period is a full
year, the number of persons with some employment or
unemployment greatly exceeds the average levels for any
given month, which are based on a 1-week reference period,
and the corresponding annual average of monthly estimates.
Reliability
Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and
nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than an 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. Standard
errors included in this report were rounded for presentation
purposes, as were the earnings estimates. Consequently, a
precise confidence interval cannot be constructed using
these data.

Hours at work are the actual number of hours worked during
the reference week. For example, persons who normally work
40 hours a week but were off during Columbus Day holiday
would be reported as working 32 hours, even though they
were paid for the holiday.
Usual hours, or usual full- or part-time status. Data on
persons “at work” exclude persons who were temporarily
absent from a job and therefore classified in the zero-hoursworked category, “with a job but not at work.” These are
persons who were absent from their jobs for the entire week
for such reasons as bad weather, vacation, illness, or
involvement in a labor dispute. In order to differentiate a
person’s normal schedule from his or her activity during the
reference week, persons also are classified according to their
usual full- or part-time status. In this context, full-time
73

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 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 Bureau of Labor Statistic’s Employment and
Earnings.

74