2

Technical information: (202) 691-6378

 http://www.bls.gov/cps/

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-1457

For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT

Tuesday, August 2, 2005

(This release was reissued on Wednesday, August 10, to correct the September 2001 data

for workers of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity in table A. No other data were affected.)

COMPUTER AND INTERNET USE AT WORK IN 2003

In October 2003, 77 million persons used a computer at work, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the

U.S. Department of Labor reported today. These workers accounted for 55.5 percent of total employment. About 2 of every 5 employed individuals connected to the Internet or used e-mail while on the job.

These proportions were slightly higher than those measured in the prior survey conducted in September

2001. (See table A.)

These findings are from a special supplement to the October 2003 Current Population Survey (CPS).

The CPS is a monthly household survey that is one of the main sources of information on the U.S. labor

force. The Computer Use Survey also collected data on computer and Internet or e-mail use at home,

school, and work as well as use of the Internet for job search. The data presented in this release focus on

computer and Internet use at work and on job search methods using the Internet. For additional information

about the survey, see the Technical Note. Some of the highlights from the 2003 survey include:

• The proportion of workers who used a computer at work was higher for women (61.8 percent) than

for men (49.9 percent).

• Employed women had a greater likelihood of using the Internet at work than employed men (45.1 and

38.7 percent, respectively).

• Asians were more likely than whites, blacks, or Hispanics or Latinos to use a computer and the Internet at work.

• The likelihood of computer and Internet use at work is greater for workers with more education.

• In terms of occupation, there were large variations in the proportions of workers who used a computer

at work. The computer-use rate was relatively high for managers and professionals (about 80 percent)

and sales and office workers (67 percent). In contrast, about 26 percent of workers in natural

resources, construction, and maintenance and production, transportation, and material moving occupations used a computer at work.

• The most commonly reported task for the 77 million workers who used a computer at work was accessing the Internet or using e-mail.
Table A. Computer and Internet use at work by selected characteristics, September 2001 and October 2003

September 2001 r October 2003

Total

employed

Used a computer

at work

Used the Internet

at work Total

employed

Used a computer

at work

Used the Internet

at work

Total Percent of

employed Total Percent ofemployed Total Percent ofemployed Total Percent ofemployed

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and

 over ........................ 137,050 73,055 53.3 52,463 38.3 138,823 76,986 55.5 57,892 41.7

16 to 24 years ............... 19,901 6,994 35.1 3,916 19.7 19,304 6,991 36.2 4,234 21.9

 16 to 19 years ............. 6,499 1,490 22.9 549 8.4 5,788 1,301 22.5 559 9.7

 20 to 24 years ............. 13,402 5,504 41.1 3,367 25.1 13,516 5,690 42.1 3,675 27.2

25 years and over ......... 117,149 66,061 56.4 48,547 41.4 119,519 69,995 58.6 53,658 44.9

 25 to 34 years ............. 30,847 17,561 56.9 13,109 42.5 30,401 17,641 58.0 13,608 44.8

 35 to 44 years ............. 35,669 20,700 58.0 15,239 42.7 34,854 20,797 59.7 16,226 46.6

 45 to 54 years ............. 31,205 18,260 58.5 13,518 43.3 32,221 19,607 60.9 15,017 46.6

 55 to 64 years ............. 14,916 8,023 53.8 5,739 38.5 17,202 9,930 57.7 7,499 43.6

 65 years and over ....... 4,511 1,517 33.6 942 20.9 4,842 2,021 41.7 1,307 27.0

Men ............................... 73,511 35,023 47.6 26,298 35.8 74,353 37,124 49.9 28,788 38.7

Women ......................... 63,539 38,032 59.9 26,165 41.2 64,470 39,862 61.8 29,104 45.1

RACE AND HISPANIC

OR LATINO

ETHNICITY

White ............................ 114,426 62,483 54.6 45,002 39.3 115,184 65,193 56.6 49,347 42.8

Black or African

American .................. 15,116 6,511 43.1 4,345 28.7 14,754 6,729 45.6 4,553 30.9

Asian ............................. 6,159 3,469 56.3 2,696 43.8 5,809 3,523 60.6 2,882 49.6

Hispanic or Latino

ethnicity .................... c16,349 c5,211 c31.9 c3,210 c19.6 17,602 5,478 31.1 3,718 21.1

FULL- OR PART-TIME

STATUS

Usually full time on

primary job ................ 103,887 59,563 57.3 44,035 42.4 103,757 61,538 59.3 47,472 45.8

Usually part time on

primary job ................ 21,412 8,482 39.6 4,891 22.8 22,487 9,708 43.2 6,255 27.8

Hours vary on primary

job ............................. 11,751 5,009 42.6 3,537 30.1 12,579 5,740 45.6 4,165 33.1

EDUCATIONAL

ATTAINMENT

 Total, 25 years and

 over ........................ 117,149 66,061 56.4 48,547 41.4 119,519 69,995 58.6 53,658 44.9

Less than a high school

diploma ..................... 11,737 1,875 16.0 876 7.5 11,520 1,810 15.7 899 7.8

High school graduates,

no college 1 ............... 35,880 14,440 40.2 8,627 24.0 36,065 15,208 42.2 9,521 26.4

Some college or

associate degree ...... 32,858 19,754 60.1 13,507 41.1 32,455 19,907 61.3 14,445 44.5

Bachelor’s degree and

higher 2 ..................... 36,675 29,992 81.8 25,537 69.6 39,479 33,071 83.8 28,793 72.9

 Advanced degree ...... 12,954 10,893 84.1 9,494 73.3 13,831 11,982 86.6 10,709 77.4

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent. 2 Includes persons with bachelor’s, master’s, professional, and doctoral degrees. r = revised. Estimates for September 2001 have been revised to reflect the use of Census 2000-based population controls. See the Technical

Note for additional information.

 c = corrected. 

 NOTE: Data refer to computer and Internet use on the sole or primary job. Internet use at work refers to either connecting to the Internet or using

e-mail. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all

races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.

2
3

• Slightly more than 1 in every 10 individuals in the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over

reported that they had used the Internet between January and October 2003 to search for a job. (The

concept of job search used in the survey is different from that used in the basic monthly CPS; see the

Technical Note for more information.) Reading on-line ads and researching information on potential

employers were the most commonly used Internet jobsearch methods used.

Occupation and Industry

Managers and professionals were most likely to use a computer and the Internet; 79.6 percent reported

that they used a computer at work and 67.1 percent used the Internet. Sales and office occupations also

had high rates of computer and Internet use—over two-thirds reported using a computer at work and nearly

half said they used the Internet. In contrast, computer- and Internet-use rates were lower for service workers (27.5 and 15.9 percent, respectively), for natural resources, construction, and maintenance workers (26.4

and 16.6 percent, respectively), and for production, transportation, and material moving workers (26.0 and

13.9 percent, respectively). (See table 2.)

As with occupations, there was a great deal of variation by industry with regard to the use of computers

and the Internet. Among private nonagricultural industries, persons employed in financial activities had the

highest rates of computer (82.4 percent) and Internet use (68.9 percent). In contrast, computer- and Internet-use rates were lowest in the leisure and hospitality (30.4 and 17.6 percent, respectively) and construction

(28.1 and 21.0 percent, respectively) industries. (See table 2.)

Government workers had an above-average likelihood of using a computer and the Internet on the job.

The proportions of workers in the public sector that used a computer and the Internet were 69.1 and 56.0

percent, respectively. By comparison, the computer- and Internet-use rates for private-sector workers were

53.5 and 39.3 percent, respectively. (See table 2.) The high computer- and Internet-use rates among

government workers is due, in part, to their occupational concentration. For example, more than half of all

workers in the public sector hold management and professional jobs, an occupational category characterized

by very high rates of computer and Internet use. In contrast, the proportion of private-sector wage and

salary workers employed as managers and professionals is much lower (30.9 percent).

Demographics

The youngest and oldest workers were least likely to use a computer and the Internet on the job.

Among workers ages 16 to 24 and 65 years and over, about one-third used a computer at work and

only about 1 in every 5 said that they used the Internet. In contrast, about 60 percent of workers ages

25 to 64 used a computer on the job and almost half used the Internet. (See table 1.)

As was the case in the prior survey, women were more likely than men to use a computer and the Internet. Computer-use rates for women and men were 61.8 and 49.9 percent, respectively; the Internet-use rate

for women was 45.1 percent, compared with 38.7 percent for men. (See table 1.) Although computer- and

Internet-use rates for men and women are fairly similar within occupations, the greater likelihood of women to

use a computer at work is due largely to their concentration in occupations in which computer use is most

prevalent. For instance, nearly three-fourths of employed women are in management and professional and

sales and office occupations; the computer-use rate for women in these two occupations combined was very

high (74.8 percent). In contrast, nearly two-fifths of men hold natural resources, construction, and maintenance and production, transportation, and material moving jobs. For men, the combined computer-use rate

in these two occupational categories was 26.0 percent—30 percentage points lower than the rate for all

workers.
4

Computer use at work was more common among Asian workers (60.6 percent) and whites (56.6 percent) than among black (45.6 percent) or Hispanic or Latino workers (31.1 percent). In terms of Internet

use, 49.6 percent of Asians used the Internet at work, compared with 42.8 percent of whites, 30.9 percent

of blacks, and 21.1 percent of Hispanics or Latinos. (See table 1.)

With regard to educational attainment, workers with more years of schooling were much more likely than

those with less education to use a computer and the Internet at work. For example, computer- and Internetuse rates for workers with advanced degrees were 86.6 and 77.4 percent, respectively. At the other end of

the educational spectrum, only 15.7 percent of workers with less than a high school diploma used a computer

on the job, and 7.8 percent used the Internet. (See table 1.)

Computer Activity at Work

As was the case in the 2001 survey, the most common use for a computer at work was to access the

Internet or to use e-mail. Of the 77 million workers who used a computer on the job, 75.2 percent reported that they used the computer to connect to the Internet or to use e-mail. Other common tasks included word processing (67.6 percent), working with spreadsheets or databases (64.2 percent), and calendar or scheduling (56.8 percent). Less common uses were graphics or design (29.7 percent) and programming (16.4 percent). (See table 3.)

In terms of occupation, workers in management and professional occupations, who were most likely to

use a computer at work, also reported some of the highest proportions for specific uses of a computer. For

instance, 84.4 percent used a computer to use the Internet or e-mail, 76.9 percent used word processing,

and 70.7 percent used spreadsheets or databases. (See table 4.)

Job Search Activity Using the Internet

In addition to questions concerning computer and Internet use on the job, the survey also collected information on Internet job search. (The concept of job search using the Internet differs from the concept

of job search in the basic monthly CPS; see the Technical Note for more information.) Respondents were

asked if they had used the Internet (at any location) to search for a job “that year”—from January to

October 2003. Over this period, about 25.5 million individuals, or 11.5 percent of the civilian noninstitutional population age 16 and over, said that they had used the Internet to search for a job. Internet job

search rates were highest for individuals in the 20-to-24 (21.2 percent), 25-to-34 (19.3 percent), and

35-to-44 year-old (14.3 percent) age groups. (See table 5.)

Men and women were about equally likely to have used the Internet to search for a job. Also, individuals with more years of schooling were much more likely than those with the lowest level of education

to have used the Internet to search for a job. The Internet job search rate for college graduates was 17.6

percent, in contrast to only 2.2 percent for those with less than a high school diploma. (See table 5.)

Data on Internet job search activity by occupation and industry are shown in table 6. The estimates

given are limited to the experienced labor force, that is, the sum of the employed and the unemployed

whose last job was in one of the occupations or industries shown. Of the 146.5 million persons in this

group in October 2003, 21.9 million, or 14.9 percent of the total, reported that they used the Internet

to look for a job at some point between January and October 2003. Individuals in management and

professional occupations had the highest rate of Internet job search—19.3 percent. Among the other

major occupational categories, Internet jobsearch rates ranged from a low of 8.6 percent for natural

resources, construction, and maintenance occupations to a high of 17.2 percent for sales and office

occupations.
5

The most common job search methods reported by Internet jobseekers were reading on-line ads or job

listings (92.6 percent) and researching information on potential employers (70.2 percent). Less common

methods were submitting a resume or application (57.0 percent) and posting a resume on a job listing site

or with a service (41.0 percent). This pattern of Internet job searching was similar, regardless of demographic characteristic, occupation, or industry. (See tables 5 and 6.)
Technical Note

These data and other information on computer and Internet

use were obtained from a supplement to the October 2003

Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a monthly sample

survey of about 60,000 households conducted by the U.S.

Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS),

principally to gather information on employment and unemployment. Respondents to the October 2003 supplement

answered questions about computer and Internet use at home,

school, and work in addition to other information. In the

survey, respondents were asked if they “connected to the

Internet or used e-mail or instant messaging.” In this release,

these tasks are collectively referred to as “Internet use.” In

addition, the data in this release cover the incidence of

computer and Internet use at work and job search activity using

the Internet. Since 1984, surveys of computer and, later,

Internet use have been conducted periodically by the Census

Bureau.

Data presented in this release incorporate changes

associated with the introduction of the 2002 Census Bureau

industry and occupational classification systems into the CPS

and changes to the race and ethnicity categories. In addition,

the data for 2003 reflect revised CPS population controls

introduced in January 2003. For a discussion of the impact that

these changes had on CPS data, see “Revisions to the Current

Population Survey Effective in January 2003” in the February

2003 issue of Employment and Earnings and available at http:

//www.bls.gov/cps/rvcps03.pdf on the BLS Web site. The

estimates from the September 2001 survey have been

recalculated using the new Census 2000-based population

controls. (See table A.) The revised population controls raised

the overall levels, but had little or no impact on the rates.

Data on Internet job search are not directly comparable

between the September 2001 and October 2003 surveys

because the reference periods for job search differ. In the

September 2001 survey, respondents were asked if they had

used the Internet to search for a job “that year”—from January

to September 2001. In the October 2003 survey, the reference

period for job search was from January to October 2003.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory

impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-

5200; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling

and nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire

population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample

estimates may differ from the “true” population values they

represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies

depending on the particular sample selected, and this

variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate.

There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that

an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6

standard errors from the “true” population value because of

sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the

90-percent level of confidence.

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error.

Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the

failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain

information for all respondents in the sample, inability or

unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information,

and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.

For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS

and for information on estimating standard errors, see the

“Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error” section of

Employment and Earnings.

Survey questions and concepts

Data discussed in this release on computer and Internet use

at work and job search using the Internet were obtained from

the following questions:

Do you use a computer at your main job?

1. Yes

2. No

At your main job, what do you do on the computer?

Do you do word processing or desktop publishing?

1. Yes

2. No

Do you connect to the Internet or use e-mail or instant

messaging?

1. Yes

2. No

(Respondents who answer “yes” to this question are

considered to be Internet users at work.)

Do you use a calendar or do scheduling on the computer?

1. Yes

2. No

Do you use spreadsheets or databases?

1. Yes

2. No

Do you do graphics and design?

1. Yes

2. No
Do you do programming?

1. Yes

2. No

The following questions on job search using the Internet

were asked of all individuals in the survey who used the

Internet.

This year, have you used the Internet to search for a job?

1. Yes

2. No

(“This year” refers to January to October 2003.)

How did you use the Internet to search for a job?

Did you read on-line job ads or search on-line job listings?

1. Yes

2. No

Did you research information about potential employers?

1. Yes

2. No

Did you submit a resume or application to an employer

on-line?

1. Yes

2. No

Did you post a resume on a job listing site or with a service

on-line?

1. Yes

2. No

Internet job search

The above questions on job search were asked of all Internet

users in October 2003. The Internet job search questions in the

supplement are different from the job search questions that are

asked in the basic labor force section of the CPS and that are

used in the classification of unemployment. The supplement

questions on Internet job search cannot be used to determine

the official classification of unemployment for several reasons.

In the basic CPS, job search questions are not asked of persons

with jobs, while in the October 2003 supplement, Internet job

search questions were asked of all Internet users, including

employed persons. Also, in the basic CPS, job search among

the unemployed must have occurred within the 4 weeks prior

to the survey collection; by contrast, the Internet job search

activity recorded in the supplement could have occurred at any

time from January to October 2003. Moreover, there is no

information gathered in the supplement about respondents’

labor force status during this longer reference period. Finally,

in the basic CPS, job search methods are divided into active

and passive; only active methods—those that can lead to a job

offer—classify a person as unemployed. The Internet job

search methods in the supplement are not restricted to active

methods. For example, reading job ads or listings online and

researching information on potential employers are not

considered to be active job search methods in the basic CPS.

However, tables 5 and 6 showing Internet job search activity

display both passive as well as active job search methods. Job

search activity as measured in the basic CPS may or may not

have involved the Internet.
Table 1. Employed persons who used a computer and the Internet at work by selected

characteristics, October 2003

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic Total

employed

Used a computer

at work

Used the Internet

at work

Total Percent of

employed Total Percent ofemployed

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 138,823 76,986 55.5 57,892 41.7

16 to 24 years ....................................................... 19,304 6,991 36.2 4,234 21.9

 16 to 19 years ..................................................... 5,788 1,301 22.5 559 9.7

 20 to 24 years ..................................................... 13,516 5,690 42.1 3,675 27.2

25 years and over ................................................. 119,519 69,995 58.6 53,658 44.9

 25 to 34 years ..................................................... 30,401 17,641 58.0 13,608 44.8

 35 to 44 years ..................................................... 34,854 20,797 59.7 16,226 46.6

 45 to 54 years ..................................................... 32,221 19,607 60.9 15,017 46.6

 55 to 64 years ..................................................... 17,202 9,930 57.7 7,499 43.6

 65 years and over ............................................... 4,842 2,021 41.7 1,307 27.0

Men ....................................................................... 74,353 37,124 49.9 28,788 38.7

Women ................................................................. 64,470 39,862 61.8 29,104 45.1

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White .................................................................... 115,184 65,193 56.6 49,347 42.8

Black or African American .................................... 14,754 6,729 45.6 4,553 30.9

Asian ..................................................................... 5,809 3,523 60.6 2,882 49.6

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ................................... 17,602 5,478 31.1 3,718 21.1

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Usually full time on primary job ............................. 103,757 61,538 59.3 47,472 45.8

Usually part time on primary job ........................... 22,487 9,708 43.2 6,255 27.8

Hours vary on primary job .................................... 12,579 5,740 45.6 4,165 33.1

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

 Total, 25 years and over ................................... 119,519 69,995 58.6 53,658 44.9

Less than a high school diploma .......................... 11,520 1,810 15.7 899 7.8

High school graduates, no college 1 ..................... 36,065 15,208 42.2 9,521 26.4

Some college or associate degree ....................... 32,455 19,907 61.3 14,445 44.5

Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ............................ 39,479 33,071 83.8 28,793 72.9

 Advanced degree .............................................. 13,831 11,982 86.6 10,709 77.4

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or

equivalent. 2 Includes persons with bachelor’s, master’s,

professional, and doctoral degrees.

 NOTE: Data refer to computer and Internet use on

the sole or primary job. Internet use at work refers to

either connecting to the Internet or using e-mail. 

Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or

African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals

because data are not presented for all races. In

addition, persons whose ethnicity is Hispanic or

Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are

classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
Table 2. Employed persons who used a computer and the Internet at work by occupation and industry, 

October 2003

(Numbers in thousands)

Occupation and industry Total

employed

Used a computer

at work

Used the Internet

at work

Total Percent of

employed Total Percent ofemployed

OCCUPATION

 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 138,823 76,986 55.5 57,892 41.7

 Management, professional, and related occupations .................................. 48,252 38,398 79.6 32,391 67.1

 Management, business, and financial operations occupations ................. 19,600 15,842 80.8 13,938 71.1

 Professional and related occupations ........................................................ 28,652 22,556 78.7 18,452 64.4

 Service occupations .................................................................................... 21,887 6,025 27.5 3,490 15.9

 Sales and office occupations ....................................................................... 35,492 23,874 67.3 16,990 47.9

 Sales and related occupations .................................................................. 16,051 9,577 59.7 6,949 43.3

 Office and administrative support occupations .......................................... 19,441 14,297 73.5 10,041 51.6

 Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations ................. 15,003 3,965 26.4 2,497 16.6

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ................................................ 1,270 140 11.0 79 6.3

 Construction and extraction occupations ................................................... 8,392 1,589 18.9 1,046 12.5

 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations .................................... 5,341 2,237 41.9 1,371 25.7

 Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ..................... 18,189 4,723 26.0 2,525 13.9

 Production occupations ............................................................................. 9,736 2,878 29.6 1,577 16.2

 Transportation and material moving occupations ...................................... 8,454 1,845 21.8 948 11.2

INDUSTRY

 Total, 16 years and over ........................................................................... 138,823 76,986 55.5 57,892 41.7

 Private wage and salary workers ................................................................. 108,135 57,855 53.5 42,505 39.3

 Agriculture and related industries .............................................................. 1,475 299 20.2 187 12.7

 Nonagricultural industries .......................................................................... 106,660 57,557 54.0 42,317 39.7

 Mining ...................................................................................................... 519 221 42.5 165 31.8

 Construction ............................................................................................ 8,198 2,304 28.1 1,719 21.0

 Manufacturing .......................................................................................... 16,420 8,521 51.9 6,416 39.1

 Durable goods ....................................................................................... 10,179 5,540 54.4 4,192 41.2

 Nondurable goods ................................................................................. 6,241 2,981 47.8 2,224 35.6

 Wholesale and retail trade ....................................................................... 19,571 9,998 51.1 6,406 32.7

 Transportation and utilities ...................................................................... 5,167 2,462 47.6 1,741 33.7

 Information ............................................................................................... 3,217 2,493 77.5 2,170 67.5

 Financial activities ................................................................................... 8,888 7,328 82.4 6,127 68.9

 Professional and business services ........................................................ 11,485 7,850 68.4 6,554 57.1

 Education and health services ................................................................. 17,063 10,620 62.2 7,297 42.8

 Leisure and hospitality ............................................................................. 10,288 3,126 30.4 1,815 17.6

 Other services ......................................................................................... 5,844 2,635 45.1 1,907 32.6

Government workers .................................................................................... 19,937 13,773 69.1 11,158 56.0

 Federal ....................................................................................................... 3,258 2,198 67.5 1,757 53.9

 State ........................................................................................................... 5,759 4,234 73.5 3,664 63.6

 Local ........................................................................................................... 10,920 7,341 67.2 5,737 52.5

Self-employed and unpaid family workers .................................................... 10,751 5,357 49.8 4,229 39.3

 NOTE: Data refer to computer and Internet use on the sole or

primary job. Internet use at work refers to either connecting to the

Internet or using e-mail.
Table 3. Type of computer activity at work by selected characteristics, October 2003

Characteristic

Employed

persons

who used

a computer

at work

(in thousands)

Percent who used a computer for:

Word

processing

or desktop

publishing

Internet or

e-mail

Calendar

or

scheduling

Spreadsheets or

databases

Graphics

or design

Programming

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 76,986 67.6 75.2 56.8 64.2 29.7 16.4

16 to 24 years ....................................................... 6,991 57.2 60.6 47.8 54.8 21.6 12.4

 16 to 19 years ..................................................... 1,301 44.8 43.0 41.3 43.9 18.3 12.5

 20 to 24 years ..................................................... 5,690 60.1 64.6 49.3 57.3 22.3 12.4

25 years and over ................................................. 69,995 68.7 76.7 57.7 65.1 30.5 16.8

 25 to 34 years ..................................................... 17,641 68.9 77.1 59.9 67.0 31.0 18.4

 35 to 44 years ..................................................... 20,797 69.9 78.0 60.8 68.4 32.3 18.4

 45 to 54 years ..................................................... 19,607 69.2 76.6 57.2 64.5 30.5 16.1

 55 to 64 years ..................................................... 9,930 66.2 75.5 52.3 59.5 28.0 13.8

 65 years and over ............................................... 2,021 60.3 64.7 39.2 48.9 19.8 8.2

Men ....................................................................... 37,124 65.5 77.5 58.5 67.1 33.8 21.4

Women ................................................................. 39,862 69.6 73.0 55.3 61.5 25.9 11.8

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White .................................................................... 65,193 68.0 75.7 56.6 64.8 30.1 15.9

Black or African American .................................... 6,729 61.6 67.7 56.5 55.2 24.1 16.6

Asian ..................................................................... 3,523 73.7 81.8 62.1 69.5 32.0 25.3

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ................................... 5,478 62.8 67.9 56.1 58.7 24.8 15.6

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Usually full time on primary job ............................. 61,538 68.5 77.1 59.1 66.3 30.3 17.3

Usually part time on primary job ........................... 9,708 63.9 64.4 44.2 52.7 24.5 11.1

Hours vary on primary job .................................... 5,740 65.0 72.6 54.2 61.5 32.1 16.3

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

 Total, 25 years and over ................................... 69,995 68.7 76.7 57.7 65.1 30.5 16.8

Less than a high school diploma .......................... 1,810 43.7 49.7 40.4 45.0 15.8 11.4

High school graduates, no college 1 ..................... 15,208 53.1 62.6 47.6 53.8 19.1 12.0

Some college or associate degree ....................... 19,907 63.5 72.6 55.0 62.3 26.0 15.2

Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ............................ 33,071 80.3 87.1 65.0 73.1 39.3 20.3

 Advanced degree .............................................. 11,982 84.5 89.4 65.3 72.3 41.5 20.0

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent. 2 Includes persons with bachelor’s, master’s, professional, and

doctoral degrees.

 NOTE: Data refer to computer use on the sole or primary job. 

The percentage of persons who used computers for various

activities may exceed 100 percent as persons may report multiple

activities. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or

African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data

are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose

ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore,

are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
Table 4. Type of computer activity at work by occupation and industry, October 2003

Occupation and industry

Employed

persons

who used

a computer

at work

(in thousands)

Percent who used a computer for:

Word

processing

or desktop

publishing

Internet or

e-mail

Calendar

or

scheduling

Spreadsheets or

databases

Graphics

or design

Programming

OCCUPATION

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 76,986 67.6 75.2 56.8 64.2 29.7 16.4

 Management, professional, and related

occupations .................................................... 38,398 76.9 84.4 63.0 70.7 37.6 20.6

 Management, business, and financial

operations occupations ................................... 15,842 79.9 88.0 69.1 79.8 35.8 18.4

 Professional and related occupations ................ 22,556 74.8 81.8 58.7 64.4 38.9 22.1

 Service occupations ............................................ 6,025 55.0 57.9 48.5 48.5 19.9 11.9

 Sales and office occupations ............................... 23,874 63.8 71.2 53.9 62.3 22.1 11.6

 Sales and related occupations .......................... 9,577 60.6 72.6 53.3 61.0 26.2 11.6

 Office and administrative support occupations .. 14,297 66.0 70.2 54.3 63.1 19.4 11.6

 Natural resources, construction, and

maintenance occupations ............................... 3,965 51.4 63.0 44.0 53.3 23.0 15.7

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ........ 140 54.6 56.9 39.7 54.8 19.5 6.1

 Construction and extraction occupations ........... 1,589 60.9 65.8 43.9 56.6 25.9 12.8

 Installation, maintenance, and repair

occupations .................................................... 2,237 44.4 61.3 44.3 50.8 21.1 18.3

 Production, transportation, and material moving

occupations .................................................... 4,723 41.3 53.5 43.1 49.9 21.4 13.4

 Production occupations ..................................... 2,878 42.0 54.8 43.0 52.4 25.9 14.9

 Transportation and material moving

occupations .................................................... 1,845 40.3 51.4 43.3 46.0 14.4 11.1

INDUSTRY

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 76,986 67.6 75.2 56.8 64.2 29.7 16.4

 Private wage and salary workers ......................... 57,855 65.0 73.5 57.5 64.4 27.8 16.8

 Agriculture and related industries ...................... 299 64.4 62.7 38.5 57.6 14.2 9.2

 Nonagricultural industries .................................. 57,557 65.0 73.5 57.6 64.4 27.9 16.8

 Mining .............................................................. 221 66.4 75.0 55.1 76.9 35.7 12.7

 Construction .................................................... 2,304 70.8 74.6 52.6 67.0 30.6 15.2

 Manufacturing .................................................. 8,521 63.2 75.3 60.2 70.5 35.2 22.0

 Durable goods ............................................... 5,540 64.1 75.7 61.4 71.5 36.5 24.4

 Nondurable goods ......................................... 2,981 61.5 74.6 57.7 68.6 32.6 17.5

 Wholesale and retail trade ............................... 9,998 52.8 64.1 49.6 58.8 20.4 12.5

 Transportation and utilities .............................. 2,462 54.4 70.7 56.8 60.1 24.4 15.1

 Information ....................................................... 2,493 73.2 87.0 64.2 70.6 38.1 23.9

 Financial activities ........................................... 7,328 71.0 83.6 61.2 72.0 24.3 15.8

 Professional and business services ................ 7,850 75.8 83.5 65.6 74.1 36.2 24.1

 Education and health services ......................... 10,620 66.1 68.7 56.1 54.8 23.4 13.1

 Leisure and hospitality ..................................... 3,126 56.3 58.0 53.4 54.2 21.7 10.9

 Other services ................................................. 2,635 71.0 72.4 56.8 61.9 34.1 16.1

Government workers ............................................ 13,773 76.2 81.0 56.2 64.0 33.8 15.1

 Federal ............................................................... 2,198 70.8 79.9 57.0 68.5 31.6 17.0

 State ................................................................... 4,234 79.4 86.5 60.2 68.3 35.6 17.5

 Local ................................................................... 7,341 75.9 78.2 53.7 60.1 33.4 13.1

Self-employed and unpaid family workers ............ 5,357 74.3 79.0 50.9 62.8 39.4 16.1

 NOTE: Data refer to computer use on the sole or primary job. 

The percentage of persons who use computers for various

activities may exceed 100 percent as persons may report multiple

activities.
Table 5. Job search activity1 using the Internet by selected characteristics, October 2003

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

Total civilian noninstitutional

population

Job search activity of persons who used the

Internet to search for a job (percent)

Total

Total who

used the

Internet to

search for

a job

Percent

of total

Read

on-line ads

or

searched

on-line job

listings

Researched

information

on potential

employers

Submitted

a resume

or

application

Posted a

resume on

a job listing

site or with

a service

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 222,039 25,459 11.5 92.6 70.2 57.0 41.0

16 to 24 years ....................................................... 36,017 5,676 15.8 92.0 63.4 55.1 39.2

 16 to 19 years ..................................................... 16,145 1,470 9.1 88.9 51.1 46.3 27.9

 20 to 24 years ..................................................... 19,872 4,206 21.2 93.1 67.7 58.2 43.1

25 years and over ................................................. 186,022 19,784 10.6 92.8 72.2 57.5 41.6

 25 to 34 years ..................................................... 39,094 7,538 19.3 93.7 74.9 60.0 42.6

 35 to 44 years ..................................................... 43,670 6,228 14.3 92.8 71.3 57.3 41.4

 45 to 54 years ..................................................... 40,760 4,163 10.2 91.9 70.5 55.6 41.7

 55 to 64 years ..................................................... 28,112 1,595 5.7 91.1 68.0 53.1 38.1

 65 years and over ............................................... 34,385 260 .8 91.4 68.4 47.4 35.3

Men ....................................................................... 106,879 12,460 11.7 92.4 73.5 59.8 42.8

Women ................................................................. 115,160 12,999 11.3 92.9 67.1 54.3 39.4

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White .................................................................... 181,871 20,310 11.2 92.3 70.1 56.1 39.5

Black or African American .................................... 25,825 3,120 12.1 93.7 70.8 62.3 49.2

Asian ..................................................................... 9,328 1,297 13.9 93.5 73.5 60.0 45.2

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ................................... 27,913 2,304 8.3 92.1 68.5 55.9 42.2

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

 Total, 25 years and over ................................... 186,022 19,784 10.6 92.8 72.2 57.5 41.6

Less than a high school diploma .......................... 27,757 619 2.2 92.9 60.0 52.9 35.0

High school graduates, no college 2 ..................... 59,569 3,846 6.5 93.3 63.7 51.7 39.4

Some college or associate degree ....................... 46,741 6,200 13.3 93.2 69.1 55.5 40.6

Bachelor’s degree and higher 3 ............................ 51,954 9,119 17.6 92.3 78.8 61.6 43.6

 Advanced degree .............................................. 17,846 2,868 16.1 90.8 80.9 60.6 41.8

1 Refers to use of the Internet to search for a job "this year,"

that is, from January to October 2003. 2 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent. 3 Includes persons with bachelor’s, master’s, professional,

and doctoral degrees.

 NOTE: The percentage of persons performing each activity

may exceed 100 percent as persons may perform more than

one activity. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black

or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because

data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose

ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore,

are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
Table 6. Job search activity1 using the Internet by occupation and industry, October 2003

(Numbers in thousands)

Occupation and industry

Experienced labor force Job search activity of persons who used the

Internet to search for a job (percent)

Total

Total who

used the

Internet to

search for

a job

Percent

of total

Read

on-line ads

or

searched

on-line job

listings

Researched

information

on potential

employers

Submitted

a resume

or

application

Posted a

resume on

a job listing

site or with

a service

OCCUPATION

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 146,532 21,877 14.9 92.9 71.6 58.2 42.2

 Management, professional, and related

occupations .................................................... 49,744 9,620 19.3 92.7 76.3 59.8 43.7

 Management, business, and financial

operations occupations ................................... 20,225 3,648 18.0 93.8 80.8 64.0 47.1

 Professional and related occupations ................ 29,519 5,972 20.2 92.1 73.5 57.3 41.6

 Service occupations ............................................ 23,616 2,591 11.0 91.3 65.1 52.9 35.6

 Sales and office occupations ............................... 37,536 6,456 17.2 93.2 69.9 59.0 43.4

 Sales and related occupations .......................... 17,080 2,762 16.2 92.1 72.2 59.3 43.6

 Office and administrative support occupations .. 20,456 3,694 18.1 94.0 68.2 58.8 43.2

 Natural resources, construction, and

maintenance occupations ............................... 16,084 1,386 8.6 93.6 65.4 57.3 40.3

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ........ 1,387 61 4.4 99.0 76.1 71.0 35.4

 Construction and extraction occupations ........... 9,046 715 7.9 93.0 64.0 55.6 37.0

 Installation, maintenance, and repair

occupations .................................................... 5,652 610 10.8 93.9 66.0 57.8 44.6

 Production, transportation, and material moving

occupations .................................................... 19,522 1,803 9.2 94.8 66.1 55.2 40.9

 Production occupations ..................................... 10,429 878 8.4 95.1 65.8 54.9 43.1

 Transportation and material moving

occupations .................................................... 9,094 925 10.2 94.4 66.3 55.5 38.7

INDUSTRY

 Total, 16 years and over ................................... 146,532 21,877 14.9 92.9 71.6 58.2 42.2

 Private wage and salary workers ......................... 114,995 17,710 15.4 93.3 72.0 59.5 43.5

 Agriculture and related industries ...................... 1,613 85 5.3 94.7 67.1 55.3 36.4

 Nonagricultural industries .................................. 113,382 17,625 15.5 93.3 72.0 59.5 43.5

 Mining .............................................................. 551 61 11.0 90.2 62.8 53.7 36.1

 Construction .................................................... 8,852 813 9.2 93.0 66.4 55.4 39.5

 Manufacturing .................................................. 17,478 2,367 13.5 94.8 72.3 59.7 46.3

 Durable goods ............................................... 10,875 1,603 14.7 95.1 71.4 59.0 47.3

 Nondurable goods ......................................... 6,604 764 11.6 94.1 74.2 61.2 44.0

 Wholesale and retail trade ............................... 20,778 3,087 14.9 93.5 69.0 58.9 42.3

 Transportation and utilities .............................. 5,429 702 12.9 93.9 76.7 61.1 39.1

 Information ....................................................... 3,400 788 23.2 94.7 81.9 63.3 45.0

 Financial activities ........................................... 9,198 1,774 19.3 94.1 75.9 64.2 48.0

 Professional and business services ................ 12,517 2,803 22.4 94.6 76.5 66.7 51.2

 Education and health services ......................... 17,713 2,945 16.6 91.6 69.6 54.9 39.2

 Leisure and hospitality ..................................... 11,236 1,572 14.0 90.4 66.9 51.7 35.8

 Other services ................................................. 6,229 711 11.4 91.7 68.9 57.2 41.2

Government workers ............................................ 20,445 3,114 15.2 92.0 69.1 51.3 34.7

 Federal ............................................................... 3,402 661 19.4 90.7 70.8 55.4 40.4

 State ................................................................... 5,869 1,009 17.2 92.4 65.2 43.8 29.3

 Local ................................................................... 11,174 1,445 12.9 92.3 70.9 54.6 35.8

Self-employed and unpaid family workers ............ 11,092 1,053 9.5 89.5 72.4 57.5 42.1

1 Refers to use of the Internet to search for a job "this year,"

that is, from January to October 2003.

 NOTE: Data refer to computer and Internet use on the sole or

primary job.