Bureau of Labor Statistics Washington, D.C. 20212 

Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 09-0814 

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

 For release: 10:00 A.M. (EDT) 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 Thursday, July 16, 2009 

USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: 

SECOND QUARTER 2009 

Median weekly earnings of the nation's 100.1 million full-time wage and salary workers were $734 

in the second quarter of 2009, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported 

today. This was 2.1 percent higher than a year earlier. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) fell by 1.2 percent over the same period. 

Data on usual weekly earnings are collected as part of the Current Population Survey, a nationwide 

sample survey of households in which respondents are asked, among other things, how much each wage 

and salary worker usually earns. (See the Technical Note.) Highlights from the second-quarter data are: 

 Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $652 per week, or 80.0 percent of 

the $815 median for men. The female-to-male earnings ratios were higher among blacks (91.5 

percent) and Hispanics (88.9 percent) than among whites (79.1 percent) or Asians (80.6 percent). 

(See table 1.) 

 Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $620 per week, 73.6 percent of 

the median for white men ($842). The difference was smaller among women, as black women's 

median earnings ($567) were 85.1 percent of those for white women ($666). Overall, median 

earnings of Hispanics who worked full time ($547) were lower than those of blacks ($592), 

whites ($754), and Asians ($909). (See table 1.) 

 Among men, those age 45 to 54 and age 55 to 64 had the highest median weekly earnings, $961 

and $964, respectively. Among women, weekly earnings were highest for those age 55 to 64 

($721). (See table 2.) 

 Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in management, professional, 

and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings—$1,250 for men and $900 for 

women. Persons employed in service jobs earned the least. (See table 3.) 

 Full-time workers age 25 and over without a high school diploma had median weekly earnings 

of $465, compared with $630 for high school graduates (no college) and $1,140 for those holding at least a bachelor's degree. Among college graduates with advanced degrees (professional 

or master's degree and above), the highest earning 10 percent of male workers made $3,434 or 

more per week, compared with $2,130 or more for their female counterparts. (See table 4.) 

News United States 

Department 

of Labor 
Technical Note 

The estimates in this release were obtained from the 

Current Population Survey (CPS), which provides the basic 

information on the labor force, employment, and 

unemployment. The survey is conducted monthly for the 

Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau from 

a scientifically selected national sample of about 60,000 

households, with coverage in all 50 states and the District 

of Columbia. The earnings data are collected from onequarter of the CPS monthly sample and are limited to wages 

and salaries. The data, therefore, exclude self-employment 

income. 

Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 

(202) 691-5200; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-877-

8339. 

Reliability 

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both 

sampling and nonsampling error. When a sample rather 

than the entire population is surveyed, there is a chance that 

the sample estimates may differ from the "true" population 

values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling 

error, varies depending on the particular sample selected, 

and this variability is measured by the standard error of the 

estimate. There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of 

confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will differ 

by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" 

population value because of sampling error. BLS analyses 

are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of 

confidence. 

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. 

Nonsampling errors 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 on a timely basis, mistakes made by respondents, and errors made in the collection or processing of the 

data. 

For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the 

CPS and information on estimating standard errors, see the 

Household Data section of the "Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error" available on the BLS Web site at 

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

Definitions 

The principal definitions used in connection with the 

earnings series are described briefly below. 

Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before 

taxes and other deductions and include any overtime pay, 

commissions, or tips usually received (at the main job in the 

case of multiple jobholders). Prior to 1994, respondents 

were asked how much they usually earned per week. Since 

January 1994, respondents have been asked to identify the 

easiest way for them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, 

biweekly, twice monthly, monthly, annually, other) and 

how much they usually earn in the reported time period. 

Earnings reported on a basis other than weekly are 

converted to a weekly equivalent. The term "usual" is as 

perceived by the respondent. If the respondent asks for a 

definition of usual, interviewers are instructed to define the 

term as more than half the weeks worked during the past 4 

or 5 months. 

Medians (and other quantiles) of weekly earnings. 

The median (or upper limit of the second quartile) is the 

amount which divides a given earnings distribution into two 

equal groups, one having earnings above the median and 

the other having earnings below the median. Ten percent of 

a given distribution have earnings below the upper limit of 

the first decile (90 percent have higher earnings); 25 

percent have earnings below the upper limit of the first 

quartile (75 percent have higher earnings); 75 percent have 

earnings below the upper limit of the third quartile (25 

percent have higher earnings); and 90 percent have earnings 

below the upper limit of the ninth decile (10 percent have 

higher earnings). 

The estimating procedure places each reported or 

calculated weekly earnings value into $50-wide intervals 

which are centered around multiples of $50. The actual 

value is estimated through the linear interpolation of the 

interval in which the quantile boundary lies. 

Over-the-year changes in the medians (and other 

quantile boundaries) for specific groups may not 

necessarily be consistent with the movements estimated for 

the overall quantile boundary. The most common reasons 

for this possible anomaly are: (1) There could be a change 

in the relative weights of the subgroups. For example, the 

medians of both 16-to-24 year olds and those 25 years and 

over may rise; but if the lower-earning 16-to-24 group 

accounts for a greatly increased share of the total, the 

overall median could actually fall. (2) There could be a 

large change in the shape of the distribution of reported 

earnings, particularly near a quantile boundary. This could 

be caused by survey observations that are clustered at 

rounded values, such as $250, $300, $400. An estimate 

lying in a $50-wide centered interval containing such a 

cluster or "spike" tends to change more slowly than one in 

other intervals. 

Wage and salary workers. Workers who receive 

wages, salaries, commissions, tips, payment in kind, or 
piece rates. The group includes employees in both the 

private and public sectors but, for the purposes of the 

earnings series, excludes all self-employed persons, 

regardless of whether or not their businesses are 

incorporated. 

Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 

hours or more per week at their sole or principal job. 

Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer 

than 35 hours per week at their sole or principal job. 

Constant dollars. The Consumer Price Index for All 

Urban Consumers (CPI-U) is used to convert current dollars 

to constant (1982) dollars. 

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Refers to persons who 

identified themselves in the enumeration process as being 

Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino. Persons whose ethnicity is 

identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. 
Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly averages, not seasonally

adjusted

Characteristic

Number of workers

(in thousands) Median weekly earnings

II

2008

II

2009

In current dollars In constant (1982) dollars

II

2008

II

2009

II

2008

II

2009

SEX AND AGE

Total, 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 107,119 100,130 $719 $734 $320 $330

Men, 16 years and over .................................................................................. 59,759 55,419 800 815 356 367

16 to 24 years ............................................................................................. 6,169 5,128 469 450 209 203

25 years and over ....................................................................................... 53,589 50,290 862 872 384 393

Women, 16 years and over ............................................................................ 47,360 44,711 634 652 282 294

16 to 24 years ............................................................................................. 4,692 3,911 415 413 185 186

25 years and over ....................................................................................... 42,668 40,801 668 679 297 306

RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX

White .............................................................................................................. 86,389 81,012 738 754 329 339

Men ............................................................................................................. 49,412 45,921 827 842 368 379

Women ....................................................................................................... 36,977 35,091 648 666 289 300

Black or African American .............................................................................. 12,889 11,785 591 592 263 267

Men ............................................................................................................. 6,105 5,436 615 620 274 279

Women ....................................................................................................... 6,785 6,349 568 567 253 255

Asian ............................................................................................................... 5,267 4,976 855 909 381 409

Men ............................................................................................................. 2,804 2,739 975 969 434 437

Women ....................................................................................................... 2,463 2,237 741 781 330 352

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ............................................................................. 15,951 14,900 537 547 239 246

Men ............................................................................................................. 10,059 9,265 569 575 253 259

Women ....................................................................................................... 5,892 5,635 494 511 220 230

 NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons

whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 2. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by age, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, and

sex, second quarter 2009 averages, not seasonally adjusted

Age, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

Total Men Women

Number of

workers

(in

thousands)

Median

weekly

earnings

Number of

workers

(in

thousands)

Median

weekly

earnings

Number of

workers

(in

thousands)

Median

weekly

earnings

TOTAL

16 years and over ......................................................................................... 100,130 $734 55,419 $815 44,711 $652

16 to 24 years ........................................................................................... 9,039 432 5,128 450 3,911 413

16 to 19 years ....................................................................................... 1,211 327 695 340 515 317

20 to 24 years ....................................................................................... 7,828 455 4,433 471 3,395 435

25 years and over ..................................................................................... 91,091 770 50,290 872 40,801 679

25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 73,878 762 41,032 854 32,846 674

25 to 34 years ................................................................................... 24,027 672 13,500 710 10,527 632

35 to 44 years ................................................................................... 24,624 823 13,942 915 10,682 699

45 to 54 years ................................................................................... 25,227 824 13,591 961 11,636 703

55 years and over ................................................................................. 17,213 823 9,258 945 7,955 703

55 to 64 years ................................................................................... 14,618 840 7,797 964 6,821 721

65 years and over ............................................................................. 2,594 705 1,461 826 1,134 635

White

16 years and over ......................................................................................... 81,012 754 45,921 842 35,091 666

16 to 24 years ........................................................................................... 7,432 443 4,251 462 3,181 422

25 years and over ..................................................................................... 73,580 797 41,670 896 31,910 698

25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 59,158 785 33,744 879 25,413 694

55 years and over ................................................................................. 14,422 852 7,926 963 6,497 717

Black or African American

16 years and over ......................................................................................... 11,785 592 5,436 620 6,349 567

16 to 24 years ........................................................................................... 1,031 395 509 412 522 374

25 years and over ..................................................................................... 10,754 613 4,926 660 5,827 583

25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 9,060 610 4,163 649 4,897 583

55 years and over ................................................................................. 1,694 643 763 730 930 583

Asian

16 years and over ......................................................................................... 4,976 909 2,739 969 2,237 781

16 to 24 years ........................................................................................... 272 451 180 475 93 430

25 years and over ..................................................................................... 4,704 938 2,560 1,009 2,145 813

25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 3,908 950 2,127 1,060 1,782 810

55 years and over ................................................................................. 796 841 433 856 363 829

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity

16 years and over ......................................................................................... 14,900 547 9,265 575 5,635 511

16 to 24 years ........................................................................................... 1,802 416 1,105 424 697 401

25 years and over ..................................................................................... 13,099 582 8,161 605 4,938 535

25 to 54 years ....................................................................................... 11,601 580 7,277 603 4,324 531

55 years and over ................................................................................. 1,497 599 884 628 613 564

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

races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the

release of January data.
Table 3. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by occupation and sex, quarterly averages, not

seasonally adjusted

Occupation and sex

Number of workers

(in thousands) Median weekly earnings

II

2008

II

2009

II

2008

II

2009

TOTAL

Management, professional, and related occupations ................................................... 39,861 38,820 $1,028 $1,046

Management, business, and financial operations occupations ................................ 15,947 15,634 1,135 1,145

Professional and related occupations ....................................................................... 23,914 23,186 978 994

Service occupations ..................................................................................................... 14,700 14,530 475 468

Sales and office occupations ........................................................................................ 25,792 23,747 610 622

Sales and related occupations ................................................................................. 10,325 9,575 645 665

Office and administrative support occupations ......................................................... 15,467 14,172 598 607

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations .................................. 11,815 10,469 691 707

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................................... 800 736 409 440

Construction and extraction occupations .................................................................. 6,551 5,325 677 702

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................................... 4,464 4,407 778 763

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ...................................... 14,951 12,564 600 611

Production occupations ............................................................................................ 8,045 6,453 594 622

Transportation and material moving occupations ..................................................... 6,905 6,111 606 595

Men

Management, professional, and related occupations ................................................... 19,623 18,979 1,243 1,250

Management, business, and financial operations occupations ................................ 8,816 8,630 1,356 1,342

Professional and related occupations ....................................................................... 10,807 10,348 1,169 1,188

Service occupations ..................................................................................................... 7,255 7,225 539 520

Sales and office occupations ........................................................................................ 9,820 9,078 730 726

Sales and related occupations ................................................................................. 5,727 5,349 786 782

Office and administrative support occupations ......................................................... 4,093 3,729 643 638

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations .................................. 11,317 10,021 693 716

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................................... 638 589 414 455

Construction and extraction occupations .................................................................. 6,407 5,192 676 704

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................................... 4,271 4,240 773 772

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ...................................... 11,745 10,115 648 656

Production occupations ............................................................................................ 5,797 4,774 664 696

Transportation and material moving occupations ..................................................... 5,947 5,341 629 616

Women

Management, professional, and related occupations ................................................... 20,238 19,841 884 900

Management, business, and financial operations occupations ................................ 7,131 7,004 922 968

Professional and related occupations ....................................................................... 13,108 12,838 868 862

Service occupations ..................................................................................................... 7,445 7,305 416 419

Sales and office occupations ........................................................................................ 15,973 14,669 575 589

Sales and related occupations ................................................................................. 4,598 4,226 500 541

Office and administrative support occupations ......................................................... 11,375 10,442 591 599

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations .................................. 498 448 616 548

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ............................................................... 162 147 389 394

Construction and extraction occupations .................................................................. 144 133 733 629

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ................................................... 192 167 806 563

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ...................................... 3,206 2,448 467 478

Production occupations ............................................................................................ 2,248 1,679 470 479

Transportation and material moving occupations ..................................................... 958 769 450 476

 NOTE: Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January data.
Table 4. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected

characteristics, second quarter 2009 averages, not seasonally adjusted

Characteristic

Number of

workers

(in

thousands)

Upper limit of:

First decile First

quartile

Second

quartile

(median)

Third

quartile

Ninth

decile

SEX, RACE, AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

Total, 16 years and over ..................................................................................... 100,130 $351 $491 $734 $1,140 $1,736

Men ................................................................................................................. 55,419 382 523 815 1,265 1,905

Women ........................................................................................................... 44,711 327 450 652 978 1,429

White .............................................................................................................. 81,012 358 501 754 1,161 1,765

Men ............................................................................................................. 45,921 388 544 842 1,310 1,943

Women ....................................................................................................... 35,091 331 460 666 995 1,442

Black or African American .............................................................................. 11,785 322 418 592 881 1,245

Men ............................................................................................................. 5,436 337 441 620 940 1,297

Women ....................................................................................................... 6,349 313 402 567 820 1,181

Asian ............................................................................................................... 4,976 381 548 909 1,437 1,919

Men ............................................................................................................. 2,739 401 599 969 1,540 2,118

Women ....................................................................................................... 2,237 349 498 781 1,279 1,794

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ............................................................................. 14,900 302 394 547 805 1,224

Men ............................................................................................................. 9,265 323 415 575 847 1,303

Women ....................................................................................................... 5,635 283 352 511 737 1,071

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Total, 25 years and over ..................................................................................... 91,091 378 518 770 1,177 1,770

Less than a high school diploma .................................................................... 7,565 281 351 465 622 857

High school graduates, no college 1 ............................................................... 25,846 346 461 630 894 1,229

Some college or associate degree ................................................................. 25,094 382 511 719 1,024 1,403

Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ...................................................................... 32,585 558 772 1,140 1,704 2,395

Bachelor’s degree only ............................................................................... 20,678 511 716 1,031 1,544 2,171

Advanced degree ....................................................................................... 11,907 668 925 1,332 1,915 2,879

Men, 25 years and over .................................................................................. 50,290 407 579 872 1,339 1,968

Less than a high school diploma ................................................................ 5,072 300 388 503 689 917

High school graduates, no college 1 ........................................................... 15,021 389 508 714 979 1,344

Some college or associate degree ............................................................. 12,820 423 584 836 1,167 1,573

Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 .................................................................. 17,377 616 897 1,337 1,916 2,889

Bachelor’s degree only ........................................................................... 10,989 587 819 1,209 1,767 2,505

Advanced degree ................................................................................... 6,388 741 1,039 1,546 2,281 3,434

Women, 25 years and over ............................................................................ 40,801 345 479 679 1,016 1,471

Less than a high school diploma ................................................................ 2,493 251 305 387 507 645

High school graduates, no college 1 ........................................................... 10,826 311 404 550 738 1,010

Some college or associate degree ............................................................. 12,274 357 471 630 876 1,167

Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 .................................................................. 15,208 505 690 973 1,381 1,908

Bachelor’s degree only ........................................................................... 9,690 471 632 882 1,240 1,770

Advanced degree ................................................................................... 5,518 630 829 1,149 1,587 2,130

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

degrees.

 NOTE: Ten percent of all full-time wage and salary workers earn less

than the upper limit of the first decile; 25 percent earn less than the upper

limit of the first quartile; 50 percent earn less than the upper limit of the

second quartile, or median; 75 percent earn less than the upper limit of the

third quartile; and 90 percent earn less than the upper limit of the ninth

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

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

for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino

may be of any race. Updated population controls are introduced annually

with the release of January data.
Table 5. Median usual weekly earnings of part-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly averages, not

seasonally adjusted

Characteristic

Number of workers

(in thousands) Median weekly earnings

II

2008

II

2009

II

2008

II

2009

SEX AND AGE

Total, 16 years and over ............................................................................................... 22,534 24,705 $218 $225

Men, 16 years and over ............................................................................................ 7,362 8,318 207 219

16 to 24 years ....................................................................................................... 3,604 3,676 162 169

25 years and over ................................................................................................. 3,758 4,642 274 278

Women, 16 years and over ...................................................................................... 15,172 16,387 224 230

16 to 24 years ....................................................................................................... 4,564 4,811 160 159

25 years and over ................................................................................................. 10,608 11,576 263 269

RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX

 White ...................................................................................................................... 18,828 20,785 220 226

 Men ................................................................................................................... 6,096 6,927 207 220

 Women ............................................................................................................. 12,732 13,858 227 230

 Black or African American ...................................................................................... 2,289 2,401 206 213

 Men ................................................................................................................... 767 809 206 196

 Women ............................................................................................................. 1,523 1,592 206 223

 Asian ....................................................................................................................... 875 887 244 266

 Men ................................................................................................................... 305 346 213 289

 Women ............................................................................................................. 569 542 270 248

 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ..................................................................................... 2,687 3,332 220 224

 Men ................................................................................................................... 996 1,303 234 227

 Women ............................................................................................................. 1,692 2,028 214 223

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

Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Updated population controls are introduced annually with the release of January

data.