Technical information:  (202) 691-6378      USDL 07-0603
               http://www.bls.gov/cps/
                                            For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact:                691-5902      Wednesday, April 25, 2007
   
   
        FOREIGN-BORN WORKERS:  LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS IN 2006
   
   Foreign-born workers' share of the U.S. workforce continued to grow, the
Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today.
In 2006, foreign-born workers made up 15.3 percent of the U.S. civilian
labor force age 16 and over, up from 14.8 percent in 2005.  The unemployment 
rate for the foreign born fell for the third year in a row, to 4.0 percent in 
2006.  The jobless rate of the native born also continued to decline, decreas-
ing from 5.2 to 4.7 percent over the year.
   
   This news release compares the labor force characteristics of the
foreign born with those of their native-born counterparts.  The data on
nativity are collected as part of the Current Population Survey (CPS), a
monthly sample survey of approximately 60,000 households.  The foreign born
are persons who reside in the United States but who were born outside the
country or one of its outlying areas to parents who were not U.S. citizens.
The foreign born include legally-admitted immigrants, refugees, temporary
residents such as students and temporary workers, and undocumented immigrants.  
The survey data, however, do not separately identify the numbers of persons in 
these categories.  For further information about the survey, see the Technical 
Note.
      
Demographic Characteristics
   
   The demographic characteristics of the foreign-born labor force differ
significantly in many respects from those of the native born.  For example,
men made up a larger proportion of the foreign-born labor force (60 percent) 
in 2006 than they did of the native-born labor force (53 percent).  Also, a 
higher proportion of the foreign-born than the native-born labor force was 
made up of 25- to 54-year olds (76 and 67 percent, respectively); labor force 
participation is typically highest among persons in that age group.  (See 
table 1.)
   
   In 2006, Hispanics comprised about 50 percent of the foreign-born labor
force compared with about 7 percent of the native-born labor force.  About
22 percent of the foreign-born workforce was Asian compared with about 1
percent of the native-born workforce.  One in 5 persons in the foreign-born
labor force was non-Hispanic whites, compared with nearly 4 of 5 in the
native-born labor force.  (Data in this release for persons who are white,
black, or Asian do not include those of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.  Data
on persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity are presented separately.)
   
   About 28 percent of the foreign-born labor force 25 years old and over
had not completed high school in 2006, compared with about 6 percent of the
native-born labor force.  About equal proportions of the foreign-born labor
force and the native-born labor force had a bachelor's or higher degree (31
and 33 percent, respectively).
   
                                    - 2 -
   
   By region, the foreign born comprised 24.0 percent of the total labor
force in the West, 17.9 percent in the Northeast, and 13.5 percent in the
South.  By comparison, only 7.3 percent of the total labor force in the
Midwest was foreign born.  (See table 6.)
      
Labor Force and Unemployment
   
   Foreign-born workers' share of the U.S. civilian labor force reached
15.3 percent in 2006; this was up 0.5 percent from the prior year.  About
23 million, or 68.6 percent, of the foreign born were in the labor force 
in 2006; that rate was nearly a percentage point higher than in 2005.  The
labor force participation rate of the native born was 65.8 percent in 2006
and was unchanged from the prior year.  Over the year, the number of for-
eign-born labor force participants rose by 1.1 million; growth among this 
group accounted for more than half of the total labor force increase in 
2006.  Since 2000, the foreign born have accounted for 47.3 percent of the 
net increase in the total labor force.  (See table 1.)
   
   Foreign-born men were more likely to be labor force participants (81.7
percent) than their native-born counterparts (72.0 percent).  In contrast,
55.3 percent of foreign-born women were labor force participants, compared
with 60.0 percent of native-born women.
   
   Foreign-born mothers with children under 18 were less likely to be labor
force participants than native-born mothers--59.7 versus 73.5 percent.  Among 
women with children under age 3, the participation rate for the foreign born 
was 45.9 percent, while that for the native born was 63.9 percent; both rates 
were up over the year.  Foreign- and native-born fathers were about equally 
likely to be labor force participants (96 percent).  (See table 2.)
   
   The unemployment rate of the foreign born declined from 4.6 percent in
2005 to 4.0 percent in 2006.  Among the native born, the unemployment rate
declined from 5.2 to 4.7 percent.  The unemployment rate of the foreign
born was lower than that of the native born for the second time since the
annual data series was first tabulated in 1996.  Over the year, the unem-
ployment rate for foreign-born men declined from 4.1 to 3.5 percent, and 
the rate for foreign-born women declined from 5.4 to 4.7 percent.  (See
table 1.)
   
Occupation
   
   A smaller proportion of foreign-born than native-born workers was em-
ployed in management, professional, and related occupations, 26.4 versus
36.4 percent.  Foreign-born workers were more likely than their native-born
counterparts to be employed in service occupations (22.5 versus 15.4 percent); 
these included food preparation and serving related occupations and building 
and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations.  Foreign-born workers also 
were more likely than native-born workers to be employed in natural resources, 
construction, and maintenance occupations (16.5 versus 10.0 percent), and in 
production, transportation, and material moving occupations (16.7 versus 11.9 
percent).  (See table 4.)
   
Earnings
   
   In 2006, the median usual weekly earnings of foreign-born full-time wage
and salary workers were $532, compared with $698 for the native born.  Among 
men, median earnings were $563 per week for the foreign born, compared with 
$782 for the native born; the median for foreign-born women was $502, compared 
with $611 for the native born.  As with the native born, the earnings of foreign-
born workers increased with education.  Foreign-born workers 25 years of age and 
over with less than a high school education earned $396 per week in 2006, while 
those with bachelor's degrees and higher earned about 2.6 times as much--$1,024 
a week.  (See table 5.)
   




                                 - 3 -
   
Technical Note
 
 
   The estimates in this release are based on annual average data from the
Current Population Survey (CPS).  The CPS, which is conducted by the U.S.
Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is a monthly survey
of about 60,000 households that provides information on the labor force
status, demographics, and other characteristics of the nation's civilian
noninstitutional population age 16 and over.  In response to the increased
demand for statistical information about the foreign born, questions on
nativity, citizenship, year of entry into the United States, and the pa-
rental nativity of respondents were added to the CPS beginning in January
1994.  Prior to 1994, the primary sources of data on the foreign born were
the decennial census, two CPS supplements (conducted in April 1983 and
November 1989), and, to some extent, information collected by the U.S.
Citizenship and Immigration Services (formerly known as the Immigration
and Naturalization Service).
 
   The foreign- and native-born data for 2006 are not strictly comparable
with data for 2005 and earlier years because of the introduction in January
2006 of revised population controls used in the CPS.  The effect of the
revised population controls on the foreign- and native-born estimates is
unknown.  However, the effect of the new controls on the monthly CPS es-
timates was to decrease the December 2006 employment level by 123,000 and
the unemployment level by 8,000.  The updated controls had little or no
effect on unemployment rates and other ratios.  For additional information,
see "Adjustments to Household Survey Population Estimates in January 2006"
available on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps06adj.pdf.
 
   Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request.  Voice phone: 202-691-5200, TDD message referral
phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Reliability 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 de-
pending upon 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 infor-
mation and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
 
   For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and in-
formation on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error" section of Employment and Earnings.

                                 - 4 -
   
Concepts and definitions
 
   Foreign born.  The foreign born are persons residing in the United States
who were not U.S. citizens at birth.  That is, they 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.  The foreign-born population
includes legally-admitted immigrants, refugees, temporary residents such
as students and temporary workers, and undocumented immigrants.  The survey
data, however, do not separately identify the number of persons in these
categories.
 
   Native born.  The native born are persons born in the United States or
one of its outlying areas such as Puerto Rico or Guam or who were born
abroad of at least one parent who was a U.S. citizen.
 
   Race and ethnicity groups.  In this release, the data are presented
for non-Hispanic whites, blacks, and Asians and for persons of Hispanic
or Latino ethnicity.  These four groups are mutually exclusive but not
exhaustive.  Other race groups (including persons who selected more than
one race category) are included in the overall totals but are not shown
separately because the number of survey respondents is too small to develop
statistically reliable estimates.  The presentation of the data on race and
ethnicity in this release differs from that which appears in most analyses
of CPS labor force data in that persons of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity are
separated from the race groups.  Because persons of Hispanic or Latino
ethnicity can be of any race, they are usually included in the race groups
as well as shown separately in the Hispanic or Latino ethnicity group.  The
reason for the difference in the data presentation in this release is be-
cause about half of the foreign born are of Hispanic or Latino ethnicity
and they have somewhat different labor force characteristics than the non-
Hispanic foreign born.
 
   Employed.  Employed persons are (a) all those who, during the survey
reference week, did any work at all as paid employees, worked in their own
business, profession, or on their own farm, or who worked 15 hours or more
as unpaid workers in a family-operated enterprise; and (b) all those who
did not work but had jobs or businesses from which they were temporarily
absent due to illness, bad weather, vacation, childcare problems, labor
disputes, or personal reasons, whether or not they were paid for the time
off and whether or not they were seeking other jobs.
 
   Unemployed.  The unemployed are persons who had no employment during the
reference  week, were available for work at that time, except for temporary
illness, and had made specific efforts to find employment sometime during
the 4-week period ending with the reference week.  Persons who were waiting
to be recalled to a job from which they had been laid off need not be looking
for work to be classified as unemployed.
 
   Civilian labor  force.  The civilian labor force comprises all persons
classified as employed or unemployed.
 
   Unemployment  rate.  The unemployment rate is the number unemployed as
a percent of the civilian labor force.
 
   Labor force participation rate.  The labor force participation rate is
the labor force as a percent of the population.
 
   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).  Earnings
reported on a basis other than weekly are converted to a weekly equivalent.
 
   Median earnings.  The median 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.





  Table 1.  Employment status of the foreign-born and native-born populations by selected characteristics, 2005-06 annual averages
  
  (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                             
                                                            2005                                                 2006                        
                                                                                                                                             
                                                         Civilian labor force                                 Civilian labor force           
                                                                                                                                             
           Characteristic           Civilian                                             Civilian                                            
                                    noninsti-                              Unemployed    noninsti-                              Unemployed   
                                    tutional         Partici-                            tutional         Partici-                           
                                     popula-  Total   pation  Employed                    popula-  Total   pation  Employed                  
                                      tion             rate                       Unem-    tion             rate                       Unem- 
                                                                        Number    ploy-                                      Number    ploy- 
                                                                                  ment                                                 ment  
                                                                                                                                             
                TOTAL                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                             
      Total 16 years and over......  226,082 149,320    66.0   141,730    7,591     5.1   228,815 151,428    66.2   144,427    7,001     4.6 
    Men............................  109,151  80,033    73.3    75,973    4,059     5.1   110,605  81,255    73.5    77,502    3,753     4.6 
    Women..........................  116,931  69,288    59.3    65,757    3,531     5.1   118,210  70,173    59.4    66,925    3,247     4.6 
                                                                                                                                             
            FOREIGN BORN                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                             
      Total 16 years and over......   32,558  22,042    67.7    21,022    1,020     4.6    33,733  23,148    68.6    22,225      923     4.0 
    Men............................   16,321  13,263    81.3    12,720      544     4.1    16,989  13,885    81.7    13,395      491     3.5 
    Women..........................   16,236   8,779    54.1     8,302      477     5.4    16,743   9,263    55.3     8,831      432     4.7 
                                                                                                                                             
                 Age                                                                                                                         
    16 to 24 years.................    4,168   2,469    59.2     2,277      192     7.8     4,156   2,501    60.2     2,318      183     7.3 
    25 to 34 years.................    7,902   6,094    77.1     5,824      270     4.4     7,997   6,267    78.4     6,027      240     3.8 
    35 to 44 years.................    7,620   6,162    80.9     5,930      232     3.8     8,022   6,552    81.7     6,325      227     3.5 
    45 to 54 years.................    5,578   4,473    80.2     4,285      188     4.2     5,896   4,740    80.4     4,575      165     3.5 
    55 to 64 years.................    3,499   2,278    65.1     2,163      115     5.1     3,707   2,428    65.5     2,340       87     3.6 
    65 years and over..............    3,791     566    14.9       542       24     4.2     3,955     660    16.7       640       20     3.1 
                                                                                                                                             
         Race and Hispanic                                                                                                                   
       or Latino ethnicity (1)                                                                                                               
    White non-Hispanic or Latino ..    7,239   4,351    60.1     4,187      165     3.8     7,329   4,503    61.4     4,344      159     3.5 
    Black non-Hispanic or Latino ..    2,360   1,746    74.0     1,631      115     6.6     2,450   1,807    73.7     1,708       99     5.5 
    Asian non-Hispanic or Latino ..    7,289   4,922    67.5     4,728      194     3.9     7,481   5,060    67.6     4,917      142     2.8 
    Hispanic or Latino ethnicity...   15,360  10,794    70.3    10,252      541     5.0    16,156  11,549    71.5    11,034      514     4.5 
                                                                                                                                             
       Educational attainment                                                                                                                
       Total, 25 years and over....   28,389  19,573    68.9    18,745      828     4.2    29,576  20,647    69.8    19,908      739     3.6 
    Less than a high school                                                                                                                  
        diploma ...................    9,053   5,545    61.2     5,227      318     5.7     9,361   5,865    62.7     5,566      299     5.1 
      High school graduates, no                                                                                                              
       college (2).................    7,106   4,804    67.6     4,599      205     4.3     7,358   5,032    68.4     4,855      177     3.5 
    Some college or associate                                                                                                                
       degree......................    4,354   3,181    73.1     3,064      118     3.7     4,511   3,346    74.2     3,232      114     3.4 
    Bachelor's degree and                                                                                                                    
       higher (3)...................   7,876   6,043    76.7     5,856      188     3.1     8,347   6,405    76.7     6,255      149     2.3 
                                                                                                                                             
             NATIVE BORN                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                             
      Total 16 years and over......  193,525 127,278    65.8   120,708    6,570     5.2   195,082 128,280    65.8   122,202    6,078     4.7 
    Men............................   92,830  66,769    71.9    63,254    3,516     5.3    93,615  67,370    72.0    64,107    3,263     4.8 
    Women..........................  100,695  60,509    60.1    57,454    3,055     5.0   101,467  60,910    60.0    58,095    2,815     4.6 
                                                                                                                                             
                 Age                                                                                                                         
    16 to 24 years.................   32,505  19,821    61.0    17,493    2,328    11.7    32,787  19,893    60.7    17,723    2,170    10.9 
    25 to 34 years.................   31,162  26,247    84.2    24,856    1,391     5.3    31,233  26,305    84.2    25,024    1,282     4.9 
    35 to 44 years.................   35,385  29,868    84.4    28,699    1,168     3.9    34,731  29,296    84.3    28,244    1,051     3.6 
    45 to 54 years.................   36,529  29,930    81.9    28,922    1,008     3.4    37,005  30,405    82.2    29,477      928     3.1 
    55 to 64 years.................   26,666  16,701    62.6    16,186      515     3.1    27,668  17,557    63.5    17,049      508     2.9 
    65 years and over..............   31,278   4,712    15.1     4,552      160     3.4    31,658   4,824    15.2     4,685      139     2.9 
                                                                                                                                             
         Race and Hispanic                                                                                                                   
       or Latino ethnicity (1)                                                                                                               
    White non-Hispanic or Latino ..  150,155  99,539    66.3    95,430    4,109     4.1   150,979 100,126    66.3    96,262    3,864     3.9 
    Black non-Hispanic or Latino ..   23,283  14,694    63.1    13,155    1,538    10.5    23,668  14,905    63.0    13,500    1,405     9.4 
    Asian non-Hispanic or Latino ..    2,444   1,496    61.2     1,434       62     4.2     2,522   1,552    61.5     1,493       59     3.8 
    Hispanic or Latino ethnicity...   13,773   9,030    65.6     8,380      650     7.2    13,947   9,145    65.6     8,578      567     6.2 
                                                                                                                                             
       Educational attainment                                                                                                                
       Total, 25 years and over....  161,019 107,457    66.7   103,215    4,242     3.9   162,295 108,387    66.8   104,479    3,908     3.6 
    Less than a high school                                                                                                                  
       diploma........................18,818   7,135    37.9     6,485      649     9.1    18,181   6,893    37.9     6,326      567     8.2 
    High school graduates, no                                                                                                                
       college (2).................   53,302  33,392    62.6    31,799    1,593     4.8    53,390  33,322    62.4    31,847    1,475     4.4 
    Some college or associate                                                                                                                
       degree......................   43,915  31,793    72.4    30,561    1,232     3.9    44,500  32,064    72.1    30,911    1,152     3.6 
    Bachelor's degree and                                                                                                                    
       higher (3)..................   44,984  35,137    78.1    34,369      768     2.2    46,224  36,108    78.1    35,394      714     2.0 
  
     1 Data for race/ethnicity groups do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races.
     2 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
     3 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
     NOTE:  Due to the introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels for 2006 are not strictly comparable
  with those for 2005.  See the Technical Note for further information.
 
 
 
 
 
   Table 2.  Employment status of the foreign-born and native-born populations 16 years and over by
  presence and age of youngest child and sex, 2005-06 annual averages
  
  (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                      
                                                                                                      
                                                        2005                          2006            
               Characteristic                                                                         
                                                                                                      
                                             Total      Men      Women     Total      Men      Women  
                                                                                                                                                                                                            
                FOREIGN BORN                                                                          
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 18                                                                   
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   12,781     6,084     6,697    13,239     6,283     6,956 
    Civilian labor force..................    9,653     5,737     3,916    10,068     5,912     4,155 
        Participation rate................     75.5      94.3      58.5      76.0      94.1      59.7 
      Employed............................    9,247     5,547     3,700     9,674     5,731     3,943 
        Employment-population ratio.......     72.3      91.2      55.2      73.1      91.2      56.7 
      Unemployed..........................      406       190       216       394       182       212 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.2       3.3       5.5       3.9       3.1       5.1 
                                                                                                      
  With own children 6 to 17, none younger                                                             
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    6,353     2,950     3,403     6,604     3,050     3,554 
    Civilian labor force..................    5,053     2,750     2,303     5,256     2,828     2,428 
        Participation rate................     79.5      93.2      67.7      79.6      92.7      68.3 
      Employed............................    4,852     2,658     2,194     5,052     2,737     2,315 
        Employment-population ratio.......     76.4      90.1      64.5      76.5      89.7      65.1 
      Unemployed..........................      201        93       108       204        91       113 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.0       3.4       4.7       3.9       3.2       4.6 
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 6                                                                    
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    6,428     3,134     3,294     6,635     3,233     3,402 
    Civilian labor force..................    4,600     2,987     1,613     4,812     3,084     1,727 
        Participation rate................     71.6      95.3      49.0      72.5      95.4      50.8 
      Employed............................    4,395     2,889     1,505     4,622     2,994     1,628 
        Employment-population ratio.......     68.4      92.2      45.7      69.7      92.6      47.8 
      Unemployed..........................      206        98       108       190        90       100 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.5       3.3       6.7       3.9       2.9       5.8 
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 3                                                                    
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    3,732     1,841     1,891     3,805     1,845     1,961 
    Civilian labor force..................    2,595     1,760       835     2,658     1,758       900 
        Participation rate................     69.5      95.6      44.2      69.8      95.3      45.9 
      Employed............................    2,489     1,711       778     2,552     1,706       846 
        Employment-population ratio.......     66.7      93.0      41.1      67.1      92.5      43.1 
      Unemployed..........................      106        49        57       105        51        54 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.1       2.8       6.8       4.0       2.9       6.0 
                                                                                                      
       With no own children under 18                                                                  
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   19,777    10,237     9,539    20,493    10,706     9,787 
    Civilian labor force..................   12,389     7,526     4,863    13,080     7,973     5,107 
        Participation rate................     62.6      73.5      51.0      63.8      74.5      52.2 
      Employed............................   11,775     7,173     4,603    12,552     7,664     4,888 
        Employment-population ratio.......     59.5      70.1      48.2      61.2      71.6      49.9 
      Unemployed..........................      614       354       260       529       309       220 
        Unemployment rate.................      5.0       4.7       5.4       4.0       3.9       4.3 
                                                                                                      
                NATIVE BORN                                                                           
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 18                                                                   
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   52,845    23,226    29,619    52,551    23,118    29,433 
    Civilian labor force..................   43,521    21,852    21,669    43,400    21,774    21,626 
        Participation rate................     82.4      94.1      73.2      82.6      94.2      73.5 
      Employed............................   41,727    21,202    20,524    41,768    21,176    20,592 
        Employment-population ratio.......     79.0      91.3      69.3      79.5      91.6      70.0 
      Unemployed..........................    1,794       650     1,145     1,632       598     1,034 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.1       3.0       5.3       3.8       2.7       4.8 
                                                                                                      
  With own children 6 to 17, none younger                                                             
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   30,095    13,252    16,843    29,775    13,114    16,662 
    Civilian labor force..................   25,526    12,329    13,197    25,296    12,219    13,077 
        Participation rate................     84.8      93.0      78.4      85.0      93.2      78.5 
      Employed............................   24,600    11,977    12,623    24,471    11,912    12,559 
        Employment-population ratio.......     81.7      90.4      74.9      82.2      90.8      75.4 
      Unemployed..........................      926       351       574       825       307       518 
        Unemployment rate.................      3.6       2.9       4.4       3.3       2.5       4.0 
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 6                                                                    
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   22,749     9,974    12,776    22,776    10,004    12,772 
    Civilian labor force..................   17,995     9,524     8,472    18,104     9,555     8,549 
        Participation rate................     79.1      95.5      66.3      79.5      95.5      66.9 
      Employed............................   17,127     9,225     7,901    17,297     9,264     8,033 
        Employment-population ratio.......     75.3      92.5      61.8      75.9      92.6      62.9 
      Unemployed..........................      869       298       570       807       291       516 
        Unemployment rate.................      4.8       3.1       6.7       4.5       3.0       6.0 
                                                                                                      
         With own children under 3                                                                    
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   13,384     5,910     7,474    13,433     5,963     7,470 
    Civilian labor force..................   10,285     5,650     4,635    10,481     5,706     4,775 
        Participation rate................     76.8      95.6      62.0      78.0      95.7      63.9 
      Employed............................    9,769     5,470     4,299     9,992     5,523     4,469 
        Employment-population ratio.......     73.0      92.6      57.5      74.4      92.6      59.8 
      Unemployed..........................      516       180       336       489       183       306 
        Unemployment rate.................      5.0       3.2       7.3       4.7       3.2       6.4 
                                                                                                      
       With no own children under 18                                                                  
  Civilian noninstitutional population....  140,680    69,605    71,076   142,531    70,497    72,034 
    Civilian labor force..................   83,757    44,917    38,840    84,880    45,596    39,284 
        Participation rate................     59.5      64.5      54.6      59.6      64.7      54.5 
      Employed............................   78,981    42,051    36,930    80,434    42,931    37,503 
        Employment-population ratio.......     56.1      60.4      52.0      56.4      60.9      52.1 
      Unemployed..........................    4,776     2,866     1,910     4,446     2,665     1,781 
        Unemployment rate.................      5.7       6.4       4.9       5.2       5.8       4.5 
  
     NOTE:  Due to the introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels
  for 2006 are not strictly comparable with those for 2005.  See the Technical Note for further
  information.
  
  
  
  
  
   Table 3.  Employment status of the foreign-born and native-born populations 25 years and over by educational attainment,
  race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 2005-06 annual averages
  
  (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                              
                                                              2005                                      2006                  
                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                              
               Characteristic              Less than    High       Some              Less than    High       Some             
                                             a high    school    college  Bachelor's   a high    school    college  Bachelor's
                                             school  graduates,     or    degree and   school  graduates,     or    degree and
                                            diploma  no college associate higher (2)  diploma  no college associate higher (2)
                                                         (1)      degree                           (1)      degree            
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
                FOREIGN BORN                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                              
       White non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....      928     1,869      1,258     2,525        940     1,803      1,296     2,647  
    Civilian labor force..................      345       988        797     1,862        349       971        848     1,969  
        Participation rate................     37.1      52.8       63.4      73.8       37.1      53.8       65.4      74.4  
      Employed............................      325       955        766     1,805        331       937        819     1,920  
        Employment-population ratio.......     35.0      51.1       60.9      71.5       35.2      52.0       63.1      72.6  
      Unemployed..........................       19        33         31        57         18        33         30        48  
        Unemployment rate.................      5.6       3.4        3.9       3.1        5.3       3.4        3.5       2.5  
                                                                                                                              
       Black non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....      361       641        499       558        357       648        507       608  
    Civilian labor force..................      219       490        407       468        226       477        416       510  
        Participation rate................     60.7      76.5       81.5      83.9       63.2      73.7       81.9      83.9  
      Employed............................      203       458        382       452        207       453        398       495  
        Employment-population ratio.......     56.1      71.5       76.6      80.9       57.8      69.9       78.4      81.4  
      Unemployed..........................       17        32         25        17         19        25         18        15  
        Unemployment rate.................      7.5       6.5        6.1       3.6        8.6       5.2        4.3       3.0  
                                                                                                                              
       Asian non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....      857     1,332        998     3,385        858     1,340      1,016     3,575  
    Civilian labor force..................      402       845        725     2,606        391       862        742     2,743  
        Participation rate................     46.9      63.5       72.7      77.0       45.6      64.3       73.0      76.7  
      Employed............................      378       804        702     2,524        376       834        721     2,684  
        Employment-population ratio.......     44.1      60.4       70.3      74.6       43.8      62.3       71.0      75.1  
      Unemployed..........................       24        41         23        82         15        27         21        58  
        Unemployment rate.................      5.9       4.9        3.2       3.2        3.9       3.2        2.8       2.1  
                                                                                                                              
        Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                          
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    6,870     3,207      1,534     1,309      7,167     3,506      1,615     1,424  
    Civilian labor force..................    4,558     2,437      1,202     1,026      4,875     2,677      1,279     1,111  
        Participation rate................     66.4      76.0       78.3      78.4       68.0      76.4       79.2      78.0  
      Employed............................    4,301     2,340      1,164       997      4,631     2,587      1,234     1,085  
        Employment-population ratio.......     62.6      72.9       75.9      76.2       64.6      73.8       76.4      76.1  
      Unemployed..........................      257        98         38        29        243        90         46        27  
        Unemployment rate.................      5.6       4.0        3.1       2.9        5.0       3.4        3.6       2.4  
                                                                                                                              
                NATIVE BORN                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                              
       White non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....   12,313    42,100     34,792    38,847     11,847    42,087     35,100    39,751  
    Civilian labor force..................    4,479    25,768     24,879    30,102      4,369    25,714     24,931    30,787  
        Participation rate................     36.4      61.2       71.5      77.5       36.9      61.1       71.0      77.4  
      Employed............................    4,157    24,740     24,058    29,490      4,079    24,773     24,157    30,200  
        Employment-population ratio.......     33.8      58.8       69.1      75.9       34.4      58.9       68.8      76.0  
      Unemployed..........................      322     1,027        821       612        289       941        774       586  
        Unemployment rate.................      7.2       4.0        3.3       2.0        6.6       3.7        3.1       1.9  
                                                                                                                              
       Black non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    3,464     6,778      5,039     3,211      3,396     6,801      5,215     3,379  
    Civilian labor force..................    1,277     4,538      3,780     2,617      1,236     4,488      3,885     2,762  
        Participation rate................     36.9      66.9       75.0      81.5       36.4      66.0       74.5      81.7  
      Employed............................    1,077     4,135      3,518     2,528      1,065     4,115      3,634     2,687  
        Employment-population ratio.......     31.1      61.0       69.8      78.7       31.4      60.5       69.7      79.5  
      Unemployed..........................      200       403        263        89        171       373        251        75  
        Unemployment rate.................     15.7       8.9        6.9       3.4       13.8       8.3        6.5       2.7  
                                                                                                                              
       Asian non-Hispanic or Latino                                                                                           
  Civilian noninstitutional population....      158       303        380       859        152       339        391       880  
    Civilian labor force..................       57       162        257       680         55       188        276       710  
        Participation rate................     36.3      53.5       67.8      79.2       36.4      55.4       70.6      80.7  
      Employed............................       56       158        249       664         53       183        265       696  
        Employment-population ratio.......     35.3      52.0       65.5      77.3       35.1      54.0       67.7      79.2  
      Unemployed..........................        2         5          9        17          2         5         11        13  
        Unemployment rate.................      2.8       2.8        3.4       2.4        3.4       2.6        4.1       1.9  
                                                                                                                              
        Hispanic or Latino ethnicity                                                                                          
  Civilian noninstitutional population....    2,455     3,182      2,735     1,504      2,352     3,232      2,781     1,626  
    Civilian labor force..................    1,163     2,313      2,164     1,272      1,073     2,331      2,222     1,373  
        Participation rate................     47.4      72.7       79.1      84.5       45.6      72.1       79.9      84.4  
      Employed............................    1,066     2,195      2,064     1,235        989     2,214      2,143     1,344  
        Employment-population ratio.......     43.4      69.0       75.5      82.1       42.0      68.5       77.1      82.6  
      Unemployed..........................       97       118        100        36         85       117         79        29  
        Unemployment rate.................      8.4       5.1        4.6       2.9        7.9       5.0        3.6       2.1  
  
     1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
     2 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
     NOTE:  Data for race/ethnicity groups do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races.  Due to the
  introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels for 2006 are not strictly comparable with
  those for 2005.  See the Technical Note for further information.
  
  
  
  
  
    Table 4.  Employed foreign-born and native-born persons 16 years and over by occupation and sex, 
  2006 annual averages
  
  (Percent distribution)
                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                     
                                                                   Foreign born                  Native born         
                        Occupation                                                                                   
                                                                                                                     
                                                            Total      Men      Women     Total      Men      Women  
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
      Total employed (thousands).........................   22,225    13,395     8,831   122,202    64,107    58,095 
      Percent............................................    100.0     100.0     100.0     100.0     100.0     100.0 
                                                                                                                     
  Management, professional, and related occupations......     26.4      24.3      29.6      36.4      33.8      39.4 
    Management, business, and financial operations                                                                   
     occupations.........................................     10.0      10.1       9.9      15.5      17.1      13.8 
      Management occupations.............................      7.2       8.0       5.9      11.2      13.4       8.7 
      Business and financial operations occupations......      2.9       2.1       4.0       4.4       3.8       5.1 
    Professional and related occupations.................     16.4      14.2      19.7      20.9      16.7      25.6 
      Computer and mathematical occupations..............      3.1       3.9       2.0       2.1       2.9       1.2 
      Architecture and engineering occupations...........      2.0       2.7       1.1       1.9       3.2        .5 
      Life, physical, and social science occupations.....      1.1       1.1       1.1       1.0       1.0        .9 
      Community and social services occupations..........       .8        .6       1.1       1.6       1.2       2.1 
      Legal occupations..................................       .4        .3        .7       1.3       1.2       1.4 
      Education, training, and library occupations.......      3.1       1.8       5.0       6.1       2.9       9.6 
      Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media                                                                 
       occupations.......................................      1.2       1.1       1.5       2.0       2.0       2.1 
      Healthcare practitioner and technical occupations..      4.6       2.7       7.3       4.9       2.4       7.8 
                                                                                                                     
  Service occupations....................................     22.5      17.2      30.4      15.4      12.2      18.9 
    Healthcare support occupations.......................      2.5        .6       5.5       2.1        .4       4.0 
    Protective service occupations.......................       .8       1.0        .4       2.3       3.4       1.1 
    Food preparation and serving related occupations.....      7.7       7.4       8.1       4.8       3.6       6.2 
    Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance                                                                    
     occupations.........................................      7.9       7.0       9.3       3.0       3.6       2.3 
    Personal care and service occupations................      3.6       1.3       7.1       3.2       1.3       5.4 
                                                                                                                     
  Sales and office occupations...........................     17.9      12.9      25.6      26.3      18.0      35.5 
    Sales and related occupations........................      9.2       7.9      11.3      11.9      11.6      12.3 
    Office and administrative support occupations........      8.7       5.0      14.2      14.4       6.4      23.1 
                                                                                                                     
  Natural resources, construction, and maintenance                                                                   
   occupations...........................................     16.5      26.1       1.9      10.0      18.1       1.0 
    Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations...........      1.6       2.1       1.0        .5        .7        .2 
    Construction and extraction occupations..............     11.8      19.0        .7       5.6      10.4        .4 
    Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations....      3.1       4.9        .2       3.8       6.9        .4 
                                                                                                                     
  Production, transportation, and material moving                                                                    
   occupations...........................................     16.7      19.5      12.5      11.9      17.9       5.3 
    Production occupations...............................      9.7       9.7       9.6       5.9       8.2       3.4 
    Transportation and material moving occupations.......      7.0       9.8       2.9       6.0       9.7       1.8 
  
     NOTE:  Due to the introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels for 2006 are
  not strictly comparable with those for 2005.  See the Technical Note for further information.
  
  
  
  
  
 Table 5.  Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers for the foreign born and native born by selected
 characteristics, 2005-06 annual averages
 
 (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                              
                                                         2005                                         2006                    
                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                              
                                        Foreign born      Native born    Earnings    Foreign born      Native born    Earnings
                                                                            of                                           of   
           Characteristic                                                 foreign                                      foreign
                                                                          born as                                      born as
                                               Median            Median   percent           Median            Median   percent
                                      Number   weekly   Number   weekly     of     Number   weekly   Number   weekly     of   
                                              earnings          earnings  native           earnings          earnings  native 
                                                                         born (1)                                     born (1)
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
   Total, 16 years and over.........   16,340   $511     87,220   $677      75.6    17,267   $532     88,839   $698      76.2 
 Men................................   10,396    523     48,011    760      68.9    10,931    563     48,816    782      72.0 
 Women..............................    5,945    487     39,210    596      81.7     6,336    502     40,022    611      82.1 
                                                                                                                              
                 Age                                                                                                          
 16 to 24 years.....................    1,578    353      9,529    404      87.3     1,608    379      9,753    414      91.5 
 25 to 34 years.....................    4,831    495     20,181    633      78.3     5,008    508     20,407    647      78.4 
 35 to 44 years.....................    4,700    587     22,403    755      77.8     5,035    597     22,159    776      76.9 
 45 to 54 years.....................    3,352    563     22,299    772      73.0     3,567    612     22,814    801      76.4 
 55 to 64 years.....................    1,582    607     11,192    757      80.2     1,703    608     11,919    787      77.3 
 65 years and over..................      297    494      1,616    578      85.4       345    554      1,787    588      94.3 
                                                                                                                              
     Race and Hispanic or Latino                                                                                              
           ethnicity (2)                                                                                                      
 White non-Hispanic or Latino ......    2,978    733     67,458    720     101.8     3,051    765     68,410    740     103.3 
 Black non-Hispanic or Latino ......    1,326    521     10,671    521     100.0     1,349    563     10,939    557     101.1 
 Asian non-Hispanic or Latino ......    3,541    747      1,041    777      96.1     3,685    790      1,066    789     100.1 
 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity.......    8,331    412      6,343    555      74.2     9,010    430      6,683    572      75.1 
                                                                                                                              
       Educational attainment                                                                                                 
    Total, 25 years and over........   14,762    543     77,691    724      74.9    15,659    575     79,085    743      77.4 
 Less than a high school diploma....    4,305    385      4,557    442      87.0     4,542    396      4,487    462      85.8 
 High school graduates, no                                                                                                    
     college (3)....................    3,589    496     23,926    594      83.4     3,813    507     24,210    607      83.5 
 Some college.......................    2,316    592     23,155    679      87.2     2,446    613     23,580    701      87.4 
 Bachelor's degree and higher (4)...    4,553    960     26,053   1023      93.8     4,857   1024     26,808   1042      98.2 
 
    1 These figures are computed using unrounded medians and may differ slightly from percents computed using the rounded
 medians displayed in this table.
    2 Data for race/ethnicity groups do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races.
    3 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
    4 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.
    NOTE:  Due to the introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels for 2005 are not strictly
 comparable with those for 2004.  See the Technical Note for further information.
    
    
    
    
    
      Table 6.  Employment status of the foreign-born and native-born populations 16 years and over by census regions and divisions, 
  2005-06 annual averages
  
  (Numbers in thousands)
                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                              
                                                   2005                                                        2006                           
                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                              
                                                Civilian labor force                                        Civilian labor force              
   Census region  and    Civilian                                                   Civilian                                                  
       division          noninsti-                                                  noninsti-                                                 
                         tutional                                   Unemployed      tutional                                       Unemployed 
                          popula-           Partici-                                 popula-             Partici-                             
                           tion      Total   pation   Employed             Unem-      tion      Total     pation   Employed             Unem- 
                                              rate               Number    ploy-                           rate                Number   ploy- 
                                                                           ment                                                         ment  
                                                                           rate                                                         rate  
                                                                                                                                              
      FOREIGN BORN                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                              
    Northeast.........    7,236     4,817     66.6      4,588       229      4.8      7,494     4,992     66.6      4,775       217      4.3  
      New England.....    1,450       996     68.6        946        50      5.0      1,481     1,017     68.7        968        49      4.8  
      Middle Atlantic     5,785     3,822     66.1      3,642       180      4.7      6,012     3,974     66.1      3,807       168      4.2  
                                                                                                                                              
    South.............    9,675     6,715     69.4      6,444       272      4.0     10,289     7,304     71.0      7,061       243      3.3  
      South Atlantic..    5,879     4,073     69.3      3,920       152      3.7      6,263     4,462     71.2      4,322       140      3.1  
      East South                                                                                                                              
       Central........      505       354     70.2        335        19      5.4        531       388     73.1        373        15      3.8  
      West South                                                                                                                              
       Central........    3,291     2,288     69.5      2,188       100      4.4      3,495     2,454     70.2      2,366        88      3.6  
                                                                                                                                              
    Midwest...........    3,517     2,398     68.2      2,274       124      5.2      3,659     2,542     69.5      2,434       107      4.2  
      East North                                                                                                                              
       Central........    2,671     1,802     67.5      1,706        96      5.3      2,797     1,914     68.4      1,832        82      4.3  
      West North                                                                                                                              
       Central........      846       596     70.5        568        28      4.7        862       628     72.9        602        26      4.1  
                                                                                                                                              
    West..............   12,131     8,111     66.9      7,716       395      4.9     12,291     8,310     67.6      7,955       356      4.3  
      Mountain........    1,972     1,344     68.1      1,289        55      4.1      2,115     1,479     70.0      1,424        56      3.8  
      Pacific.........   10,158     6,767     66.6      6,427       340      5.0     10,176     6,831     67.1      6,531       300      4.4  
                                                                                                                                              
      NATIVE BORN                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                              
    Northeast.........   35,409    22,903     64.7     21,796     1,108      4.8     35,260    22,895     64.9     21,829     1,066      4.7  
      New England.....    9,763     6,572     67.3      6,261       311      4.7      9,749     6,608     67.8      6,306       302      4.6  
      Middle Atlantic    25,646    16,332     63.7     15,535       797      4.9     25,512    16,288     63.8     15,524       764      4.7  
                                                                                                                                              
    South.............   71,597    46,084     64.4     43,740     2,344      5.1     72,469    46,624     64.3     44,473     2,151      4.6  
      South Atlantic..   36,968    23,909     64.7     22,797     1,112      4.7     37,577    24,360     64.8     23,332     1,028      4.2  
      East South                                                                                                                              
       Central........   13,021     8,024     61.6      7,574       450      5.6     13,155     8,188     62.2      7,757       431      5.3  
      West South                                                                                                                              
       Central........   21,608    14,151     65.5     13,369       783      5.5     21,737    14,077     64.8     13,384       692      4.9  
                                                                                                                                              
    Midwest...........   47,205    32,193     68.2     30,440     1,753      5.4     47,428    32,401     68.3     30,778     1,623      5.0  
      East North                                                                                                                              
       Central........   32,777    21,944     66.9     20,661     1,283      5.8     32,840    22,063     67.2     20,863     1,200      5.4  
      West North                                                                                                                              
       Central........   14,428    10,249     71.0      9,780       470      4.6     14,588    10,339     70.9      9,916       423      4.1  
                                                                                                                                              
    West..............   39,313    26,097     66.4     24,732     1,365      5.2     39,925    26,358     66.0     25,121     1,238      4.7  
      Mountain........   13,167     8,919     67.7      8,500       418      4.7     13,523     9,199     68.0      8,832       367      4.0  
      Pacific.........   26,146    17,178     65.7     16,231       947      5.5     26,402    17,159     65.0     16,288       871      5.1  
  
     NOTE:  The states (plus the District of Columbia) that comprise the census divisions are:  New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,
  New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont);  Middle Atlantic (New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania); South Atlantic (Delaware, District of
  Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia); East South Central (Alabama, Kentucky,
  Mississippi, and Tennessee); West South Central Division (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas); East North Central (Illinois, Indiana,
  Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin); West North Central (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota); Mountain 
  (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming); Pacific (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington). 
  Due to the introduction of revised population controls in January 2006, estimated levels  for 2006 are not strictly comparable with those
  for 2005.  See the Technical Note for further information.