U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

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Comparing A Firm’s Occupational Wage Patterns with National Wage Patterns

by John E. Buckley

Bureau of Labor Statistics

Originally Posted: September 29, 2006

This article explains how employers can use National Compensation Survey (NCS) data to compare the wage structure in

their firms with occupational pay relationships at the national level.

The National Compensation Survey (NCS) publishes a wide variety of occupational wage data for selected metropolitan and

nonmetropolitan areas, for broad geographic regions known as census divisions, and for the Nation.1 Occupational wage

estimates also are presented by selected worker and establishment characteristics such as the following: • Full- or part-time status

• Union or nonunion status

• Paid on a time or incentive basis, and

• Establishment employment size.

At the national level, NCS publishes estimates for more than 400 detailed white-collar, blue-collar, and service occupations.

In 2006, NCS published average hourly earnings estimates for full-time workers in 401 detailed occupations in private

industry.2 (See table 1.) Using NCS data, an employer can determine how the firm's wage structure compares with

occupational pay relationships at the national level by completing a set of simple calculations. Smaller firms, which often lack

the specialized expertise of wage and salary administrators, are more likely than larger firms to benefit from the method

described here. While firms typically prefer to use local area or industry-specific levels for wage comparison purposes, using

national data helps smooth out anomalies that may appear at the local level due to a smaller sample available for the local

estimates.

An Illustration

The illustration that follows shows how to calculate and compare occupational wages at the national level with those of a

hypothetical firm. The first step is to select the occupations of interest. In this example, data entry keyers are used as the

occupation with which the others are compared. As table 2 shows, messengers and janitors nationwide earned about 81

percent and 95 percent, respectively, of the earnings of data entry keyers, and payroll clerks and computer programmers

earned 140 and 263 percent, respectively, of the average earnings of data entry keyers.

Table 2. Comparing national pay levels with levels in a hypothetical firm, selected occupations, June 2005

Occupation

(1)

National average hourly

pay rate (NCS data)

(2)

NCS pay comparisons (Data

entry keyers = 100)

(3)

Hourly pay rate,

firm X

(4)

Firm X's pay comparisons (Data

entry keyers = 100)

Data entry

keyers $11.94 100 $17.25 100

Messengers 9.68 81 12.01 70

Payroll clerks 16.68 140 20.01 116

Janitors 11.32 95 12.93 75

Computer

programmers

31.45 263 32.23 187

The NCS pay comparisons shown in column 2 were produced by dividing the national average hourly pay rates of each of

the selected occupations by the hourly pay rate for data entry keyers, multiplying by 100, and rounding to nearest whole

number.3 Computing pay relationships in the same way for a hypothetical firm ("firm X") produces a second set of
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

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comparative values. The hourly pay rate of data entry keyers within this hypothetical firm (column 3) is used as the basis of

comparison for other occupational pay rates within the same firm (column 4). While earnings of computer programmers at the

national level and at firm X are higher than workers in the other 4 occupations, the pay advantage of computer programmers

over data entry keyers in firm X (87 percent) is less than the comparable advantage of computer programmers nationwide

(163 percent).

The choice of which occupation to use as the "base occupation" is arbitrary: it might be selected because it's the largest

occupation in the company, for example, or because it’s the first occupation on the company’s payroll; it might even be

chosen at random. The choice merely provides a starting point for discussion. If the gap between the highest and lowest paid

occupations is substantially different from what the NCS suggests is typical for those occupations (based on the pay

relationships between similar occupations at the national level), the company might consider raising, lowering, or freezing the

pay of some of its occupations or doing a combination of these things.

A note of caution is needed here. The method described is intended to be simple; consequently, it should be viewed as a

rough tool rather than a precise mechanism for making decisions. For example, this method does not take into account all the

factors that should determine a computer programmer’s hourly pay rate at firm X. The national estimate for this occupation

includes entry level, mid-level, and senior programmers in small and large establishments in both high- and low-paying areas,

while an individual firm might have a different mix of computer programmers.

These are some of the factors that users should keep in mind when making comparisons. The NCS publishes data for

different levels of skill within each occupation. In the 2005 national bulletin,4 for example, six levels of computer programmers

are presented, with average earnings in private industry ranging from $21.84 to $48.03 per hour. The bulletin includes

information on how firms can determine the level of work of their own jobs, which may allow for more precise comparisons.

When comparing the earnings at an individual firm with those at the national level, users should consider such factors as

employees’ length of service and special skills. For example, a particular firm might find it worthwhile to pay its data entry

keyers more than its payroll clerks, although the latter earn more, on average, at the national level. In addition, as part of the

decision-making process, users should consider the precision of a published estimate, as measured by its relative error.

Reliability Of The Data

Because the NCS is a sample survey, its estimates are subject to sampling errors. A measure of the variation among these

differing estimates is called the "standard error" or "sampling error." The standard error indicates the precision with which an

estimate from a particular sample approximates the average result of all possible samples. The relative standard error is the

standard error divided by the estimate.

The standard error can be used to calculate a "confidence interval" around a sample estimate. For example, payroll clerks at

the national level earned, on average, $16.68 per hour, with a relative standard error of 2.3 percent. Thus, at the 90-percent

level, the confidence interval for this estimate is $16.05 to $17.31.5 If all possible samples were selected to estimate the

population value, the interval from each sample would include the true population value approximately 90 percent of the time.

Table 1 includes the relative standard errors for all of the listed occupations. Smaller relative standard errors indicate that the

true population value is likely to be found in a narrow range around the estimate. Because of sampling errors, small

differences in reported averages should not be used to evaluate differentials. For example, the rate for an occupation

averaging 97 percent of payroll clerks ($16.68 x .97 = $16.18) would fall within the confidence interval for payroll clerks

($16.05 to $17.31). That means that small differences in averages are not significantly different.6

John E. Buckley

Economist, Division of Compensation Data Analysis and Planning, Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Telephone: (202) 691-6299; E-mail: Buckley.John@bls.gov
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Notes

1 The NCS sample consists of 152 metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas representing the Nation's 326 metropolitan statistical areas

(MSAs), as defined by the Office of Management and Budget in 1994, and the remaining portions of the 50 States. Data are published for

about 90 of these areas each year.

2 Data were collected between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period was June 2005. For table source, visit the 

NCS website on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ncs/; supplementary table 2.2 presents data for full-time workers in private industry.

3 For example, to compare the pay of messengers and data entry keyers in column 1, divide $9.68 by $11.94, multiply by 100 and round.

($9.68 / 11.94 = .8107; .8107 x 100 = 81.07 = 81 rounded.) For ease of analysis, absolute earnings were converted to relative earnings.

4 National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, June 2005, Bulletin 2581 (Bureau of Labor Statistics, August

2006).

5 The confidence interval for payroll clerks is calculated as follows: $16.68 plus or minus 1.645 times 2.3 percent of the mean [that is, 1.645 x .

023 x $16.68 = $0.63]; ($16.68 - $0.63 = $16.05; $16.68 + $0.63 = $17.31).

6 For more information on data reliability, see National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, June 2005. Table 1. Mean hourly earnings(1) of full-time workers(2) in selected occupations, private industry, National

Compensation Survey,(3) June 2005

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Accountants and auditors $25.90 2.2

Actors and directors 33.13 17.8

Actuaries 37.23 9.4

Adjusters and calibrators 20.79 11.0

Administrative support, n.e.c. 14.93 1.5

Administrators, education and related fields 27.58 4.8

Advertising and related sales 20.61 10.5

Aerospace engineers 42.27 8.1

Agricultural and food scientists 31.29 10.1

Aircraft engine mechanics 27.35 8.7

Aircraft mechanics, except engine 24.77 4.0

Airplane pilots and navigators 97.51 13

Animal caretakers, except farm 11.29 10.2

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Announcers 40.13 29.5

Architects 29.79 7.7

Art, drama, and music teachers 39.86 7.8

Artists, performers, and related workers, n.e.c. 16.35 19.9

Assemblers 15.06 2.0

Athletes 25.95 12.5

Attendants, amusement and recreation facilities 7.22 3.1

Automobile body and related repairers 16.33 4.5

Automobile mechanic apprentices 13.81 9.7

Automobile mechanics 18.66 3.0

Baggage porters and bellhops 7.86 5.5

Bakers 12.25 5.8

Bank tellers 11.20 1.5

Bartenders 7.03 4.6

Bill and account collectors 14.44 7.8

Billing clerks 13.34 2.0

Billing, posting, and calculating machine operators 13.84 6.0

Biological and life scientists 34.13 10.2

Biological science teachers 51.59 12.8

Biological technicians 18.94 5.7

Boilermakers 19.77 9.8

Bookbinders 15.45 10.5

Bookkeepers, accounting and auditing clerks 15.02 1.6

Brickmasons and stonemasons 26.49 9.0

Broadcast equipment operators 13.91 13.2

Bus, truck, and stationary engine mechanics 19.34 3.0

Busdrivers 13.15 10.0

Business and promotional agents 23.34 5.8

Business, commerce, and marketing teachers 49.39 8.3

Butchers and meat cutters 12.35 3.8

Buyers, wholesale and retail trade, except farm products 27.18 3.8

Cabinet makers and bench carpenters 13.06 6.7

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Carpenter apprentices 17.18 13.6

Carpenters 19.64 4.9

Carpet installers 24.45 12.9

Cashiers 9.47 2.0

Cementing and gluing machine operators 12.35 8.1

Chemical engineers 35.75 8.7

Chemical technicians 21.96 6.4

Chemistry teachers 57.08 9.8

Chemists, except biochemists 32.2 8.8

Childcare workers, n.e.c. 8.80 3.1

Civil engineers 32.51 4.2

Classified ad clerks 13.10 5.8

Clergy 15.74 13.2

Clinical laboratory technologists and technicians 18.91 3.0

Compressing and compacting machine operators 11.65 8.0

Computer operators 16.71 3.8

Computer programmers 31.45 3.2

Computer science teachers 28.71 12.0

Computer systems analysts and scientists 35.73 2.7

Concrete and terrazzo finishers 18.44 6.9

Construction inspectors 24.77 11.1

Construction laborers 14.69 4.6

Construction trades, n.e.c. 18.36 6.9

Cooks 10.29 1.5

Correspondence clerks 13.96 4.0

Cost and rate clerks 13.39 9.3

Crane and tower operators 16.64 6.2

Crushing and grinding machine operators 15.57 11.9

Data entry keyers 11.94 1.5

Data processing equipment repairers 21.03 15.0

Demonstrators, promoters, and models, sales 17.17 15.1

Dental assistants 15.42 3.6

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Dental hygienists 32.09 4.0

Dental laboratory and medical appliance technicians 15.21 2.8

Designers 21.68 3.6

Dietitians 21.42 5.9

Dispatchers 15.83 5.1

Drafters 21.94 2.8

Dressmakers 12.48 7.8

Drillers, oil well 25.02 17.8

Drilling and boring machine operators 14.25 8.1

Driver-sales workers 15.73 6.2

Drywall installers 17.98 6.9

Duplicating machine operators 12.56 9.6

Economics teachers 55.37 12.9

Economists 34.32 8.3

Editors and reporters 26.07 7.6

Education teachers 40.68 16.6

Electrical and electronic engineers 39.28 2.6

Electrical and electronic equipment assemblers 13.99 3.7

Electrical and electronic technicians 24.03 12.2

Electrical power installers and repairers 26.66 3.8

Electrician apprentices 14.61 3.5

Electricians 26.10 3.3

Electronic repairers, communications and industrial equipment 22.08 2.8

Elementary school teachers 24.64 5.5

Elevator installers and repairers 38.94 14.6

Eligibility clerks, social welfare 13.51 4.9

Engineering teachers 62.93 13.2

Engineering technicians, n.e.c. 25.77 5.5

Engineers, n.e.c. 40.02 2.2

English teachers 40.34 7.1

Excavating and loading machine operators 16.99 4.6

Expeditors 15.92 4.8

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Extruding and forming machine operators 13.83 3.8

Fabricating machine operators, n.e.c. 15.65 4.0

Farm equipment mechanics 15.50 7.5

File clerks 11.01 2.8

Financial managers 40.47 2.8

Folding machine operators 13.02 16.8

Food batchmakers 13.27 4.9

Food preparation, n.e.c. 8.63 1.9

Foreign language teachers 43.96 8.5

Forging machine operators 12.93 10.3

Freight, stock, and material handlers, n.e.c. 12.93 2.4

Furnace, kiln, and oven operators, except food 15.24 6.3

Furniture and wood finishers 12.13 7.0

Garage and service station related 8.98 3.6

Garbage collectors 9.30 7.0

General office clerks 13.57 1.3

Geologists and geodesists 37.13 6.8

Glaziers 16.39 11.7

Grader, dozer, and scraper operators 16.36 6.1

Graders and sorters, except agricultural 11.91 6.2

Grinding, abrading, buffing, and polishing machine operators 13.60 2.7

Groundskeepers and gardeners, except farm 11.17 4.7

Guards and police, except public service 10.36 2.4

Guides 13.90 6.0

Hairdressers and cosmetologists 13.05 10.0

Hand cutting and trimming 11.81 10.8

Hand engraving and printing 16.75 26.4

Hand inspectors, n.e.c. 12.33 8.1

Hand molders and shapers, except jewelers 14.21 14.3

Hand molding, casting, and forming 11.73 8.3

Hand packers and packagers 9.79 5.5

Hand painting, coating, and decorating 12.24 4.7

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Health aides, except nursing 11.93 3.1

Health diagnosing practitioners, n.e.c. 33.45 8.8

Health record technologists and technicians 15.59 4.7

Health specialties teachers 56.20 14.0

Health technologists and technicians, n.e.c. 16.59 2.3

Heat treating equipment operators 15.95 5.2

Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics 18.47 3.5

Heavy equipment mechanics 19.47 3.6

Helpers, construction trades 12.51 3.8

Helpers, mechanics and repairers 11.64 3.8

History teachers 36.76 9.6

Hoist and winch operators 12.12 19.6

Hotel clerks 9.23 1.9

Household appliance and power tool repairers 16.22 5.8

Industrial engineering technicians 24.21 5.6

Industrial engineers 33.30 2.6

Industrial machinery repairers 21.30 2.1

Industrial truck and tractor equipment operators 14.23 1.8

Information clerks, n.e.c. 13.80 2.8

Inspectors and compliance officers, except construction. 25.86 7.0

Inspectors, agricultural products 10.05 15.9

Inspectors, testers, and graders 20.22 4.1

Insulation workers 18.91 8.9

Insurance adjusters, examiners, and investigators 19.60 3.5

Insurance sales 23.09 8.5

Interviewers 12.42 4.2

Investigators and adjusters, except insurance 15.86 3.8

Janitors and cleaners 11.32 4.4

Kitchen workers, food preparation 9.05 2.4

Knitting, looping, taping, and weaving machine operators 12.23 5.8

Laborers, except construction, n.e.c. 11.07 2.5

Lathe and turning-machine operators 16.12 6.2

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Lathe and turning-machine set-up operators 17.41 3.7

Laundering and dry cleaning machine operators 9.97 5.9

Law teachers 66.59 13.5

Lawyers 56.19 4.4

Layout workers 18.46 16.0

Legal assistants 22.78 4.2

Librarians 29.85 7.5

Library clerks 13.05 5.7

Licensed practical nurses 17.82 1.9

Locomotive operating 28.94 23.1

Machine feeders and offbearers 10.90 2.5

Machinery maintenance 16.13 4.9

Machinists 19.88 1.9

Maids and housemen 8.80 3.3

Mail clerks, except postal service 12.33 7.2

Mail preparing and paper handling machine operators 12.35 6.6

Management analysts 32.00 5.0

Management related, n.e.c. 26.31 2.7

Managers and administrators, n.e.c. 41.30 4.7

Managers, food servicing and lodging establishments 21.18 7.5

Managers, marketing, advertising, and public relations 45.40 4.3

Managers, medicine and health 35.76 3.5

Managers, properties and real estate 21.67 4.3

Managers, service organizations, n.e.c. 31.11 8.6

Marine engineers 21.37 20.9

Marine engineers and naval architects 29.94 11.6

Mathematical science teachers 39.29 14.6

Mechanical controls and valve repairers 21.09 7.1

Mechanical engineering technicians 22.78 4.3

Mechanical engineers 31.96 2.0

Mechanics and repairers, n.e.c. 16.87 3.0

Medical science teachers 61.69 8.2

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
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Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Medical scientists 31.48 13.7

Messengers 9.68 10.0

Metal plating machine operators 14.49 7.8

Metallurgical and materials engineers 34.08 6.8

Meter readers 17.71 8.1

Milling and planing machine operators 16.14 6.9

Millwrights 22.30 6.3

Mining machine operators 18.57 9.3

Miscellaneous hand working, n.e.c. 12.80 5.8

Miscellaneous machine operators, n.e.c. 14.71 2.6

Miscellaneous material moving equipment operators, n.e.c. 16.91 6.3

Miscellaneous plant and system operators, n.e.c. 24.03 4.7

Miscellaneous precision workers, n.e.c. 14.25 12.5

Mixing and blending machine operators 15.57 4.1

Molding and casting machine operators 13.46 3.6

Motor transportation, n.e.c. 11.44 5.7

Musicians and composers 39.06 20.3

Nailing and tacking machine operators 10.46 10.9

Nuclear engineers 40.40 5.5

Numerical control machine operators 16.82 3.1

Nursery workers 11.53 8.9

Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants 10.49 1.2

Occupational therapists 25.60 4.1

Office machine operators, n.e.c. 11.10 3.9

Office machine repairers 17.46 8.7

Operating engineers 23.50 10.4

Operations and systems researchers and analysts 35.75 5.5

Optometrists 62.86 14.1

Order clerks 14.71 3.1

Other financial officers 32.91 3.8

Other post-secondary teachers 39.93 6.1

Packaging and filling machine operators 14.43 4.0

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 11

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Painters, construction and maintenance 15.96 4.0

Painters, sculptors, craft artists, and artist printmakers 18.66 5.4

Painting and paint spraying machine operators 15.48 4.4

Parking lot attendants 7.57 9.6

Patternmakers and modelmakers, metal 21.41 8.9

Patternmakers and modelmakers, wood 18.14 11.4

Patternmakers, layout workers, and cutters 18.63 11.4

Paving, surfacing, and tamping equipment operators 16.51 13.6

Payroll and timekeeping clerks 16.68 2.3

Peripheral equipment operators 13.68 8.9

Personnel and labor relations managers 31.26 7.8

Personnel clerks, except payroll and timekeeping 16.42 2.5

Personnel, training, and labor relations specialists 25.93 4.4

Pest control 14.06 9.6

Petroleum engineers 43.16 16.1

Pharmacists 45.74 0.8

Photoengravers and lithographers 16.66 6.3

Photographers 17.13 12.0

Photographic process machine operators 11.47 7.8

Physical education teachers 28.71 8.7

Physical scientists, n.e.c. 32.07 8.4

Physical therapists 28.98 3.5

Physicians 69.88 8.2

Physicians' assistants 37.12 7.9

Plasterers 15.15 3.0

Plumber, pipefitter, and steamfitter apprentices 14.46 4.7

Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters 24.73 7.0

Power plant operators 28.40 3.8

Precision assemblers, metal 20.72 6.1

Precision grinders, filers, and tool sharpeners 16.20 9.1

Precision inspectors, testers, and related workers, n.e.c. 23.35 10.4

Prekindergarten and kindergarten 12.31 3.8

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 12

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Pressing machine operators 9.46 5.4

Printing press operators 17.01 2.9

Production coordinators 18.77 3.7

Production helpers 11.44 2.9

Production inspectors, checkers and examiners 14.12 4.7

Production samplers and weighers 13.78 8.2

Production testers 15.19 5.0

Professional, n.e.c. 32.87 9.2

Proofreaders 13.82 9.0

Protective service, n.e.c. 9.41 3.0

Psychologists 22.78 8.6

Psychology teachers 40.98 6.6

Public relations specialists 24.73 7.3

Public transportation attendants 33.37 4.6

Punching and stamping press operators 14.04 6.7

Purchasing agents and buyers, farm products 23.95 16.5

Purchasing agents and buyers, n.e.c. 27.36 4.7

Purchasing managers 35.06 8.4

Radiological technicians 24.25 2.8

Rail vehicle operators, n.e.c. 21.64 4.0

Railroad brake, signal, and switch operators 30.28 5.9

Railroad conductors and yardmasters 25.68 22.6

Real estate sales 22.06 14.7

Receptionists 12.06 1.7

Records clerks, n.e.c. 14.11 2.9

Recreation workers 13.24 7.6

Registered nurses 28.15 1.5

Religious workers, n.e.c. 18.74 15.5

Respiratory therapists 22.69 2.4

Roasting and baking machine operators, food 14.04 7.8

Rolling machine operators 16.65 11.4

Roofers 16.21 7.5

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 13

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Sailors and deckhands 11.39 6.4

Sales counter clerks 10.57 5.3

Sales engineers 38.11 9.5

Sales representatives, mining, manufacturing, and wholesale 27.09 3.5

Sales support, n.e.c. 15.73 8.0

Sales workers, apparel 13.10 14.4

Sales workers, furniture and home furnishings 15.24 6.1

Sales workers, hardware and building supplies 13.70 5.6

Sales workers, motor vehicles and boats 21.91 6.3

Sales workers, other commodities 13.42 3.2

Sales workers, parts 14.83 2.9

Sales workers, radio, tv, hi-fi, and appliances 11.93 8.3

Sales workers, shoes 10.88 12.3

Sales, other business services 25.32 6.3

Sawing machine operators 11.11 4.9

Science technicians, n.e.c. 21.90 10.5

Secondary school teachers 30.88 4.6

Secretaries 17.13 1.2

Securities and financial services sales 41.38 7.0

Separating, filtering, and clarifying machine operators 19.56 5.4

Service, n.e.c. 11.61 5.8

Shaping and joining machine operators 13.69 2.8

Sheet metal duct installers 24.07 12.8

Sheet metal workers 17.80 10.1

Ship captains and mates, except fishing boats 19.15 15.2

Slicing and cutting machine operators 14.08 2.7

Small engine repairers 15.43 5.8

Social science teachers, n.e.c. 43.99 10.2

Social scientists, n.e.c. 34.19 2.4

Social workers 17.59 3.2

Sociology teachers 48.13 27.5

Solderers and brazers 12.17 9.0

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 14

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Speech therapists 26.49 6.7

Stationary engineers 23.99 5.6

Statistical clerks 14.86 5.4

Statisticians 29.36 8.9

Stenographers 16.49 5.7

Stock and inventory clerks 13.26 2.0

Stock handlers and baggers 11.26 1.9

Street and door-to-door sales workers 19.92 18.3

Structural metal workers 24.17 12.7

Supervisors, agriculture-related workers 24.39 7.3

Supervisors, carpenters and related workers 24.41 6.0

Supervisors, cleaning and building service workers 16.98 4.0

Supervisors, construction trades, n.e.c. 22.54 6.6

Supervisors, distribution, scheduling, and adjusting clerks 20.53 5.4

Supervisors, electricians and power transmission installers 32.67 3.9

Supervisors, extractive 24.40 19.4

Supervisors, financial records processing 23.17 3.3

Supervisors, food preparation and service 14.01 2.8

Supervisors, general office 20.91 2.5

Supervisors, guards 17.12 11.4

Supervisors, handlers, equipment cleaners, and laborers, n.e.c. 19.80 6.7

Supervisors, material moving equipment 22.77 3.5

Supervisors, mechanics and repairers 24.76 2.8

Supervisors, motor vehicle operators 18.58 6.4

Supervisors, painters, paperhangers, and plasterers 23.54 7.8

Supervisors, personal service 14.76 6.5

Supervisors, plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters 27.39 8.5

Supervisors, production 22.22 2.0

Supervisors, sales 20.62 3.6

Surveying and mapping technicians 19.61 11.9

Surveyors and mapping scientists 36.16 11.4

Tailors 17.63 20.4

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 15

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Taxicab drivers and chauffeurs 8.93 8.4

Teachers, n.e.c. 23.61 6.4

Teachers, special education 26.09 9.1

Teachers' aides 10.01 8.1

Technical and related, n.e.c. 21.13 6.0

Technical writers 35.83 14.7

Telephone installers and repairers 23.85 3.5

Telephone line installers and repairers 25.24 4.8

Telephone operators 12.82 5.6

Textile cutting machine operators 10.92 4.7

Textile sewing machine operators 10.53 9.2

Theology teachers 42.01 11.2

Therapists, n.e.c. 16.87 3.5

Tile setters, hard and soft 17.92 13.5

Tool and die maker apprentices 17.92 7.4

Tool and die makers 23.94 2.0

Tool programmers, numerical control 23.35 7.4

Traffic, shipping and receiving clerks 13.94 2.1

Transportation ticket and reservation agents 15.13 3.7

Truckdrivers 15.31 2.4

Typesetters and compositors 15.73 5.8

Typists 15.79 5.9

Underwriters 27.41 5.7

Upholsterers 15.05 11.5

Vehicle washers and equipment cleaners 10.00 3.8

Vocational and educational counselors 17.92 8.8

Waiters and waitresses 4.69 4.4

Waiters, waitresses, and bartenders 5.33 2.8

Waiters'/Waitresses' assistants 6.47 6.2

Washing, cleaning, and pickling machine operators 16.81 22.6

Water and sewer treatment plant operators 18.49 10.8

Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers 15.20 8.2

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.
U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS COMPENSATION AND WORKING CONDITIONS

Page 16

Occupation(4) Average hourly earnings Relative error(5) (percent)

Welders and cutters 15.69 2.3

Welfare service aides 11.12 3.2

Winding and twisting machine operators 12.61 7.1

Wood lathe, routing, and planing machine operators 12.20 7.1

Footnotes:

(1) Earnings are the straight-time hourly wages or salaries paid to employees and include incentive pay, cost-of-living adjustments, and

hazard pay; they exclude premium pay for overtime, vacations, holidays, nonproduction bonuses, and tips. The mean is computed by totaling

the pay of all workers and dividing by the number of workers, weighted by hours.

(2) Employees are classified as working either a full-time or a part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment.

Therefore, a worker with a 35-hour-per-week schedule might be considered a full-time employee in one establishment, but classified as parttime in another firm, where a 40-hour week is the minimum full-time schedule.

(3) This survey covers all 50 States. Collection was conducted between December 2004 and January 2006. The average reference period

was June 2005.

(4) A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. For more

information, see appendix B in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, on the Internet at www.bls.gov/ocs/

compub.htm.

(5) The relative standard error (RSE) is the standard error expressed as a percent of the estimate. It can be used to calculate a "confidence

interval" around a sample estimate. For more information about RSEs, see appendix A in "National Compensation Survey: Occupational

Wages in the United States" on the BLS Internet site www.bls.gov/ocs/compub.htm.

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