Evening star., 1942-09-28
S1,264 Median Waqe
Reported for D. {.
Workers in 1899
Census Bureau Finds
Women Here Earned
$1,059 Average in Year
By OLIVER MCKEE.

District workers in 1899 had q
median wage or salary income of
$1,264 higher than the average in
any other of the 81 cities with pop
ulations of 250,000 or over, except
Oakland Calf, which had a me-
dian of 1914 Census Bureau re-
port disclosed today.
Women workers in the District
earned an average OF $1,059-the
highest figure reported by any city
in this population group. The Dis
trict also had the highest propor-
ton of workers with incomes over
$3,000-5.4 per cent.
The Census Bureau figures are
based on returns from the income
questions incorporated in the 1910
population schedules. They apply
to persons classified as wage or
salary workers (other than emer- !
gency workers. in March 1910 who
received 81 or more in wages or
salaries during the calendar year
1899. Z
Following Oakland and the Dis
trict came San Francisco and De-
troit, with median wage or salary
incomes respectively of 1929 and
Sl,237. The five cities with the low
est incomes were all located in the
south. Among the 81 cities, San
Antonio. Tex, ranked lowest, with
$611, followed Memphis, $685.; At
lanta, $709; New Orleans $721 and
Birmingham, $752. The median for
Baltimore was $942.
Between 80 and 80 per cent of the
wage and salary workers In the 81
cities reported that they we're al
most entirely dependent on their
wages or salaries, receiving less
than $50 from other sources.
Based on 5 per cent cross Sec
ton tabulation of 100000 District
returns the Census Bureau estimates
the percentage distribution of in
come received by Washington
workers as follows:
81 to $399-10.3 per cent.
s400 to $799-177.
$500 to $1,199-17.1.
$1,000 to $1,599-20.3.
$1,000 to $1,999-13.2.
$4,000 to ,999-117.
$1,000 and over-5.4.
Few Fail to Report.
The proportion of workers in the
District who failed to report on wage
or salary income was less than l per
cent. Approximately 81 per cent
said they had no income in 1889.
Next to the District, San Fran
cisco women reported the largest
average income - 1899. Women
workers in Memphis and Birming-
ham reported the smallest median
incomes-respectively 1910 and $3.50
For most cities, according to the
Census Bureau, the medians for
males dependent on wages were $500
to 5000 higher than those for women
In the District, however, the me-
dian for men was only slightly
higher than that for women-$l 1874
as compared with $l,059.
The medians for men varied from
sl,478 in Oakland and 81 ,425 in San
Francisco to $812 in Memphis and
$737 in San Antonio.
Since the figures cover each
group as a whole. without regard to
occupation pursued or amount of
time worked during the year, they
cannot be used as an indication OF
the differences in pay scales for men
and women doing the same work, u
the Census Bureau explained. Nor
can they be used, it added, as direct
measures of the variations in wage
scales among cities.
The proportion of men with wages
or salaries of $4,000 or more was
much higher than the proportion OF
women.
In the District 81 per cent of the
| men received $4,000 or more as com
pared with only 0.6 per cent of the
women. In New York the proper
tions were SO per cent for men and
"a per cent for women.