June 27, 2007 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Variation in worker earnings by occupation, June 2006

Among the five major occupational groups, average hourly earnings in private industry ranged from $9.72 for service workers to $31.66 for management, professional, and related employees in June 2006.

Mean hourly earnings by major occupation group, private industry, June 2006
[Chart data—TXT]

Average hourly earnings for sales and office workers were $15.42, while for natural resources, construction, and maintenance workers, the average was $19.46. The average hourly earnings for production, transportation, and material moving workers was $14.64.

Overall, earnings averaged $18.56 per hour in private industry in June 2006.

These data are from the BLS National Compensation Survey program. Learn more in National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, June 2006, BLS Summary 07-03 (PDF).