February 16, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Demographics vary by occupation

During 1998, women made up 46.2 percent of the total of 131.5 million employed persons. Black workers represented 11.1 percent, and people of Hispanic origin accounted for 10.1 percent of all employees. The detailed occupations in which each of these groups was most heavily represented varied considerably.

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The occupation that employed the highest share of women was dental hygienists: over 99 percent of such workers were women. Other occupations where the female employment share was over 97 percent included secretaries, dental assistants, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten teachers, and family child care providers.

The highest proportion of black workers was reported among barbers at 39.4 percent, followed by nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants (34.0 percent); winding and twisting machine operators (30.7 percent); correctional institution officers (29.2 percent); and postal clerks, except mail carriers (28.2 percent).

Hispanic workers were most heavily represented in the following detailed occupations: graders and sorters of agricultural products (64.2 percent); farm workers (44.9 percent); household cleaners and servants (37.0 percent); pressing machine operators (35.2 percent); and helpers in construction trades (33.3 percent).

These employment data by detailed occupation and demographic characteristics are produced by the Current Population Survey.  More information can be found in table 11 of the January 1999 edition of Employment and Earnings. The data in this article are 1998 annual averages.