October 21, 2003 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Earnings and occupation: third quarter of 2003

Median weekly earnings of the nation's 101.4 million full-time wage and salary workers were $618 in the third quarter of 2003.

[Chart data—TXT]

Persons employed full time in managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median weekly earnings. For men, the median was $1,056 while for women it was $755.

Men and women in service jobs earned the least. Men employed in service jobs had median earnings of $451 per week. Women employed in service occupations had median earnings of $361.

Overall, the median weekly earnings of men in full-time wage and salary jobs were $689, compared with women’s median earnings of $550.

Data on weekly earnings are from the Current Population Survey, a nationwide sample survey of households in which respondents are asked, among other things, how much each wage and salary worker usually earns. Find more information on earnings in "Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers: Third Quarter 2003" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 03-551.