Bureau of Labor Statistics
Occupational Pay Comparisons Among Metropolitan Areas News Release
Technical Contact: USDL: 08-1015
(202) 691-6199 NCSinfo@bls.gov
Media Contact: FOR RELEASE: 10:00 AM EDT
(202) 691-5902 FRIDAY, JULY 25, 2008
Internet Address:
http://www.bls.gov/ncs
OCCUPATIONAL PAY COMPARISONS AMONG METROPOLITAN AREAS, 2007
Average pay in the San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA metropolitan area was 19 percent
above the national average in 2007, the highest among metropolitan areas studied by the
National Compensation Survey (NCS), the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of
Labor reported today. In contrast, pay was lowest in the Brownsville-Harlingen, TX metropolitan
area with a pay relative of 76, meaning Brownsville workers earned an average of 76 cents for
every dollar earned by workers nationwide. Using data from the NCS, pay relatives--a means of
assessing pay differences--are available for each of the 9 major occupational groups within
77 metropolitan areas, as well as averaged across all occupations for each area. (See table 1.)
Pay relatives calculated for all occupations were significantly different from the
national average in 67 of the 77 areas. Table A below lists higher and lower paying metropolitan
areas among those studied in the NCS. Table B provides higher paying metropolitan area for
each of nine major occupational groups. In addition, area-to-area comparisons have been
calculated for all 77 metropolitan areas and will soon be available on the BLS website at
http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ocs/payrel.htm.
Table A. Metropolitan area pay relative rankings (of 77 metropolitan areas surveyed)
Rank Metropolitan Area Pay Relative
1. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 119
2. New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA 115
3. Salinas, CA 114
4. Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic, CT 113
5. Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH 112
75. Corpus Christi, TX 87
76. Johnstown, PA 85
77. Brownsville-Harlingen, TX 76
A pay relative is a calculation of pay--wages, salaries, commissions, and production
bonuses--for a given metropolitan area relative to the nation as a whole. The calculation
controls for differences among areas in occupational composition, establishment and occupational
characteristics, and the fact that data are collected for areas at different times during
the year. Simple pay comparisons calculating the ratio of the average pay for an area versus
the entire United States in percentage terms would not control for interarea differences in
occupational composition and other factors, which may have a significant effect on pay relatives.
More information on pay relative controls and calculations is available in the Technical Note.
Table B. Metropolitan area pay relative rankings for nine major occupational groups (of 77 metropolitan areas surveyed)
Major Occupational Group Rank and Metropolitan Area Pay Relative
Management, business, and 1. New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA 115
financial 2. Salinas, CA 114
Professional and related 1. Salinas, CA 120
2. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 118
Service 1. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 124
2. Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic, CT 121
Sales and related 1. Salinas, CA 128
2. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 124
Office and administrative 1. San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 121
support 2. Boston-Worchester-Manchester, MA-NH 115
2. New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA 115
Construction and extraction 1. New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA 133
2. Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City, IL-IN-WI 131
Installation, maintenance, 1. Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH 115
and repair 1. Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee, CA-NV 115
Production 1. Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI 117
1. Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA 117
Transportation and material 1. Springfield, MA 113
moving 2. Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA 112
The pay relative for construction and extraction occupations in the New York-Newark-Bridgeport
area was 133, meaning the pay in the New York metropolitan area for that occupational group
averaged 33 percent more than the national average pay for that occupational group. By contrast,
the pay relative for workers in construction and extraction in the Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas
area was 66, meaning pay for workers in those occupations averaged 34 percent less than the
national average.
Using pay relative data
To assist data users in analyzing these data, tests have been conducted to determine
whether differences between each pay relative and the pay relative for the nation as a whole are
statistically significant (that is, the pay for the given occupation in that area is too different
from the national average to be accounted for by the survey sample). Similar tests are conducted
for the area-to-area comparisons. In Table 1, statistically significant pay relatives are
denoted with an asterisk (*). More information on significance testing is available in the
Technical Note.
Yearly differences in area and occupational group differences in pay relatives do not infer
changes in underlying economic conditions.
Table 1. Pay relatives for major occupational groups in
metropolitan areas, National Compensation Survey, July 2007
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Management,
Metropolitan Area(1) All business,
occupations and
financial
United States......................... 100 100
Amarillo, TX.......................... 88* 88*
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville,
GA-AL................................. 101 103
Austin-Round Rock, TX................. 96* 95*
Birmingham-Hoover, AL................. 94* 94*
Bloomington, IN....................... 90* 87*
Bloomington-Normal, IL................ 101 103*
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH.... 112* 108*
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX............. 76* 77*
Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY....... 101* 90*
Charleston-North
Charleston-Summerville, SC............ 91* 94*
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC..... 102 102
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City,
IL-IN-WI.............................. 108* 102
Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington,
OH-KY-IN.............................. 97* 93*
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH............ 101 96
Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH....... 99 103
Corpus Christi, TX.................... 87* 88*
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX................. 97* 99
Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH..... 97* 100
Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO............. 103* 100
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI.............. 105* 98
Elkhart-Goshen, IN.................... 95* 99
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO............. 101* 94*
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI.............. 100 89*
Great Falls, MT....................... 88* 82*
Greensboro-High Point, NC............. 94* 91*
Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC......... 93* 97*
Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic,
CT.................................... 113* 111*
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC.......... 95* 94*
Honolulu, HI.......................... 104* 107*
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX........ 95* 99
Huntsville-Decatur, AL................ 96* 92*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Metropolitan Area(1) Professional Service
and related
United States......................... 100 100
Amarillo, TX.......................... 83* 86*
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville,
GA-AL................................. 102 96*
Austin-Round Rock, TX................. 94* 90*
Birmingham-Hoover, AL................. 96* 99
Bloomington, IN....................... 92* 87*
Bloomington-Normal, IL................ 102* 103*
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH.... 109* 114*
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX............. 88* 76*
Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY....... 94* 108*
Charleston-North
Charleston-Summerville, SC............ 92* 85*
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC..... 92* 101
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City,
IL-IN-WI.............................. 108* 107*
Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington,
OH-KY-IN.............................. 99 102
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH............ 100 101
Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH....... 95* 101
Corpus Christi, TX.................... 90* 83*
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX................. 99 93*
Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH..... 94* 96*
Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO............. 100 106*
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI.............. 104* 103*
Elkhart-Goshen, IN.................... 91* 97*
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO............. 97* 96*
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI.............. 94* 104*
Great Falls, MT....................... 77* 96*
Greensboro-High Point, NC............. 94* 94*
Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC......... 89* 97
Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic,
CT.................................... 109* 121*
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC.......... 85* 92*
Honolulu, HI.......................... 100 113*
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX........ 97 86*
Huntsville-Decatur, AL................ 95* 98
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Office and
Metropolitan Area(1) Sales and administra-
related tive support
United States......................... 100 100
Amarillo, TX.......................... 91* 88*
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville,
GA-AL................................. 96 106*
Austin-Round Rock, TX................. 104* 96*
Birmingham-Hoover, AL................. 95* 97*
Bloomington, IN....................... 83* 91*
Bloomington-Normal, IL................ 99 96*
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH.... 106* 115*
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX............. 68* 77*
Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY....... 102 98*
Charleston-North
Charleston-Summerville, SC............ 97* 93*
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC..... 112* 102
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City,
IL-IN-WI.............................. 109* 110*
Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington,
OH-KY-IN.............................. 92 97*
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH............ 98 101
Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH....... 105 98
Corpus Christi, TX.................... 87* 86*
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX................. 101 99
Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH..... 97* 92*
Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO............. 105 102*
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI.............. 98 105*
Elkhart-Goshen, IN.................... 94* 92*
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO............. 105* 102*
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI.............. 105* 98*
Great Falls, MT....................... 90* 83*
Greensboro-High Point, NC............. 86* 96*
Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC......... 87* 93*
Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic,
CT.................................... 107 112*
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC.......... 91* 95*
Honolulu, HI.......................... 108* 96*
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX........ 95* 98
Huntsville-Decatur, AL................ 102 93*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Construction Installation,
Metropolitan Area(1) and maintenance,
extraction and repair
United States......................... 100 100
Amarillo, TX.......................... 81* 85*
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville,
GA-AL................................. 91* 100
Austin-Round Rock, TX................. 87* 104*
Birmingham-Hoover, AL................. 86* 94*
Bloomington, IN....................... 76* 81*
Bloomington-Normal, IL................ 106* 93
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH.... 125* 115*
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX............. 66* 86*
Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY....... 114* 105*
Charleston-North
Charleston-Summerville, SC............ 78* 82*
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC..... 89* 99
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City,
IL-IN-WI.............................. 131* 112*
Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington,
OH-KY-IN.............................. 90 99
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH............ 102 102
Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH....... 99 101
Corpus Christi, TX.................... 94* 79*
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX................. 89* 96*
Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH..... 102 100
Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO............. 92 107*
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI.............. 101 97
Elkhart-Goshen, IN.................... 114* 89*
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO............. 104* 104*
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI.............. 119* 99
Great Falls, MT....................... 110* 93*
Greensboro-High Point, NC............. 88* 92*
Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC......... 79* 84*
Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic,
CT.................................... 115 111
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC.......... 102 89*
Honolulu, HI.......................... 115* 107*
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX........ 90* 92*
Huntsville-Decatur, AL................ 89* 90*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Transporta-
Metropolitan Area(1) Production tion and
material
moving
United States......................... 100 100
Amarillo, TX.......................... 91* 92*
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville,
GA-AL................................. 104 106
Austin-Round Rock, TX................. 96* 92*
Birmingham-Hoover, AL................. 88* 95*
Bloomington, IN....................... 97 105*
Bloomington-Normal, IL................ 109* 104*
Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH.... 108* 111*
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX............. 76* 74*
Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY....... 107* 103*
Charleston-North
Charleston-Summerville, SC............ 101 102*
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC-SC..... 102 99
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City,
IL-IN-WI.............................. 105* 105*
Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington,
OH-KY-IN.............................. 100 99
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH............ 104 105*
Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH....... 96 98
Corpus Christi, TX.................... 92* 86*
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX................. 91* 97
Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH..... 106* 102*
Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO............. 100 103
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI.............. 117* 109*
Elkhart-Goshen, IN.................... 96* 99
Fort Collins-Loveland, CO............. 100 109*
Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI.............. 101 98*
Great Falls, MT....................... 100 96*
Greensboro-High Point, NC............. 102* 102*
Greenville-Mauldin-Easley, SC......... 106* 93*
Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic,
CT.................................... 112* 108*
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC.......... 100 101
Honolulu, HI.......................... 110 100
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX........ 102 94*
Huntsville-Decatur, AL................ 101 95*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Management,
Metropolitan Area(1) All business,
occupations and
financial
Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN.... 96* 79*
Iowa City, IA......................... 97* 102
Johnstown, PA......................... 85* 79*
Kansas City, MO-KS.................... 98 91*
Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, WA.......... 103* 96
Knoxville, TN......................... 92* 103
Lincoln, NE........................... 88* 84*
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside,
CA.................................... 107* 107*
Louisville/Jefferson
County-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg,
KY-IN................................. 95* 90*
Memphis, TN-MS-AR..................... 95* 96*
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL.................................... 98* 104
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI......... 101 99
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud,
MN-WI................................. 109* 111
Mobile, AL............................ 89* 78*
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA....... 98* 90*
New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA........................... 115* 115*
Ocala, FL............................. 90* 80*
Oklahoma City, OK..................... 90* 86*
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL................. 91* 91
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL..... 94* 85*
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland,
PA-NJ-DE-MD........................... 105* 106*
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ........... 98 102
Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA............. 96* 94*
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA... 104* 100
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River,
RI-MA................................. 109* 106*
Reading, PA........................... 102* 110*
Reno-Sparks, NV....................... 97* 95*
Richmond, VA.......................... 98* 98
Rochester, NY......................... 97* 89*
Rockford, IL.......................... 98* 88*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Metropolitan Area(1) Professional Service
and related
Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN.... 97 94*
Iowa City, IA......................... 92* 100
Johnstown, PA......................... 85* 87*
Kansas City, MO-KS.................... 98 97
Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, WA.......... 96* 114*
Knoxville, TN......................... 99 83*
Lincoln, NE........................... 85* 92*
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside,
CA.................................... 107* 109*
Louisville/Jefferson
County-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg,
KY-IN................................. 91* 103*
Memphis, TN-MS-AR..................... 88* 87*
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL.................................... 97 100
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI......... 96* 100
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud,
MN-WI................................. 104* 116*
Mobile, AL............................ 83* 86*
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA....... 100 94*
New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA........................... 116* 115*
Ocala, FL............................. 83* 93*
Oklahoma City, OK..................... 88* 91*
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL................. 85* 94
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL..... 87* 101
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland,
PA-NJ-DE-MD........................... 108* 105*
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ........... 101 99
Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA............. 95* 96*
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA... 97 111*
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River,
RI-MA................................. 113* 116*
Reading, PA........................... 92* 100
Reno-Sparks, NV....................... 95* 98*
Richmond, VA.......................... 95* 97*
Rochester, NY......................... 96* 106*
Rockford, IL.......................... 97* 98*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Office and
Metropolitan Area(1) Sales and administra-
related tive support
Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN.... 94 96*
Iowa City, IA......................... 93* 98
Johnstown, PA......................... 86* 84*
Kansas City, MO-KS.................... 100 98
Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, WA.......... 102 100
Knoxville, TN......................... 99 95*
Lincoln, NE........................... 84* 88*
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside,
CA.................................... 114* 107*
Louisville/Jefferson
County-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg,
KY-IN................................. 99 96*
Memphis, TN-MS-AR..................... 100 98*
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL.................................... 95* 97
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI......... 105 103*
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud,
MN-WI................................. 110* 104*
Mobile, AL............................ 95* 92*
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA....... 102 99
New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA........................... 115* 115*
Ocala, FL............................. 93* 91*
Oklahoma City, OK..................... 89* 88*
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL................. 101 88*
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL..... 96* 88*
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland,
PA-NJ-DE-MD........................... 98 106*
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ........... 106 99
Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA............. 90* 97
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA... 114* 106
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River,
RI-MA................................. 102 107*
Reading, PA........................... 106* 101*
Reno-Sparks, NV....................... 104* 97*
Richmond, VA.......................... 95* 101
Rochester, NY......................... 97* 98*
Rockford, IL.......................... 98 96*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Construction Installation,
Metropolitan Area(1) and maintenance,
extraction and repair
Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN.... 96* 95
Iowa City, IA......................... 104* 102
Johnstown, PA......................... 96* 89*
Kansas City, MO-KS.................... 102 99
Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, WA.......... 109* 96*
Knoxville, TN......................... 82* 85*
Lincoln, NE........................... 84* 94*
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside,
CA.................................... 111* 110*
Louisville/Jefferson
County-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg,
KY-IN................................. 106* 92*
Memphis, TN-MS-AR..................... 93* 99
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL.................................... 93 96
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI......... 109 102
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud,
MN-WI................................. 111* 104
Mobile, AL............................ 92* 98
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA....... 93* 93*
New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA........................... 133* 114*
Ocala, FL............................. 81* 106*
Oklahoma City, OK..................... 103 107*
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL................. 90* 91
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL..... 92* 103
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland,
PA-NJ-DE-MD........................... 106* 112*
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ........... 82* 103
Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA............. 98 97
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA... 115* 111*
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River,
RI-MA................................. 113* 111*
Reading, PA........................... 102 108*
Reno-Sparks, NV....................... 94* 109*
Richmond, VA.......................... 92* 101
Rochester, NY......................... 98 88*
Rockford, IL.......................... 107* 99
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Transporta-
Metropolitan Area(1) Production tion and
material
moving
Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN.... 106* 97
Iowa City, IA......................... 100 98
Johnstown, PA......................... 84* 86*
Kansas City, MO-KS.................... 106 97
Kennewick-Pasco-Richland, WA.......... 97* 104*
Knoxville, TN......................... 88* 96*
Lincoln, NE........................... 89* 93*
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside,
CA.................................... 100 104
Louisville/Jefferson
County-Elizabethtown-Scottsburg,
KY-IN................................. 99 91*
Memphis, TN-MS-AR..................... 97* 96*
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach,
FL.................................... 95* 101
Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI......... 104 105
Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud,
MN-WI................................. 115* 108*
Mobile, AL............................ 93* 101
New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner, LA....... 101 104*
New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA........................... 106* 110*
Ocala, FL............................. 92* 103*
Oklahoma City, OK..................... 85* 84*
Orlando-Kissimmee, FL................. 85 107
Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL..... 107* 106*
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland,
PA-NJ-DE-MD........................... 99 104
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ........... 97 100
Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA............. 98 95*
Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA... 100 99
Providence-New Bedford-Fall River,
RI-MA................................. 111* 106*
Reading, PA........................... 101* 99
Reno-Sparks, NV....................... 97* 98
Richmond, VA.......................... 102 100
Rochester, NY......................... 99 99
Rockford, IL.......................... 102* 102*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Management,
Metropolitan Area(1) All business,
occupations and
financial
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee,
CA-NV................................. 108* 103
Salinas, CA........................... 114* 114*
San Antonio, TX....................... 91* 93*
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA..... 109* 108*
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA.... 119* 112*
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA............ 110* 103
Springfield, MA....................... 110* 101
Springfield, MO....................... 88* 84*
St. Louis, MO-IL...................... 102 96
Tallahassee, FL....................... 92* 83*
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL... 94* 90*
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News,
VA-NC................................. 91* 86*
Visalia-Porterville, CA............... 98* 106
Washington-Baltimore-Northern
Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV................. 108* 104*
York-Hanover, PA...................... 97* 105*
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA..... 96* 99
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Metropolitan Area(1) Professional Service
and related
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee,
CA-NV................................. 110* 112*
Salinas, CA........................... 120* 118*
San Antonio, TX....................... 92* 87*
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA..... 110* 115*
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA.... 118* 124*
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA............ 102 119*
Springfield, MA....................... 112* 107*
Springfield, MO....................... 87* 87*
St. Louis, MO-IL...................... 100 97*
Tallahassee, FL....................... 86* 96
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL... 91* 94*
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News,
VA-NC................................. 90* 94*
Visalia-Porterville, CA............... 103 101
Washington-Baltimore-Northern
Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV................. 111* 106*
York-Hanover, PA...................... 99 98*
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA..... 93* 93*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Office and
Metropolitan Area(1) Sales and administra-
related tive support
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee,
CA-NV................................. 104 106*
Salinas, CA........................... 128* 113*
San Antonio, TX....................... 96 91*
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA..... 105 106*
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA.... 124* 121*
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA............ 113* 106*
Springfield, MA....................... 110* 110*
Springfield, MO....................... 92* 87*
St. Louis, MO-IL...................... 96 100
Tallahassee, FL....................... 91* 91*
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL... 97 97*
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News,
VA-NC................................. 92* 92*
Visalia-Porterville, CA............... 98 98
Washington-Baltimore-Northern
Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV................. 106* 112*
York-Hanover, PA...................... 90* 96*
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA..... 86* 92*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Construction Installation,
Metropolitan Area(1) and maintenance,
extraction and repair
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee,
CA-NV................................. 101 115*
Salinas, CA........................... 126* 107*
San Antonio, TX....................... 97 102
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA..... 111* 109*
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA.... 123* 114*
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA............ 110* 107*
Springfield, MA....................... 109* 103
Springfield, MO....................... 77* 87*
St. Louis, MO-IL...................... 121* 110*
Tallahassee, FL....................... 81* 88*
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL... 98 94
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News,
VA-NC................................. 84* 94*
Visalia-Porterville, CA............... 89* 90*
Washington-Baltimore-Northern
Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV................. 100 114*
York-Hanover, PA...................... 99 98
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA..... 95* 94*
See footnotes at end of table.
(Continued)
(Average pay nationally for all occupations and for each
occupational group shown = 100.)
Transporta-
Metropolitan Area(1) Production tion and
material
moving
Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Truckee,
CA-NV................................. 114* 109*
Salinas, CA........................... 101 104*
San Antonio, TX....................... 98 89*
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA..... 105 101
San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA.... 108* 109*
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA............ 117* 112*
Springfield, MA....................... 109* 113*
Springfield, MO....................... 93* 97*
St. Louis, MO-IL...................... 106 110*
Tallahassee, FL....................... 93* 93*
Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL... 93* 102
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News,
VA-NC................................. 92* 90*
Visalia-Porterville, CA............... 103* 93*
Washington-Baltimore-Northern
Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV................. 107* 106*
York-Hanover, PA...................... 97* 104*
Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, OH-PA..... 101 110*
* The pay relative for this area is significantly different
from the national average of all areas at the 10 percent level
of significance. For additional details, see the Technical Note.
1 A metropolitan area can be a Metropolitan Statistical Area
(MSA) or Combined Statistical Area (CSA) as defined by the
Office of Management and Budget, December 2003.
Technical Note
Pay relative controls and calculations
Pay relatives control for differences among areas in occupational composition as well as
establishment and occupational characteristics. Metropolitan areas often differ greatly in
the composition of establishments and occupations that are available to the local workforce.
For example, in Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas, the ratio of workers in the typically high-paying
management, business, and financial occupations group to the number of workers in all occupations
is under 6 percent, whereas nationally this ratio is nearly 9 percent.1 In addition to these
factors, the NCS collects compensation data for metropolitan areas at different times during
the year. Payroll reference dates differ between areas, which makes direct comparisons between
areas difficult.
The pay relative approach controls for these differences to isolate the geographic effect
on wage determination. To illustrate the importance of controlling for these effects, consider
the following example. The average pay for construction and extraction workers in the
New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA area is $30.42 and the average pay for construction
and extraction workers in the entire United States is $20.14.2 A simple pay comparison can be
calculated from the ratio of the two average pay levels, multiplied by 100 to express the
comparison as a percentage. The pay comparison in the example is calculated as:
($30.42 ÷ $20.14) × 100 ≅ 151
This comparison does not control for differences between the New York-Newark-Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA metropolitan area and the nation in the mix of occupations, industries, and other
factors. A more accurate estimate of the geographic effect of wages can be obtained by taking
these differences into account. Controlling for differences in occupational composition,
establishment and occupational characteristics, and the payroll reference date relative to
the nation as the whole, the pay relative for construction and extraction occupations in
New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA is equal to 133.
Sampling errors and statistical significance
Because the NCS is a sample survey, data are subject to sampling error. For the data
presented here, sampling error are differences that occur between the pay relatives estimated
from the sample and the true pay relatives derived from the population. It is important to
assess whether differences between each pay relative and the pay relative for the nation as a
whole is likely to be the result of sampling error or of true differences in pay levels.
To perform this assessment, a test of statistical significance is conducted.
The test constructs a 90-percent confidence interval that assumes the given areas true
pay relative is equal to the national average. The confidence interval is constructed so that
there is a 90-percent probability the pay relative calculated from any one sample is contained
within the confidence interval. If from a single sample a calculated pay relative falls within
the confidence interval, then the pay relative is not statistically significant and the
hypothesis that the true pay relative is equal to the national average is accepted. However, if
the pay relative falls outside of the constructed confidence interval then the pay relative is
statistically significant at the 10-percent level. The hypothesis that the given areas pay
relative is equal to the pay relative for the nation is rejected and one can conclude with
reasonable confidence that the true pay relative is different from the national average.
Statements involving multiple comparisons in the text, however, such as those using largest or
smallest, could not be validated.
In addition to sampling error, pay relatives are subject to a variety of sources that can
adversely influence the estimates. The NCS may be unable to obtain information for some
establishments; there may be difficulties with survey definitions; respondents may be unable to
provide correct information, or mistakes in recording or coding the data may occur. Non-sampling
errors of these kinds were not specifically measured. However, they are expected to be minimal
due to the extensive training of the field economists who gathered the survey data, computer
edits of the data, and detailed data review.
Survey methodology
The National Compensation Survey (NCS) collects earnings and other data on employee
compensation covering over 800 detailed occupations. Average occupational earnings from the
NCS are published annually for 77 metropolitan areas and for the United States as a whole.
Beginning in 2006, the NCS implemented a number of significant survey changes including
imputing for temporary non-response situations and benchmarking estimated employment. For
more details on these changes, see the article at http://www.bls.gov/opub/cwc/cm20070122ar01p1.htm.
The NCS program collects data in U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) defined
geographic areas. The NCS is in its first year of a six-year transition from the June 1993 OMB
area definitions to the December 2003 OMB area definitions. The area titles have been updated
to reflect the new area definitions; however, the private industry sample is based on the
1993 area definitions. Area titles are subject to annual OMB revision. For more information
on the area definitions, see Jason Tehonica, "New Area Sample Selected for the National
Compensation Survey," Compensation and Working Conditions Online, April 25, 2005, on the
Internet at: http://www.bls.gov/opub/cwc/cm20050318ar01p1.htm.
Historical pay relative data are available for 1992-1996, 1998, 2002, and 2004-2006.
There are several differences between the recent pay relatives and the pay relatives for earlier
years, including different industry and occupation classification systems, varying methodology,
and different survey designs. These differences limit comparability. The pay relatives for
2004 through 2007 were calculated using the same industry and occupation classification
systems, methodology, and survey design. Nonetheless, comparisons between the estimates
for these years should be made only with a high degree of caution.
Pay relatives were estimated using a multivariate regression technique methodology to
control for interarea differences. This technique controls for the following ten characteristics:
- Occupational type
- Industry type
- Work level
- Full-time / part-time status
- Time / incentive status
- Union / nonunion status
- Ownership type
- Profit / non-profit status
- Establishment employment
- Payroll reference date
Even accounting for the characteristics used in the current regression analysis, there is
still significant wage variation across the areas. The variation is due to differences in wage
determinants that were not included in the model. Examples of these determinants include price
levels, environmental amenities such as a pleasant climate, and cultural amenities.
The pay relative regression methodology introduces another type of error. Regression models
are subject to specification error. The significance test does not specifically measure
specification error. However, care was taken to minimize this form of error by an extensive
search across specifications for the model that performs best in terms of predictive accuracy.
For more details, see Maury B. Gittleman, "Pay Relatives for Metropolitan Areas in the U.S."
Monthly Labor Review, March 2005, pp. 46-53, and Parastou Karen Shahpoori, "Pay Relatives for
Major Metropolitan Areas," Compensation and Working Conditions, Spring 2003.
Obtaining information
Articles, bulletins, and other information may be obtained by calling (202) 691-6199,
sending email to NCSinfo@bls.gov, or visiting the Internet site http://www.bls.gov/ncs.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.
Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service Number: 1-800-877-8339.
1 Data for this example are based on the May 2007 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area
Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates, http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrcma.htm.
2 Average pay for construction and extraction workers in the New York - Newark - Bridgeport,
NY-NJ-CT-PA metropolitan area and for the United States are based on wage estimates published
in the New York - Newark - Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA, National Compensation Survey, May 2007 and
the upcoming National Compensation Survey: Occupational Wages in the United States, July 2007,
located on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ocs/ncswage.htm.
Last Modified Date: July 25, 2008
