×

True Weekly Earnings

LISEP’s measure of the weekly earnings of all members of the workforce

True
Weekly Earnings
$
935
$
48,620
 Annualized
Q2 2023
Headline
Weekly Earnings
$
1,100
$
57,200
 Annualized
Q2 2023
vs.
For every dollar of earnings reported by the BLS,
the TWE is ...
For every dollar
earned by White workers
Black workers earn ...
For every dollar
earned by White workers
Hispanic workers earn ...
For every dollar
earned by male workers
female workers earn ...
Using data compiled by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS),we calculate the median earnings of everyone who is employed or actively seeking employment. Thus, we take the median earnings of the whole U.S. labor force as defined by the BLS.
By comparison, the BLS headline numbers only include those who are employed at full-time jobs. Thus, if a low-income worker moves from full time to part time, or becomes unemployed, the BLS metric will report that earnings have risen, giving a false sense that earnings are getting better. TWE, on the other hand, gives policymakers access to a more comprehensive indicator of how the job market is performing as a whole.
Note: Both LISEP and BLS exclude the self-employed from their sample for measurement reasons.
True
Weekly Earnings
The True Weekly Earnings (TWE), as defined by LISEP, measures the weekly earnings of all members of the workforce — including part time and jobless who are seeking work.
True Weekly Earnings
vs. Headline Weekly Earnings
$
935
True Earnings
$
1,100
Headline Earnings
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
$
48,620
True Earnings
$
57,200
Headline Earnings
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
By Income Group*
$593
Bottom Quartile
$
935
Median
$1,541
Third Quartile
$2,477
Ninth Decile
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
*
In the graph above, first quartile refers to the exact person at the 25th percentile in the distribution. So this person has earnings higher than 25% of the population and lower than 75%. Third quartile refers to the person that has earnings higher than 75% of the population and lower than 25%. Ninth decile refers to the person with earnings higher than 90% and lower than 10% of the population. Note that this does not mean that the ninth decile is the average of the top 10%; rather, it is the exact 90th percentile earner.
$30,837
Bottom Quartile
$
48,620
Median
$80,141
Third Quartile
$128,798
Ninth Decile
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
By Race
$780
Black
$746
Hispanic
$1,037
White
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
$40,557
Black
$38,791
Hispanic
$53,907
White
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
Earnings Gap: Black and Hispanic vs. White Workers
For every dollar earned by White workers, Black and Hispanic workers earn ...
75¢
Black
72¢
Hispanic
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
By Sex
$821
Female
$1,053
Male
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
$42,691
Female
$54,741
Male
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
Earnings Gap: Female vs. Male Workers
For every dollar earned by male workers, female workers earn ...
78¢
Female
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
True Weekly Earnings
By Education
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
$640
No High School
$799
High School Diploma
$911
Some College
$1,346
Bachelors Degree
$1,656
Advanced Degree
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
$33,269
No High School
$41,553
High School Diploma
$47,364
Some College
$70,014
Bachelors Degree
$86,131
Advanced Degree
True Weekly Earnings
Growth by Education
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.
15%
No High School
-6%
High School Diploma
-9%
Some College
0%
Bachelors Degree
-2%
Advanced Degree
Select any point on the chart to see the True Weekly Earnings for that quarter.