Research Brief 26:
Washington Earnings and Male-Female Differences in Earnings, 1999

Research Brief 26A: Total Earnings for All Adults Aged 18 to 64 in 1999

In 2000, the long form of the United States Decennial Census asked Washington State residents what their earnings were in 1999. Earnings include wage, salary, commission, bonus, and tip income from all jobs before deductions and/or net income from self-employment. The mean (or “average”) earnings for all Washington State adults aged 18 to 64 were $28,291, but half of the adult population earned $20,000 or less. At the two ends of the earnings distribution, one sees that seventeen percent of the population had zero earnings and just over one percent earned over $140,000. Read Research Brief 26A (pdf)...

Research Brief 26B: Differences in Total Earnings for Male and Female Adults in Washington State

Looking at all adults aged 18 to 64 in 1999, one finds the gap between male and female earnings – not controlling for differences in occupation or adjusting for part-time work – is quite large. Men’s mean earnings were $37,230 compared to women’s $19,251. Men’s median earnings were $29,400 – over twice the size of women’s median earnings ($13,300). The fact that women were less likely to have earnings at all contributed to the gap in earnings between men and women. Twenty-three percent of women had zero earnings compared to 11 percent of men. Read Research Brief 26B (pdf)...

Research Brief 26C: How Much Did Men and Women Work in 1999?

Mean and median earnings comparisons are affected by the extent of full-time versus part-time work. Men are much more likely than women to work full-time. Sixty-four percent of men work full-time compared to 41 percent of women. Women, compared to men, were more likely to work part-time or not at all. Thirty-seven percent of women worked part-time and 23 percent did not work at all. In comparison, 25 percent of men worked part-time and 11 percent did not work at all. Read Research Brief 26C (pdf)...

Research Brief 26D: Earnings for Full-Time Washington State Workers By Sex: 1999

Another way to compare male and female earnings is to examine only full-time workers. Women earn considerably less than men, even when comparing similar work levels; however the earnings gap is smaller than for all Washington State residents. Men’s full-time mean earnings were $49,929 compared to $34,331 for women. On average, women who work full-time only earn 69 percent of what male full-time workers earn. The gap in earnings by sex is the smallest at the bottom of the earnings distribution and the largest at the top of the earnings distribution. Women at the bottom ten percent of the earning distribution earn 80 percent of what men in this segment of the earnings distribution. Women at the 90th percentile earn 70 percent of what the men at the 90th percentile earn. Read Research Brief 26D (pdf)...

Last modified: July 22, 2004
E-mail: OFM.Forecasting@ofm.wa.gov