# Real Earnings, Health Insurance and Pension Coverage, and the Distribution of Earnings, 1979-2006

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## Record

- **Collection:** Congressional research report
- **Document type:** CRS Report
- **Published:** April 28, 2008
- **Citation:** RL34469

## Text

Order Code RL34469

Real Earnings, Health Insurance and Pension
Coverage, and the Distribution
of Earnings, 1979-2006

April 28, 2008

Gerald Mayer
Analyst in Public Finance
Domestic Social Policy Division

Real Earnings, Health Insurance and Pension
Coverage, and the Distribution of Earnings, 1979-2006
Summary
From 1979 to 2006, there were differences between men and women in the level
and growth in real earnings (i.e., actual earnings adjusted for inflation) and in
employment-based health insurance and pension coverage. The pattern of earnings
and benefit coverage also differed between all employed persons and workers
employed full-time, year-round.
All Workers. From 1979 to 2006, average real weekly earnings for all workers
increased by 23.7%. Earnings increased at all earnings levels. Workers with higher
earnings were more likely to have employment-based health insurance and pension
coverage. From 1979 to 2006, participation in an employer or union pension plan
increased for lower-wage workers but decreased for workers with higher earnings.
From 1987 to 2006, health insurance coverage fell for workers at all earnings levels.
From 1979 to 2006, the earnings gap between men and women narrowed. The
earnings of men at the 20th, 40th, and 60th percentiles were relatively unchanged, while
the earnings of women increased at all earnings levels. Except at the lowest quintile,
the participation of men in an employer or union pension plan declined. Except at
the top quintile, the participation of women in a pension plan increased. The
percentage of men and women with employment-based health insurance coverage
declined at all earnings levels. The decline was greatest among lower-wage workers
and greater among men than women. Thus, men at the 20th, 40th, and 60th percentiles
did not experience an increase in earnings and lost both pension and health insurance
coverage. For women, the increase in earnings at the 20th, 40th, and 60th percentiles
and improved participation in an employer or union pension plan were offset, to
some degree, by a decline in health insurance coverage.
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers. From 1979 to 2006, the percentage of
workers employed full-time, year-round increased from 56.4% to 68.5% of all
workers. The real weekly earnings of full-time, year-round workers increased by
15.4%. Earnings rose at all earnings levels. The increase was greatest (32.5%) at the
95th percentile. The earnings of men at the 20th and 40th percentiles fell by almost
10%, while the earnings of women increased at all earnings levels. Except for men
with the highest earnings (i.e., top 5%), pension coverage fell for both men and
women. Employment-based health insurance coverage also fell for both men and
women. The decline was greatest among lower-wage workers and greater for lowerwage men than women. Thus, lower-wage men who worked full-time, year-round
experienced both a decrease in earnings and a decline in pension and health insurance
coverage. Despite improved earnings, women who were employed full-time, yearround lost both pension and health insurance coverage.
Finally, inequality among all workers increased from 1979 to 2006. Inequality
generally increased from 1980 to 1986, declined slightly from 1986 to 1992, rose
again from 1992 to 1994, fell from 1995 to about 1999, and increased from about
1999 to 2005. Overall inequality decreased from 2005 to 2006, but it increased
among women and decreased among men. This report will be updated periodically.

Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Organization of Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
The Definition of Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Summary of Findings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Policies to Increase Real Earnings
or Reduce Inequality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Real Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Productivity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Economic Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Inequality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Indirect Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Direct Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Tradeoff with Economic Efficiency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Macroeconomic Policies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Fringe Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Employment-Based Health Insurance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Plans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
The Distribution of Weekly Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Topcoded Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Gini Coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
The Share of Total Weekly Earnings by Quintile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
All Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Reasons for Changes in the Share of Total Weekly Earnings
by Quintile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Appendix: Measures of Inequality, Data, and Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Measures of Inequality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Gini Coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Share of Total Earnings by Quintile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Data Source and Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
CPI-U-RS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Topcoded Earnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Confidence Levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Data Used in Text and Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

List of Figures
Figure 1. Percentage of Full-Time Workers and Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Figure 2. Real Weekly Earnings, All Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Figure 3. Real Weekly Earnings, All Male Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Figure 4. Real Weekly Earnings, All Female Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . 11
Figure 5. Real Weekly Earnings, Full-Time, Year-Round Workers,
1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Figure 6. Real Weekly Earnings, Male Full-Time, Year-Round Workers,
1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Figure 7. Real Weekly Earnings, Female Full-Time, Year-Round Workers,
1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Figure 8. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage, All Workers,
by Quintile, 1987-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Figure 9. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage, Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, by Quintile, 1987-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Figure 10. Participation in an Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Plan,
All Workers, by Quintile, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Figure 11. Participation in an Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Plan,
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, by Quintile, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Figure 12. Gini Coefficient, All Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Figure 13. Gini Coefficient, Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . 22
Figure 14. Share of Total Weekly Earnings by Quintile, All Workers,
1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Figure 15. Share of Total Weekly Earnings by Quintile, Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Figure 16. Illustration of Lorenz Curves and Gini Coefficients for
Two Groups of Workers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

List of Tables
Table 1a. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . 31
Table 1b. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . 32
Table 2a. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Table 2b. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Table 3a. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage:
All Workers 1987-1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Table 3b. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage:
All Workers, 2000-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Table 4a. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage:
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1987-1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Table 4b. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage:
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 2000-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Table 5a. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage:
All Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Table 5b. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage:
All Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Table 6a. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage:
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Table 6b. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage:
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Table 7. Gini Coefficients for All Workers and for Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Table 8a. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . . . . 45
Table 8b. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . . . . 46
Table 9a. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Table 9b. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Real Earnings, Health Insurance and
Pension Coverage, and the Distribution
of Earnings, 1979-2006
Introduction
Real earnings and the distribution of earnings are indicators of a nation’s
economic well-being. Changes in the level of real earnings (i.e., actual earnings
adjusted for inflation) show how a worker’s buying power has changed over time.
Changes in the distribution of earnings show how the buying power of different
workers has changed over time.
Real earnings and the distribution of earnings affect several public policy issues.
For example, increased real earnings can expand the Social Security taxable wage
base, which can reduce the future need for higher Social Security payroll taxes or cuts
in benefits. Higher real earnings can also help pay for future Medicare benefits.
Conversely, lower real earnings can make it more difficult to finance the Social
Security and Medicare programs.
The level of real earnings can affect the national poverty rate and, therefore,
federal spending on welfare and assistance for food, housing, health care, and energy.
The federal minimum wage can affect the real earnings of lower-wage workers, as
well as the overall distribution of earnings.
In large part, real earnings depend on the amount of investment per worker —
in the form of both human capital (e.g., education and health care) and physical
capital (e.g., computers and other equipment). Investment depends on personal,
business, and government saving. Thus, federal budget deficits or surpluses can
affect the national saving rate and the amount of investment per worker.
Government spending and tax policy can also affect earnings. Federal support
for research and development can affect real earnings through the development of
new goods and services and more productive technologies. Tax policy can affect
decisions to save and invest, as well as the aftertax distribution of earnings. Policies
that affect personal saving and the availability of private pension benefits can affect
retirement income and reliance on Social Security benefits. Policies that influence
the availability of private health insurance can affect federal spending on health care.
Rules on immigration can affect both real earnings and the distribution of
earnings. An increased supply of unskilled foreign workers can lower the wages of
less-skilled U.S. workers and increase inequality. Conversely, an increased supply
of skilled foreign workers can lower the wages of skilled American workers and
reduce inequality. Similarly, trade policy can affect both real earnings and the

CRS-2
distribution of earnings. Increased imports from low-wage countries can raise the
living standards of U.S. households but affect the wages of domestic workers who
produce competing goods and services. Increased exports of goods produced in the
United States can raise the wages of American workers.
Finally, differences in earnings among racial or ethnic groups or extremes in
inequality can affect popular support for major social, political, and economic
institutions.

Organization of Report
This report examines the trends in real weekly earnings and the distribution of
weekly earnings in the United States from 1979 to 2006. The report provides
separate analyses for men and women.1 The report begins with a definition of
earnings and a summary of the findings in this report. Next, the paper discusses
broad policies to increase real earnings or reduce inequality. The last part of the
report provides a detailed summary of the findings.
The report analyzes individual earnings. A study of individual income or of
family earnings or income may reach different conclusions.2 The report does not
review research on the causes of changes in real earnings or inequality.3

The Definition of Earnings
The results of an analysis of real earnings and the distribution of earnings are
affected by the definition of earnings, whose earnings are studied (e.g., all workers,
full-time workers, prime-age workers, or others), the measure of inequality, and the
time period studied.
Earnings are payments that individuals receive for their labor services.
Individuals may be paid for a period of time worked (e.g., an hourly wage or weekly
salary) or the quantity of goods or services produced (e.g., a piece rate). Earnings
1

In addition to real earnings and the distribution of earnings, economists also study earnings
mobility, or how the earnings of a given sample of workers change over time. Because of
mobility, the distribution of lifetime earnings may differ from the distribution of annual or
weekly earnings.
2
3

Earnings account for the largest share of individual and family income.

Hearings during the first session of the 110th Congress examined the trends and causes of
inequality. See U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ways and Means, Hearing on the
Economy, January 23, 2007, available at [http://waysandmeans.house.gov]; U.S. Congress,
House, Committee on Education and Labor, Strengthening America’s Middle Class:
Evaluating the Economic Squeeze on America’s Families, January 31, 2007, available at
[http://edworkforce.house.gov]; U.S. Congress, House, Committee on Ways and Means, The
Challenges Facing Middle-Class Families, January 31, 2007, available at [http://waysand
means.house.gov]; and U.S. Congress, Joint Economic Committee, Ensuring Our Economic
Future by Promoting Middle-Class Prosperity, January 31, 2007, available at
[http://jec.senate.gov].

CRS-3
may be defined as cash wages or as total compensation. The latter consists of cash
wages plus fringe benefits such as employer-provided health insurance, employer
contributions to a retirement plan, and paid sick leave and vacations.
The results of an analysis of individual earnings would differ from a study of
individual compensation or income or of family earnings or income.4 Many
individuals and families receive cash or in-kind benefits from sources other than
work (e.g., interest, dividends, rent, cash welfare assistance, refundable tax credits,
or in-kind benefits such as food, housing, or health care).5 Some families have more
wage earners than other families.
This report analyzes individual weekly earnings, where earnings consist of cash
wages before taxes or other deductions. Individual earnings consist of total annual
earnings from all jobs. Weekly earnings are annual earnings divided by the number
of weeks worked. The analysis includes wage and salary workers and self-employed
workers age 16 or older. Because there are differences in the labor market
characteristics of men and women, the earnings of men and women are analyzed
separately.6 The analysis uses data from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC)
Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a household survey
conducted by the Census Bureau for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The
annual supplement asks workers how much they earned the previous year. Thus, the
2007 supplement collected earnings information for 2006. The Appendix includes
a full explanation of the data and methodology used in this report.
Finally, the report analyzes the earnings of two groups of workers: (1) all
workers and (2) workers employed full-time, year-round. “All” workers include
persons employed either full-time or part-time as well as workers who worked either
part of the year or all year. Full-time workers are persons who work 35 or more
hours a week. Year-round workers are persons who work 50 or more weeks a year.

4

The distribution of earnings may change even though the distribution of total compensation
does not change; e.g., if workers choose to receive a greater or smaller share of
compensation as wages or if employers raise or lower their contributions for health
insurance or retirement benefits.
For analyses of the distribution of household income, see CRS Report RS20811, The
Distribution of Income, by Brian W. Cashell; CRS Report RL32639, Inequality in the
Distribution of Income: Trends and International Comparisons, by Brian W. Cashell; and
U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Income, Poverty, and Health
Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2005, P60-231, August 2006, available at
[http://www.census.gov/prod/2006pubs/p60-231.pdf].
5

The results of an analysis of the distribution of earnings would differ from an analysis of
the distribution of income if income from transfer payments or from savings and investments
rise or fall. In addition, a change in nonlabor income may affect earnings (i.e., decisions to
work or how much to work).

6

In general, women tend to work fewer hours per week than men, spend less time in the
labor force, and enter and leave the labor force more often than men. The distribution of
women by occupation and industry also differs from men. See CRS Report 98-278, The
Gender Wage Gap and Pay Equity: Is Comparable Worth the Next Step?, by Linda Levine.

CRS-4
Analyzing the earnings of full-time, year-round workers helps control for
changes in hours worked per week, temporary and seasonal employment, and spells
of unemployment. From 1979 to 2006, the percentage of workers employed fulltime, year-round increased by 12.1 percentage points (from 56.4% in 1979 to 68.5%
in 2006). (See Figure 1.) Both the percentage of workers employed full-time and
the percentage of workers employed full-time, year-round tend to dip during
recessions. From 1979 to 2006, there were recessions from January to July 1980,
July 1981 to November 1982, July 1990 to March 1991, and March to November
2001.7
Figure 1. Percentage of Full-Time Workers and
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

7

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), Business Cycle Dates and Contractions,
available at [http://www.nber.org/cycles.html].
For a discussion of the economic recovery following the 2001 recession, see CRS
Report RL32047, The ‘Jobless Recovery’ From the 2001 Recession: A Comparison to
Earlier Recoveries and Possible Explanations, by Marc Labonte and Linda Levine.

CRS-5

Summary of Findings
All Workers
!

From 1979 to 2006, the average real weekly earnings (i.e., earnings
adjusted for inflation) of all workers increased by 23.7%. Real
earnings increased at all percentiles.8 The increase was greatest for
workers at the 95th percentile (37.1%). From 2001 to 2006, earnings
at the 95th percentile fell by 2.4%.

!

At all earnings levels, from 1979 to 2006, men earned more than
women. But the earnings gap between men and women narrowed
over the 27-year period. The earnings of women increased at all
earnings levels. But the earnings of men at the 20th, 40th, and 60th
percentiles were relatively unchanged.

!

Workers with higher earnings are more likely to have employmentbased health insurance coverage. The CPS has consistent
information on health insurance coverage from 1987 to the present.
From 1987 to 2006, the percentage of workers with employmentbased health insurance coverage declined at all quintiles.9 The
decrease was generally greater for lower-wage workers. During the
19-year period, insurance coverage generally declined from 1987 to
the early 1990s, then was relatively stable or increased to about
2000, and then declined again from about 2000 to 2006.

!

From 1987 to 2006, employment-based health insurance coverage
declined for both men and women. The decrease was greatest for
lower-wage workers. In addition, except at the lowest quintile, the
decline in coverage was greater for men than women.

!

Higher-wage workers are more likely to participate in an employeror union-provided pension plan. However, from 1979 to 2006,
participation in an employer or union pension plan increased for
lower-wage workers but decreased for higher-wage workers. The
improved participation among lower-wage workers was due to
increased participation among women. Participation generally
declined from the early to late 1980s, increased from the late 1980s
to about 2000, and declined from about 2000 to 2006.

!

As measured by the Gini coefficient, inequality increased among all
workers over the period from 1979 to 2006. Inequality increased

8

If workers are ranked from lowest to highest paid, workers at the 20th percentile earn more
than 20% of workers, workers at the 40th percentile earn more than 40% of workers, and
so on.

9

If workers are ranked from lowest to highest paid and then divided into five equal-size
groups, each group is a quintile.

CRS-6
among both men and women. Over the 27-year period, inequality
generally increased from 1980 to 1986, then declined slightly from
1986 to 1992, before rising again from 1992 to 1994. Inequality
generally fell from 1995 to about 1999, and then increased again
from 1999 to 2005. Inequality decreased from 2005 to 2006, but it
increased among women and decreased among men.
!

During the period from 1979 to 2006, when inequality increased it
was generally because workers in the bottom four quintiles received
a smaller share of total weekly earnings, while workers in the top
quintile received a larger share. Conversely, when inequality
declined, it was generally because workers in the lower and middle
quintiles received a larger share of earnings, while workers in the top
quintile received a smaller share.

Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
!

From 1979 to 2006, the average real weekly earnings of full-time,
year-round workers increased by 15.4%. The earnings of lowerwage men (i.e., 20th and 40th percentiles) fell by almost 10%, while
the earnings of women at the 20th and 40th percentiles increased by
10.4% and 20.2%, respectively.

!

Higher earning full-time, year-round workers are more likely to be
covered by employment-based health insurance. But, from 1987 to
2006, coverage declined at all quintiles. The decrease was greatest
among lower-wage workers. The decline in coverage for lowerwage full-time, year-round workers was greater at both the
beginning and end than in the middle of the period from 1987 to
2006.

!

From 1987 to 2006, employment-based health insurance coverage
declined for both men and women. The decrease was greatest for
lower-wage workers. Except for the top 5% of earners, the decrease
was greater for men than women.

!

Higher-wage full-time, year-round workers are more likely to
participate in an employer- or union-provided pension plan. Except
for the top 5% of earners, however, participation in employer- or
union-provided pension plans declined at all quintiles. Participation
fell for both women and men. Except at the top quintile,
participation fell more among men than women. Participation
generally fell from the early to late 1980s, increased from the late
1980s to about 2000, and declined again from about 2000 to 2006.

!

The distribution of earnings among workers employed full-time,
year-round is more equal than the distribution of earnings among all
workers. But, from 1979 to 2006, inequality also increased among
full-time, year-round workers. Inequality increased among both men
and women. During the 27-year period, inequality generally

CRS-7
increased from 1980 to 1986, declined slightly from 1986 to 1992,
increased from 1992 to 1994, increased from 1995 to 1996, fell from
1996 to 1999, and increased again from 1999 to 2006. Although
overall inequality did not change from 2005 to 2006, it increased
among women.

Policies to Increase Real Earnings
or Reduce Inequality
A variety of policies are available to increase real earnings or reduce earnings
inequality. Policies to increase real earnings may differ from policies to reduce
inequality. In some cases, the policies may conflict. Some of the policies may have
mainly short-term effects. Other policies may require a longer-term commitment.

Real Earnings
Productivity. Real earnings rise with increased productivity. Policies to
increase productivity may include plans to raise both private and public saving,
increase capital investment per worker, expand investment in human capital (e.g.,
education, training, and health care), and encourage the development of technology.
Technological innovation may include improved equipment, the introduction of new
products, or improved methods of production, transportation, or communication.10
Economic Efficiency. Another way to increase real earnings is to improve
economic efficiency. According to standard economic theory, competitive markets
generally result in the most efficient allocation of resources, where resources consist
of individuals with different skills, capital goods (e.g., computers, machinery, and
buildings), and natural resources. A more efficient allocation of resources generally
results in greater total output and consumer satisfaction.
Economic efficiency can be improved through policies that provide consumers
with greater access to goods and services (e.g., improved infrastructure to exchange
goods and services and expanded trade) and a better allocation of labor and capital
(e.g., neutral tax policies, migration, or the deregulation of labor, product, or other
markets).

Inequality
Inequality may be reduced using either direct or indirect policies. Direct
policies include income transfer programs. Indirect policies consist of plans that
improve the income-producing human capital of lower-skilled workers (e.g.,

10

Improved technology may allow for greater outsourcing of both manufacturing and service
jobs, which may or may not affect the distribution of domestic earnings. See CRS Report
RL32292, Offshoring (a.k.a. Offshore Outsourcing) and Job Insecurity Among U.S.
Workers, by Linda Levine and CRS Report RL32484, Foreign Outsourcing: Economic
Implications and Policy Responses, by Craig K. Elwell.

CRS-8
education, training, or health care). Efforts to reduce inequality may involve a
tradeoff, however, with initiatives to improve economic efficiency.
Indirect Policies. Inequality can be reduced with policies that reduce the
relative supply of less-skilled labor, increase the relative supply of skilled labor, or
both. Such policies may include improved investment in preschool, grade school,
and high school education, better adult education, and improved access to health care
for lower income workers and their families. Inequality may also be reduced by
increasing the relative supply of college-educated workers; for example, proposals
to lower the cost of higher education or increase educational assistance to lower
income students. Some policies may be more cost effective than others. Immigration
policies that allow more skilled workers, fewer unskilled workers, or both, into the
country can also reduce inequality.
Direct Policies. Income inequality may also be reduced through income
redistribution programs. These programs include policies such as progressive
taxation — including refundable tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit
(EITC) or the Child Tax Credit (CTC). They also include in-kind transfers of food,
housing, and health care.
Tradeoff with Economic Efficiency. Competitive markets may allocate
resources efficiently, but they may result in significant earnings inequality. Thus,
policies that reduce inequality may involve a tradeoff with proposals to improve
economic efficiency. Some economists argue that a higher minimum wage, making
it easier for workers to unionize, or different trade policies may reduce inequality.
Other economists maintain that these policies may reduce total economic output and
may not have a significant impact on inequality. Similarly, some economists argue
that high marginal tax rates and income redistribution programs may harm economic
efficiency. For example, high tax rates may discourage saving and investment.
Transfer payments or other forms of nonlabor income may reduce the supply of labor
(i.e., they may affect decisions to work or how much to work).
Macroeconomic Policies. Fiscal and monetary policies that reduce or
maintain low unemployment may also affect the distribution of earnings. During an
economic expansion, the number of hours worked or the hourly wages of lower-wage
workers often improve relative to other workers. Fiscal policy consists of
government spending and revenue decisions. Monetary policy consists of actions by
the Federal Reserve Bank that affect money supply and interest rates.11

The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings
The remainder of this report provides a detailed description of the findings
summarized above. This section examines the trend in real weekly earnings from
1979 to 2006. Earnings are for both wage and salary workers and self-employed
workers. Nominal, or actual, earnings are adjusted for inflation using the Consumer
Price Index for All Urban Consumers, adjusted to take into account the current
11

Fiscal policy (i.e., budget surpluses or deficits) may also affect interest rates.

CRS-9
methods for measuring changes in prices (CPI-U-RS). An explanation of this index
is provided in the Appendix.
This section shows the trend in real weekly earnings for workers at the 20th, 40th,
60 , 80th, and 95th percentiles. If workers are ranked from lowest to highest paid,
those at the 20th percentile earn more than 20% of workers, those at the 40th percentile
earn more than 40% of workers, and so on. All of the results in this section are
shown using graphs. All data used for these graphs are provided in the Appendix.
th

All Workers
From 1979 to 2006, the average real weekly earnings of all employed persons
increased by 23.7%. Earnings increased for workers at all percentiles. See Figure
2.12 The increase was greatest for workers at the 95th percentile. For example, for
workers at the 20th percentile, earnings increased from $237 to $288 per week (or
21.5%). For workers at the 95th percentile, earnings increased from $1,543 to $2,115
a week (or 37.1%). However, from 2001 to 2006, the earnings of workers at the 95th
percentile fell by 2.4% (from $2,167 to $2,115).
Figure 2. Real Weekly Earnings, All Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

12

Because of changes in topcoding in the CPS that affected the change in average earnings
from 1994 to 1995, average earnings are not shown in Figure 1 or in the other figures in this
report that show trends in real weekly earnings. Since the reported change in earnings from
1994 to 1995 cannot be separated into the effects of the change in topcoding and any actual
change in earnings, in Tables 1 (a and b) and 2 (a and b) the percentage change in average
earnings from 1979 to 2006 is the sum of the changes in average earnings from 1979 to 1994
and from 1995 to 2006. See the discussion of “Topcoded Earnings” later in this report.

CRS-10
Figures 3 and 4 show two differences in the real weekly earnings of men and
women. First, at each percentile, the earnings of men were greater than the earnings
of women. For example, in 2006, men at the 20th percentile had earnings of $350 a
week, compared to $231 for women. At the 60th percentile men and women earned
$865 and $597, respectively. At the 95th percentile, men earned $2,538 a week,
compared to $1,654 a week for women.
Over the period from 1979 to 2006, average real weekly earnings increased
more for women than men (48.0% and 14.7%, respectively). The increase was
greater for women than men at all earnings levels. Thus, over the 27-year period, the
earnings gap between men and women narrowed. At the 20th, 40th, and 60th
percentiles, the increase in earnings among all workers was due almost entirely to
higher earnings among women. The earnings of men at the 20th, 40th, and 60th
percentiles were relatively unchanged. But, for women, earnings increased by 36.2%,
33.9%, and 40.2%, respectively. (See Tables 1a and 1b in the Appendix.)
Figure 3. Real Weekly Earnings,
All Male Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

CRS-11
Figure 4. Real Weekly Earnings,
All Female Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

The narrowing of the earnings gap between men and women may have been
caused by a number of reasons. Women’s hourly wages may have increased. They
may have worked more hours. Gains in educational attainment and work experience
may have helped narrow the gap. More women may have entered traditionally male
occupations.13

Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
From 1979 to 2006, the average real weekly earnings of full-time, year-round
workers increased by 15.4%. But the trend in real weekly earnings of workers
employed full-time, year-round differed from the pattern of earnings for all workers.

13

!

The earnings of full-time, year-round workers are higher than the
earnings of all workers. (Compare Figures 2 and 5.)

!

From 1979 to 2006, the earnings of workers employed full-time,
year-round increased less than the earnings of all workers. For e
xample, for full-time, year-round workers, earnings at the 20th
percentile increased by 1.2% compared to an increase of 21.5% for
all workers.

For more discussion on the reasons for the narrowing of the wage gap between men and
women, see CRS Report 98-278, The Gender Wage Gap and Pay Equity: Is Comparable
Worth the Next Step?, by Linda Levine.

CRS-12
!

From 1979 to 2006, the earnings of lower-wage men employed fulltime, year-round fell by almost 10%. At the 20th and 40th percentiles,
the earnings of men fell by 9.6% and 9.8%, respectively.
Figure 5. Real Weekly Earnings, Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

As was the case with all workers, the average real weekly earnings of women
employed full-time, year-round increased more than the earnings of men (41.3% and
9.6%, respectively). At all percentiles, the earnings of women increased more than
the earnings of men. For example, compared to the decline in earnings among men
at the 20th and 40th percentiles, the earnings of women increased by 10.4% and
20.2%, respectively. (Compare Figures 6 and 7.)

CRS-13
Figure 6. Real Weekly Earnings, Male Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

Figure 7. Real Weekly Earnings, Female Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

CRS-14

Fringe Benefits
Total compensation consists of wages and fringe benefits. This section
examines the trends in employment-based health insurance and pension coverage.
Employment-based coverage consists of health insurance or pension plans provided
by an employer or union. Workers who are not covered by an employment-based
health insurance plan may purchase insurance from a private insurance company, or
they may be covered by public insurance (e.g., Medicaid or Medicare). Workers may
also contribute to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA).14 This report only takes
into account employment-based health insurance and pension plans. The report does
not examine the amount that employers contribute toward fringe benefits.
For the analysis in this section, workers are divided into quintiles. Workers are
first ranked from lowest to highest paid. Workers are then divided into five equalsize groups, or quintiles. The top quintile is further divided into two groups: the top
5% of earners and the top 81% to 95% of earners.

Employment-Based Health Insurance
The CPS has consistent information on employment-based health insurance
coverage from 1987 to the present. However, because of changes in the survey, some
of the data since 1987 are not entirely comparable. For example, in 1994 the health
insurance questions in the CPS were redesigned.15 These changes resulted in higher
estimates of the number of persons with employment-based health insurance. The
reported change in health insurance coverage between 1993 to 1994 cannot be
separated into the effects of the change in the health insurance questions and any
actual change in health insurance coverage. Therefore, in Figures 8 and 9, the period
from 1987 to 2006 is separated into two subperiods: 1987 to 1993 and 1994 to 2006.
Also, in this section of the report and in Tables 3 and 4 (a and b) in the Appendix,
the changes in coverage from 1987 to 2006 are the sum of the percentage point
changes over each of the two subperiods; that is, the sum of the percentage point
change from 1987 to 1993 and the change from 1994 to 2006.16 This approach is

14

For information on the types of IRAs, see CRS Report RL31770, Individual Retirement
Accounts and 401(k) Plans: Early Withdrawals and Required Distributions, by Patrick
Purcell.
15

U.S. Census Bureau, Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United
States: 2006, Current Population Reports, P60-233, U.S. Govt. Print. Off., August 2007,
available at [http://www.census.gov/prod/2007pubs/p60-233.pdf], p. 58.
16

Other changes in the CPS may affect the comparability of health insurance data over time.
The Census Bureau has released revised data on health insurance coverage for the years
1996 to 2005. Because of these revisions, the estimated number of persons with
employment-based health insurance increased slightly. This report does not take these
revisions into account. Also, in 2000, the CPS added questions to verify that people who
answered “no” to all questions about specific types of insurance were actually uninsured.
This change also increased slightly the estimated number of persons with employment-based
health insurance. Cheryl Hill Lee and Sharon M. Stern, Health Insurance Estimates from
the U.S. Census Bureau: Background for a New Historical Series, U.S. Census Bureau,
(continued...)

CRS-15
equivalent to raising the percentage of workers with health insurance coverage in
1987 (or lowering the percentage with coverage in 2006) by the reported change in
coverage between 1993 and 1994.17
All Workers. Three features characterize the trend in employment-based health
insurance coverage from 1987 to 2006.18
!

Workers with higher earnings are more likely to have health
insurance. For example, in 2006, 84.6% of the top 5% of earners
had coverage, compared to 47.2% of workers in the lowest quintile.

!

From 1987 to 2006, the percentage of workers with coverage
declined at all quintiles.

!

The decline in coverage was greatest for lower-wage workers. (See
Figure 8.) For example, at the lowest quintile, the percentage of
workers with health insurance fell by 9.1 percentage points,
compared to a 5.3 percentage point decline for the top 5% of
earners.19

During the 19-year period, employment-based health insurance coverage
generally declined from 1987 to the early 1990s, was relatively stable or increased
to about 2000, and then declined again from about 2000 to 2006. For example, at the
second, third, and fourth quintiles, the percentage of workers with employment-based
health insurance declined from 1987 to 1993, increased from 1994 to 2000, and then
declined from 2000 to 2006.
From 1987 to 2006, employment-based health insurance coverage declined
among both men and women. Among men, the decline in coverage by quintile
ranged from 6.1 to 8.3 percentage points. Among women, coverage at the lowest
quintile fell by 10.1 percentage points. Otherwise, the decline in coverage ranged
from 1.4 to 4.0 percentage points. At the lowest quintile, although coverage declined

16

(...continued)
June 2007, at [http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/hlthins/usernote/revhlth_paper.pdf], pp.
8, 16.
17

For additional information on health insurance issues, see CRS Report RL32237, Health
Insurance: A Primer, by Bernadette Fernandez; CRS Report RL34389, Health Insurance
Reform and the 110th Congress, by Jean Hearne; and CRS Report RS22735, Spending by
Employers on Health Insurance: A Data Brief, by Jennifer Jenson.
18

The analysis in this report is of employment-based health insurance coverage only. It does
not include coverage of self-employed persons. The self-employed may have private health
insurance if they purchase an individual policy or they are covered under someone else’s
policy. For more information on health insurance coverage, see CRS Report 96-891, Health
Insurance Coverage: Characteristics of the Insured and Uninsured Populations in 2006,
by Chris L. Peterson and April Grady.
19

Unless stated otherwise, the comparisons of percentage differences or changes discussed
in this report are significant at either the 95% or 90% confidence levels. See the Appendix
for an explanation of confidence levels.

CRS-16
for both men and women (8.1 and 10.1 percentage points, respectively), coverage
among men averaged almost 8 percentage points lower than among women. (See
Tables 3a and 3b in the Appendix.)
Figure 8. Employment-Based Health Insurance
Coverage, All Workers, by Quintile, 1987-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in the design of the health insurance questions in
1994, the percentage of workers with employment-based health insurance is
separated into two subperiods: 1987-1993 and 1994-2006.

Full-Time, Year-Round Workers. Figure 9 shows the percentage of fulltime, year-round workers with employment-based health insurance. Again, workers
with higher earnings are more likely to be covered by employment-based health
insurance. On the other hand, from 1987 to 2006, the percentage of full-time, yearround workers with employment-based health insurance declined at all quintiles. The
decline was greatest for lower-wage workers. At the lowest quintile, coverage fell
by 10.8 percentage points, compared to a 5.6 percentage point decrease among the
highest earners. As was the case with all workers, from 1987 to 2006, the decline in
coverage was greater at both the beginning and end than in the middle of the period.
From 1987 to 2006, employment-based health insurance coverage declined
among both men and women employed full-time, year-round. The decrease was
greatest for lower-wage workers. Except for the top 5% of earners, the decrease was
greater for men than women. At the lowest quintile, health insurance coverage fell
by 12.3 percentage points among men, compared to a 7.1 percentage point drop
among women. At the second quintile, the decline in coverage among men was 11.8
percentage points, compared to a 9.3 percentage point decrease among women. (See
Tables 4a and 4b in the Appendix.)

CRS-17
Figure 9. Employment-Based Health Insurance
Coverage, Full-Time, Year-Round Workers,
by Quintile, 1987-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in the design of the health insurance questions in
1994, the percentage of workers with employment-based health insurance is
separated into two subperiods: 1987-1993 and 1994-2006.

Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Plans
All Workers. Workers with higher earnings are more likely to participate in
an employer- or union-provided pension plan. In 2006, 60.9% of the top 5% of
earners were covered by such a plan, compared to 9.7% of workers in the lowest
quintile. Relative to higher-wage workers, however, participation among lower-wage
workers in an employer- or union-provided pension plan improved from 1979 to
2006.20 At the lowest quintile, participation increased by 2.4 percentage points (from
7.4% to 9.7%, rounded21), but declined by 4.0 percentage points (from 64.9% to
60.9%) among the top 5% of earners. The improved participation of lower-wage
workers was due to increased participation among women. At the lowest quintile,

20

The analysis in this section includes wage and salary workers in both the private and
public sectors as well as self-employed workers. Public sector and self-employed workers
are not covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA, P.L. 93406), which is the federal law that governs employer-provided pension plans. For more
information on pension plan coverage, see CRS Report RL30122, Pension Sponsorship and
Participation: Summary of Recent Trends, by Patrick Purcell.
21

Although coverage increased by 2.4 percentage points from 1979 to 2006, coverage
rounds to 7.4% in 1979 and 9.7% in 2006.

CRS-18
there was no change in participation among men, but a 3.5 percentage point increase
(from 5.3% to 8.8%) among women. At the second quintile, participation among
men fell by 5.6 percentage points (from 31.8% to 26.2%), but increased by 4.1
percentage points (from 18.0% to 22.1%) among women. (See Figure 10 and
Tables 5a and 5b in the Appendix.)
Although there was some variation from year-to-year, during the period from
1979 to 2006, participation in an employer or union pension plan generally declined
from the early to late 1980s, increased from the late 1980s to about 2000, and
declined again from about 2000 to 2006.
Figure 10. Participation in an Employer-or UnionProvided Pension Plan, All Workers,
by Quintile, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

Full-Time, Year-Round Workers. For full-time, year-round workers, the
trend in participation in an employment-based pension plan differed from the trend
for all workers.

CRS-19
!

Lower-wage full-time, year-round workers were more likely than all
lower-wage workers to participate in an employer or union pension
plan. At the first and second quintiles in 2006, 21.4% and 40.2% of
full-time, year-round workers were participants in an employer or
union pension plan, compared to 9.7% and 25.6% of all workers.

!

Among full-time, year-round workers, except for the top 5% of
earners, participation declined at all quintiles from 1979 to 2006.

!

Participation fell for both women and men.22 Except at the top
quintile, participation fell more among men than women. At the
lowest quintile, participation among men fell by 10.0 percentage
points from 1979 to 2006 (from 28.7% to 18.7%), compared to a 4.0
percentage point drop (from 27.3% to 23.3%) among women.
Similar to the trend among all workers, participation generally fell
from the early to late 1980s, increased from the late 1980s to about
2000, and declined again from about 2000 to 2006. (See Figure 11
and Tables 6a and 6b in the Appendix.)
Figure 11. Participation in an Employer- or UnionProvided Pension Plan, Full-Time, Year-Round
Workers, by Quintile, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).

22

The decrease among the top 5% of male earners was not statistically significant.

CRS-20

The Distribution of Weekly Earnings
This section examines the trend in the distribution of weekly earnings from 1979
to 2006. Different measures of inequality provide different information and can lead
to different conclusions about the trend in the distribution of earnings. Most
measures identify whether inequality has changed over time or differs among groups.
But some measures may not reveal how inequality has changed or differs. This report
uses two measures of inequality: the Gini coefficient and the share of total weekly
earnings received by each quintile of workers. Together, the two measures show
whether the distribution of earnings has changed and, if so, how it changed.

Topcoded Earnings
To protect the confidentiality of survey participants, the CPS topcodes earnings.
Changes in topcoding can affect the observed trend in inequality.
In the CPS, total earnings consist of wages and salaries and earnings from farm
and nonfarm self-employment. Wages and salaries are further separated into
earnings from a worker’s longest job and “other” wage and salary earnings. In 1995,
each of the four types of earnings was topcoded at $99,999. Beginning in 1996, each
component of total earnings has been given a unique topcode. Currently, the top
code for earnings from a worker’s longest job is $200,000. The topcode for “other”
wages and salaries is $35,000. If someone’s longest job was as a wage and salary
worker, but they also have earnings from self-employment, the topcode from selfemployment is $50,000. If the self-employment is farm income, the topcode is
$25,000. Since 1996, for workers with earnings above the topcoded amounts, the
CPS reports average earnings for workers with similar characteristics.
The changes in topcoding from 1995 to 1996 can affect an analysis of
inequality. For some workers, the changes may increase the amount of earnings
reported in the CPS. For other workers, the changes may lower their reported
earnings. For example, someone who had a salary of $125,000 in both the 1995 and
1996 surveys and who had no earnings from other sources, would have higher
earnings reported in the 1996 survey. Their 1995 earnings would have been topcoded
at $99,999, while the 1996 survey would have reported their actual earnings of
$125,000.23 If this same person also had $75,000 of self-employment income from
farming, the 1995 survey would have included all of their farm income (because all
earnings variables were topcoded at $99,999). In the 1996 survey, their farm selfemployment income would have been topcoded at $25,000. Thus, their total
earnings, as reported by the CPS, may have been lower in 1996 than in 1995 (i.e.,
$150,000 versus $174,999 — disregarding the averaging of earnings that are above
the topcoded amounts).

23

In the 1996 CPS, earnings from a worker’s longest job were topcoded at $150,000. U.S.
Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics, Differences Between the March 1995 and
March 1996 Annual Demographic Files, available at [http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/ads/
1996/sfiledif.htm].

CRS-21
Because of the effect that changes in topcoding can have on the analysis of
inequality, in this section the graphical representation of the Gini coefficient is
separated into two periods: 1979 to 1994 and 1995 to 2006. (Recall that the ASEC
Supplement asks workers how much they earned the previous year.) In the graphs
of the share of earnings received by quintile, the top 5% of workers are also separated
into two periods. But the change in topcoding can also affect other workers. In the
graphs below, the share of earnings received by workers in the 81st to 95th percentiles
appears to fall between 1994 and 1995. In part, this may be due to changes in
topcoding that reduced the amount of total earnings reported by some workers in the
CPS.

Gini Coefficient
The Gini coefficient is a measure of earnings equality that ranges from 0 to 1.
If the earnings of all individuals are the same, the Gini coefficient is equal to 0,
representing complete equality. If one worker receives all the earnings and all other
workers receive zero earnings, the Gini coefficient is equal to 1. Thus, a larger
coefficient indicates a greater degree of inequality. More information on the Gini
coefficient is provided in the Appendix.
All Workers. Inequality increased among all workers over the period from
1979 to 2006. Inequality also increased among both men and women. Over the 27year period, however, there were periods when inequality went up and periods when
it went down. In general, inequality increased from 1980 to 1986, then declined
slightly from 1986 to 1992, before rising again from 1992 to 1994. Inequality fell
from 1995 to about 1999 and then increased again from about 1999 to 2005.
Inequality fell from 2005 to 2006. Within this overall pattern, there were some yearto-year variations in the trend in inequality. (See Figure 12.)
Except for the periods from 1986 to 1992 and 2005 to 2006, the pattern of
inequality from 1979 to 2006 was generally the same for both men and women.
From 1986 to 1992, overall inequality declined slightly. But, among women and
men, the changes in the Gini coefficient were not statistically significant, indicating
that inequality among men and among women did not change. One explanation for
this difference is that the narrowing in the gap in earnings between men and women
reduced overall inequality, while the distribution of earnings among men and the
distribution of earnings among women were unchanged. Although overall inequality
decreased from 2005 to 2006, it increased among women and decreased among men.
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers. The distribution of earnings among
workers employed full-time, year-round is more equal than the distribution of
earnings among all workers. Nevertheless, from 1979 to 2006, inequality also
increased among full-time, year-round workers. Inequality increased among both
men and women. (See Figure 13.)

CRS-22
Figure 12. Gini Coefficient, All Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in topcoding from 1994 to 1995, the Gini
coefficient is separated into two subperiods: 1979-1994 and 1995-2006.

Figure 13. Gini Coefficient, Full-Time, Year-Round
Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in topcoding from 1994 to 1995, the Gini
coefficient is separated into two subperiods: 1979-1994 and 1995-2006.

CRS-23
During the 27-year period from 1979 to 2006, the pattern of inequality among
full-time, year-round workers was similar to the pattern among all workers.
Inequality generally increased from 1980 to 1986, declined somewhat from 1986 to
1992, increased from 1992 to 1994, increased from 1995 to 1996, fell from 1996 to
1999, and then increased again from 1999 to 2006. The change in the Gini
coefficient from 2005 to 2006 was not statistically significant. But inequality
increased among women and was unchanged among men.
For men and women, separately, the change in inequality from 1986 to 1992
differed from the overall pattern of inequality for all full-time, year-round workers.
Although inequality declined among all full-time, year-round workers, it increased
among women but was unchanged among men.24 One explanation for this difference
is that, while the distribution of earnings among women became more unequal, the
narrowing of the gap in earnings between men and women resulted in less inequality
in the overall distribution of earnings.

The Share of Total Weekly Earnings by Quintile
The Gini coefficient shows whether the distribution of earnings has changed
over time, but it does not show where the distribution may have changed. To
examine where the earnings distribution may have changed, this section examines the
share of total weekly earnings received by each quintile of workers.
All Workers. An analysis of the share of total weekly earnings by quintile
shows that inequality was greater in 2006 than in 1979. During the 27-year period,
there were shorter-term periods of either rising or falling inequality. When inequality
increased during the 27-year period, it was generally because workers in the bottom
four quintiles received a smaller share of total weekly earnings, while workers in the
top quintile received a larger share. Conversely, when inequality declined during the
27-year period, it was generally because workers in the lower and middle quintiles
received a larger share of earnings, while workers in the top quintile received a
smaller share. (See Figure 14.)
The Gini coefficient showed that inequality increased from 1980 to 1986.
During this period, the share of total earnings going to the bottom four quintiles
declined, while the share going to the top quintile increased. The share of total
weekly earnings received by the top 5% of earners increased by 2.1 percentage points
(from 16.6% to 18.7%). Similarly, the Gini coefficient showed that inequality
declined from 1995 to 1999 and increased from 1999 to 2006. From 1995 to 1999,
the share of earnings received by the first four quintiles increased and then, except
for the lowest quintile, decreased from 1999 to 2006. The share of earnings received
by the top 5% of earners fell by 2.8 percentage points (from 29.0% to 22.1%,
rounded) from 1995 to 1999 and then rose by 2.8 percentage points (from 22.1% to
24.9%) from 1999 to 2006.

24

Among women, the decrease in the Gini coefficient from 1995 to 1999 was not
statistically significant.

CRS-24
Figure 14. Share of Total Weekly Earnings by Quintile,
All Workers, 1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in topcoding from 1994 to 1995, the share of
earnings received by the top 5% of earners is separated into two subperiods:
1979-1994 and 1995-2006. Changes in topcoding may also affect the share
of earnings received by workers in the 81st to 95th percentiles.

Changes in the share of earnings received by men and women generally
followed the same pattern as the trend for all workers. For example, from 1999 to
2006, the share of earnings received by the top 5% of male and female workers
increased by 3.3 and 2.6 percentage points, respectively (from 22.0% to 25.3% and
19.8% to 22.5%, rounded). (See Tables 8a and 8b in the Appendix.)
Full-Time, Year-Round Workers. Inequality increased among full-time,
year-round workers from 1979 to 2006. Similar to the pattern among all workers,
when inequality increased among full-time, year-round workers, the share of earnings
received by the bottom four quintiles decreased, while the share received by the top
quintile increased. Conversely, when inequality fell, the opposite happened. This
was the pattern for both men and women who worked full-time, year-round. (See
Figure 15.)
Reasons for Changes in the Share of Total Weekly Earnings by
Quintile. The share of earnings received by workers at each quintile may change
for many reasons. The relative number of hours worked may change and relative
earnings per hour may change. As discussed at the beginning of this report, both the
percentage of workers employed full-time and the percentage of workers employed
full-time, year-round tend to fall during recessions. During an economic expansion,

CRS-25
as the demand for labor increases, both hours worked and earnings per hour often
rise, especially among lower-wage workers.25 For example, the data on real weekly
earnings in Tables 1a and 1b in the Appendix show that, when inequality fell from
1995 to 1999, the real weekly earnings for workers at the 20th percentile increased by
12.3%, compared to a 12.6% increase for workers at the 95th percentile. Conversely,
when inequality increased from 1980 to 1986, earnings at the 20th percentile fell by
4.2%, but increased by 11.3% at the 95th percentile.
Figure 15. Share of Total Weekly Earnings by
Quintile, Full-Time, Year-Round Workers,
1979-2006

Source: CRS analysis of data from the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Because of changes in topcoding from 1994 to 1995, the share of
earnings received by the top 5% of earners is separated into two subperiods:
1979-1994 and 1995-2006. Changes in topcoding may also affect the share
of earnings received by workers in the 81st to 95th percentiles.

Several other factors may also affect relative earnings. The supply of and
demand for workers with different skills may change. Changes in consumer tastes
or technology may affect the demand for labor. Social and demographic changes
may affect the supply of labor. Changes in wages may affect both the demand for
and the supply of labor. Congress may enact policies that affect earnings. For
example, during the period from 1979 to 2006, Congress passed three laws that

25

During an economic expansion, in order to hire more workers, employers may offer higher
wages. Employers may also ask workers to work, or require, more overtime. Both of these
changes would increase total weekly earnings.

CRS-26
raised the basic federal minimum wage.26 Following welfare reform in 1996, the
employment of single mothers increased significantly.27 Regulatory changes or
changes in trade policy may affect earnings. U.S. firms may engage in greater
outsourcing. Foreign companies may increase production in the United States. Each
of these changes may affect the distribution of workers in different occupations and
industries. For example, the decline in manufacturing employment in the United
States since 1979 (when employment peaked at 19.4 million) may have affected both
wages and fringe benefits.28 Union membership in the United States, which also
peaked in 1979 (at 21.0 million), may also have affected earnings and fringe
benefits.29 Separating the effect of each of these (and other) factors on earnings and
fringe benefits is difficult, however. In addition, economists may not agree on the
effects of each factor.

26

The first law (P.L. 95-151) raised the minimum wage in January 1979, January 1980, and
January 1981. The second law (P.L. 101-157) raised the wage in April 1990 and April 1991.
The third law (P.L. 104-188) raised the wage in October 1996 and September 1997. In
2007, Congress enacted P.L. 110-28, which raised the minimum wage, in steps, beginning
in July 2007. The current minimum wage is $5.85 an hour. It is scheduled to rise to $6.55
an hour in July 2008 and $7.25 an hour in July 2009. CRS Report RL33754, Minimum
Wage in the 110th Congress, by William G. Whittaker.
27

Among other things, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation
Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-193) set a time limit on cash welfare assistance and imposed greater
work requirements on welfare recipients. CRS Report RL32760, Temporary Assistance for
Needy Families (TANF) Block Grant: Responses to Frequently Asked Questions, by Gene
Falk.
28

From 1979 to 2006, employment in manufacturing in the United States fell from 19.4
million to 14.2 million, a decrease from 21.6% to 10.4% of total nonfarm employment. U.S.
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment, Hours, and Earnings from
the Current Employment Statistics Survey, available at [stats.bls.gov/ces/home.htm].
29

Research has concluded that union workers generally earn more than nonunion workers.
CRS Report RL32553, Union Membership Trends in the United States, by Gerald Mayer.

CRS-27

Appendix: Measures of Inequality,
Data, and Methodology
This Appendix provides a brief explanation of the measures of inequality used
in this report. It also describes the source of data and the methodology used in the
report. The second part of the Appendix shows the data used in the text and graphs
in the report.

Measures of Inequality
This report uses two measures of inequality: the Gini coefficient and the share
of earnings received by each quintile of workers.
Gini Coefficient. The Gini coefficient is calculated using the following
formula:

where fi is the proportion of earners in interval I and pi is the proportion of total
earnings received by earners in interval I and all lower intervals.30
Graphically, the Gini coefficient is illustrated in Figure 16. The horizontal axis
shows the percent of all earners; the vertical axis shows the percent of earnings
received by all earners. The diagonal line represents total earnings equality. For
example, on the diagonal line, 25% of earners receive 25% of earnings, 50% of
earners receive 50% of earnings, and so on.
In Figure 16 the two dotted lines — called Lorenz curves — illustrate two
possible earnings distributions. The Gini coefficient is the ratio of (a) the area
between the diagonal line and the Lorenz curve and (b) the total area under the
diagonal line. Figure 16 illustrates the distribution of earnings for two groups of
workers (or the same group of workers at different times). The distribution of
earnings for the first group (where the Gini coefficient is .163) is more equal than the
distribution of earnings for the second group (where the Gini coefficient is .289). For
the first group of workers, the bottom 60% of workers receive half of all earnings;
the top 40% receive the other half of earnings. In the second group, the bottom 70%
of earners receive half of all earnings; the top 30% receive the other half.

30

U.S. Bureau of the Census, Studies in the Distribution of Income, Series P60-183, 1992,
p. 60.

CRS-28
Share of Total Earnings by Quintile. To calculate the share of earnings
received by each quintile of earners, workers are first ranked from lowest to highest
paid. Workers are then divided into five equal-size groups, or quintiles. The total
earnings received by each quintile is divided by the total earnings of all workers. If
everyone’s earnings were the same, each quintile would receive one-fifth of all
earnings. The greater the share of earnings received by the highest paid workers (i.e.,
the top quintile) or the smaller the share of earnings received by the lowest paid
workers (i.e., the lowest quintile) the greater the degree of inequality. In this report,
the top quintile of earners is further separated into two groups: the top 5% of earners
and the top 81% to 95% of earners.

Data Source and Methodology
The analysis in this report uses data from the March Current Population Survey
(CPS). The CPS is a household survey conducted by the U.S. Bureau of the Census
for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor. The
monthly CPS is the main source of labor force data for the nation, including
estimates of the monthly unemployment rate. The CPS collects a wide range of
demographic, social, and labor market information.
Figure 16. Illustration of Lorenz Curves and Gini
Coefficients for Two Groups of Workers

Source: Illustration created by CRS.

CRS-29
The Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the monthly CPS asks
additional questions about individual earnings for the previous year. The sample is
representative of the civilian noninstitutional population of the United States. The
sample for the supplement includes members of the Armed Forces living in civilian
housing units on a military base or in a household not on a military base. The sample
does not include persons living in institutions (such as mental hospitals, nursing
homes, or correctional facilities). The 2007 supplement interviewed about 76,100
households.31
The annual ASEC Supplement to the CPS collects earnings information for both
wage and salary workers and self-employed persons. Some workers may have both
wage and salary income and self-employment income. In addition, self-employed
persons may have both wages and income or loss from investment in their business
(e.g., in equipment, buildings, office space, materials, supplies, and other kinds of
capital). Since wages cannot be negative, this report uses positive earnings only; i.e.,
it excludes persons whose investment losses were greater than their wage. But this
approach may include investment losses if a person combines their wage and
investment loss and their wage is greater than their investment loss. The approach
may also include investment income, if a person reports his or her earnings as the
total of their wage and investment income. Excluding persons with negative earnings
has little or no effect on the real earnings by percentile shown in this report.
Including persons with negative earnings increases the level of inequality, but has
little or no effect on the trend in inequality.
In Tables 1 and 2 (a and b), comparisons of real earnings between consecutive
years should be made with caution. When answering the question about annual
earnings, some respondents may round off their earnings. For example, many people
may report that they earn $50,000 a year, when they earn either more or less than
$50,000. From one year to the next, this rounding may affect the observed trend in
real weekly earnings.
CPI-U-RS. In this report, nominal weekly earnings were adjusted for inflation
using the CPI-U-RS (the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers Research
Series).
Over the years, BLS has introduced a number of changes in the way it measures
changes in prices. Each improvement is intended to make the CPI-U more accurate.
But the historical CPI-U is not adjusted to take the improvements into account. The
CPI-U-RS adjusts the historical CPI-U (starting in 1978) to take into account most
of the improvements made in measuring price changes. The CPI-U-RS shows what
the CPI-U would have been if current methods had been used to measure inflation.
Compared to the CPI-U, the CPI-U-RS provides a more consistent measure of

31

U.S. Census Bureau, Current Population Survey, 2007 Annual Social and Economic
(ASEC) Supplement, available at [http://www.census.gov/apsd/techdoc/cps/cpsmar07.pdf],
pp. 1-1, 9-3, G-2.

CRS-30
inflation.32 From 1979 to 2006, the CPI-U-RS increased by 258.8%. The CPI-U
increased by 277.7%.
Topcoded Earnings. In the ASEC Supplement, if a person’s annual earnings
exceed a certain amount, the individual’s actual earnings are not reported. Instead,
BLS reports the average earnings of those persons whose earnings are above the
topcoded amount. For 2006 (i.e., the 2007 ASEC), annual earnings from a person’s
longest job were topcoded at $200,000, or $3,846.15 a week. BLS averages earnings
for several groups of workers, based on gender, race, Hispanic origin, and work
experience. For example, BLS calculates average earnings for all white, nonHispanic men who work full-time, year-round and whose earnings for their longest
held job were over $200,000. To arrive at total annual earnings, this amount is added
to any earnings from other employment (e.g., a person may have held more than one
job during the year).
In this report, topcoding may affect the measures of inequality in two ways.
First, because of topcoding, the Gini coefficient may understate the degree of
inequality. Topcoding should have less of an effect on the estimates of real weekly
earnings or the estimates of the share of total weekly earnings by quintile. Second,
as discussed in the text of this report, because of changes in topcoding in 1996
(affecting yearly earnings for 1995), the observed trend in inequality may not be
comparable for years 1994 and earlier and years 1995 and later.
Confidence Levels. Estimates based on survey responses from a sample of
households have two kinds of error: nonsampling and sampling. Examples of
nonsampling error include information that is misreported and errors made in
processing collected information. Sampling error occurs because a sample, and not
the entire population, of households is surveyed. The difference between an estimate
based on a sample of households and the actual population value is known as
sampling error. When using sample data, researchers typically construct confidence
intervals around population estimates. Confidence intervals provide information
about the accuracy of estimated values. With a 95% confidence interval and repeated
samples from a population, 95% of intervals will include the average estimate of a
population characteristic.

Data Used in Text and Graphs
The remainder of this Appendix provides the data used in the text and graphs
in this report.

32

Stewart, Kenneth J, and Stephen B. Reed, “Consumer Price Index Research Series Using
Current Methods, 1978-98,” Monthly Labor Review, vol. 122, June 1999, p. 29.

CRS-31

Table 1a. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1979-1994
Earnings

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$631
237
414
621
946
1,543

$615
233
404
609
923
1,517

$612
219
407
608
912
1,483

$614
216
391
600
926
1,543

$615
216
387
594
925
1,535

$625
213
391
604
924
1,590

$638
220
410
619
962
1,608

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$801
343
597
846
1,145
1,842

$775
330
566
815
1,120
1,792

$774
319
545
818
1,106
1,796

$772
301
540
780
1,123
1,852

$771
296
536
777
1,110
1,850

$783
294
533
809
1,137
1,848

$796
302
536
822
1,168
1,890

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$415
169
299
426
597
936

$414
171
296
427
599
932

$410
164
292
417
614
941

$418
163
293
424
617
964

$426
161
296
444
631
999

$436
164
295
437
640
1,019

$449
168
305
447
679
1,031

1986
1987
All Workers
$659
$662
223
228
405
421
641
653
995
980
1,688
1,633
Men
$827
$821
311
313
557
555
844
816
1,181
1,205
2,025
1,959
Women
$460
$475
169
170
307
323
467
483
681
712
1,097
1,143

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

$669
226
416
646
989
1,647

$679
236
425
659
1,006
1,721

$667
233
431
645
992
1,697

$665
233
416
650
976
1,666

$667
238
422
650
987
1,706

$672
233
418
655
1,004
1,726

$688
237
414
647
1,024
1,811

$830
315
567
820
1,197
2,047

$837
314
564
834
1,208
2,113

$813
312
546
805
1,168
2,013

$807
301
547
805
1,166
2,064

$801
298
542
812
1,173
2,031

$806
294
528
793
1,189
2,114

$829
310
523
796
1,216
2,199

$482
171
315
476
724
1,150

$496
181
327
489
749
1,208

$497
179
328
489
739
1,208

$501
180
333
500
750
1,222

$511
188
328
514
758
1,239

$518
185
330
515
777
1,282

$526
187
336
517
776
1,294

CRS-32

Table 1b. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1995-2006

Earnings

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$743
243
429
657
1,011
1,819

$743
246
443
664
1,009
1,846

$767
251
452
684
1,036
1,927

$798
261
475
713
1,069
1,948

$791
272
465
700
1,117
2,048

$835
281
487
721
1,126
2,049

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$911
303
531
808
1,213
2,162

$905
308
541
806
1,230
2,215

$938
321
566
843
1,227
2,361

$965
335
594
855
1,283
2,376

$961
347
582
880
1,326
2,420

$1,025
351
585
880
1,351
2,454

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$552
192
333
505
783
1,314

$559
197
345
517
787
1,353

$573
200
361
532
819
1,392

$609
214
371
570
831
1,433

$601
222
372
582
861
1,513

$622
225
399
585
901
1,531

2001
2002
All Workers
$848
$853
285
280
491
496
730
750
1,117
1,121
2,167
2,155
Men
$1,018 $1,038
344
345
592
603
876
862
1,314
1,345
2,519
2,586
Women
$655
$645
228
233
399
410
592
603
876
897
1,594
1,588

2003

2004

2005

2006

Percent
Change,
1979-2006

$849
275
502
738
1,138
2,108

$837
277
493
718
1,129
2,053

$852
286
497
723
1,136
2,113

$852
288
481
750
1,154
2,115

23.7% a
21.5%
16.1%
20.7%
22.0%
37.1%

$1,013
347
590
877
1,370
2,530

$1,007
347
595
862
1,334
2,556

$1,026
346
596
858
1,343
2,582

$1,013
350
577
865
1,346
2,538

14.7% a
2.0%
-3.4%
2.3%
17.6%
37.8%

$663
229
417
611
914
1,623

$644
226
411
616
907
1,601

$654
238
397
596
914
1,589

$669
231
400
597
938
1,654

48.0% a
36.2%
33.9%
40.2%
57.0%
76.7%

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Weekly earnings are in 2006 dollars. Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.
a. Because of changes in topcoding that affected the change in average earnings between 1994 and 1995, the percent change in average real weekly earnings
from 1979 to 2006 is the sum of changes from 1979 to 1994 and 1995 to 2006.

CRS-33

Table 2a. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994
Percentile

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

Average Earnings $798
20th Percentile
418
40th Percentile
597
60th Percentile
796
80th Percentile
1,095
95th Percentile
1,742

$776
412
582
791
1,075
1,702

$778
409
573
777
1,064
1,668

$781
390
579
772
1,080
1,736

$778
392
558
770
1,088
1,769

$796
391
569
782
1,066
1,777

Average Earnings $931
20th Percentile
518
40th Percentile
747
60th Percentile
956
80th Percentile
1,244
95th Percentile
1,991

$904
497
717
932
1,210
1,926

$912
491
712
925
1,227
1,964

$915
478
694
926
1,235
1,967

$909
481
703
925
1,239
1,961

$932
473
711
924
1,244
2,033

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$542
336
448
538
717
1,021

$539
327
437
552
732
1,023

$556
335
444
579
748
1,058

$564
333
444
573
740
1,110

$573
338
457
581
782
1,103

$543
348
448
548
717
995

1985
1986
1987
1988
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
$805
$824
$825
$827
412
405
407
409
584
607
588
598
794
810
816
819
1,100
1,148
1,143
1,134
1,752
1,856
1,828
1,890
Men
$938
$960
$958
$959
481
484
490
472
687
709
718
724
945
979
980
945
1,271
1,316
1,306
1,298
2,062
2,190
2,122
2,205
Women
$588
$606
$616
$624
344
338
343
346
464
473
490
472
601
608
620
630
806
830
820
850
1,155
1,212
1,224
1,260

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

$836
418
604
815
1,154
1,932

$812
403
575
805
1,137
1,869

$811
403
583
805
1,111
1,888

$818
406
596
812
1,137
1,895

$816
396
581
793
1,136
1,955

$826
390
592
802
1,164
2,005

$966
483
725
966
1,328
2,264

$928
460
690
920
1,294
2,157

$929
462
694
944
1,289
2,138

$934
460
677
948
1,305
2,166

$927
449
661
925
1,321
2,246

$935
445
664
915
1,294
2,328

$635
353
483
634
876
1,280

$631
345
489
633
863
1,294

$637
346
494
639
861
1,333

$649
352
495
674
882
1,354

$652
344
502
661
917
1,321

$662
342
492
647
905
1,423

CRS-34

Table 2b. The Trend in Real Weekly Earnings: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006

Percentile

1995

1996

1997

1998

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$880
394
581
803
1,137
1,971

$900
398
591
807
1,179
1,969

$915
409
602
838
1,204
2,047

$934
428
618
831
1,188
2,138

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$1,020
455
657
909
1,299
2,324

$1,036
465
664
933
1,304
2,338

$1,058
482
699
963
1,325
2,409

$1,072
475
713
950
1,394
2,376

Average Earnings
20th Percentile
40th Percentile
60th Percentile
80th Percentile
95th Percentile

$671
354
503
651
909
1,415

$699
358
492
664
914
1,476

$708
361
506
674
939
1,469

$731
356
523
713
950
1,544

1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
$930
$972
$986
$986
$983
419
428
438
431
422
625
630
635
647
632
849
856
876
862
855
1,233
1,238
1,270
1,293
1,265
2,224
2,252
2,190
2,263
2,319
Men
$1,076 $1,137 $1,135 $1,136 $1,123
475
473
482
474
485
698
702
701
711
717
977
1,000
986
970
991
1,396
1,464
1,424
1,509
1,476
2,560
2,702
2,628
2,694
2,698
Women
$723
$737
$777
$775
$787
367
374
394
388
384
524
540
548
539
548
698
702
723
733
738
968
983
989
1,026
1,054
1,609
1,576
1,643
1,681
1,708

2004

2005

2006

Percent
Change,
1979-2006

$976
423
616
854
1,232
2,258

$979
417
616
854
1,271
2,324

$984
423
615
865
1,250
2,308

15.4% a
1.2%
3.0%
8.7%
14.2%
32.5%

$1,116
472
718
985
1,437
2,669

$1,121
477
695
993
1,440
2,761

$1,114
468
673
962
1,442
2,731

9.6% a
-9.6%
-9.8%
0.6%
15.9%
37.2%

$780
390
534
718
1,026
1,724

$778
392
537
726
1,033
1,728

$800
385
538
731
1,038
1,827

41.3% a
10.4%
20.2%
33.5%
44.9%
83.5%

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Weekly earnings are in 2006 dollars. Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.
a. Because of changes in topcoding that affected the change in average earnings between 1994 and 1995, the percent change in average real weekly earnings
from 1979 to 2006 is the sum of changes from 1979 to 1994 and 1995 to 2006.

CRS-35

Table 3a. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage: All Workers 1987-1999
(percent)
Percentile

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

49.2
60.0
77.6
85.6
90.4
86.3

48.8
58.6
76.6
85.8
90.3
86.6

48.4
59.3
76.2
86.5
89.3
84.4

46.5
57.3
75.1
84.5
88.4
82.7

45.4
57.6
75.1
84.8
88.2
83.4

44.1
53.4
73.6
83.3
88.1
82.3

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

43.3
61.0
79.1
88.2
89.9
86.0

42.5
58.0
79.4
87.7
90.5
85.9

42.7
58.6
79.6
87.6
89.0
83.3

40.5
57.0
75.7
85.8
88.0
82.3

38.4
57.1
75.3
85.5
88.3
82.1

36.9
52.6
73.1
84.1
86.7
83.0

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

52.3
57.9
76.3
86.4
91.2
88.1

52.0
58.3
75.3
86.4
91.0
86.5

51.1
58.6
75.3
86.8
90.8
84.7

49.4
56.1
76.3
85.5
89.4
87.2

49.7
56.2
75.6
86.6
90.4
87.4

47.4
55.3
74.2
85.2
90.4
85.3

1993
All Workers
43.6
53.9
73.8
82.1
85.6
81.9
Men
38.9
53.8
73.1
83.0
84.7
81.3
Women
45.6
54.2
73.5
84.2
87.9
84.4

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

50.7
57.7
75.6
84.9
89.8
85.4

50.3
57.9
75.1
84.9
89.3
85.5

49.7
57.6
75.4
85.6
88.8
85.5

49.9
58.6
74.9
85.4
88.8
84.0

50.2
59.2
76.3
85.3
89.4
85.6

50.2
60.2
76.7
86.3
88.7
85.8

45.3
57.4
75.4
86.6
89.4
84.3

45.3
56.8
76.2
86.0
88.6
85.1

44.2
57.9
75.3
86.5
88.4
84.3

44.1
58.5
76.6
86.5
88.4
82.5

44.7
60.2
77.5
86.5
88.7
85.8

46.6
60.4
79.0
86.7
88.8
84.2

52.8
58.4
74.7
86.8
90.9
88.1

52.4
58.3
75.5
84.8
91.6
88.1

52.5
57.0
76.4
86.3
90.6
87.2

52.2
57.6
76.4
85.5
89.8
87.5

53.0
57.9
76.7
85.6
89.7
87.5

51.3
58.3
77.4
86.4
90.1
87.3

CRS-36

Table 3b. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage: All Workers, 2000-2006
(percent)

Percentile

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

51.3
62.1
78.8
86.7
89.2
86.7

49.6
61.5
78.0
86.6
89.0
85.4

48.6
60.2
76.4
85.4
88.4
83.8

47.3
58.1
75.8
84.7
88.1
84.3

48.2
58.5
75.4
84.8
88.1
85.9

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

46.8
63.0
79.3
87.6
88.7
86.9

44.9
62.0
79.3
85.9
88.9
84.8

44.1
58.9
77.7
85.4
88.1
82.5

43.5
58.1
75.8
85.3
86.9
84.0

43.4
57.0
74.5
85.7
87.1
84.9

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

53.2
60.9
79.6
86.9
90.4
87.8

52.1
60.7
78.0
87.5
91.3
86.4

50.3
60.1
77.8
86.8
88.8
87.1

49.2
57.5
75.9
86.2
89.5
88.1

50.8
58.0
76.5
87.6
89.9
88.5

2005
2006
All Workers
47.2
47.2
58.0
57.8
75.5
75.1
84.8
83.8
87.4
87.5
86.4
84.6
Men
42.7
41.6
55.9
56.4
75.6
75.2
84.3
83.5
87.2
86.5
85.6
82.9
Women
49.9
49.3
58.8
59.0
77.0
76.2
86.4
85.8
89.8
90.1
87.1
88.0

Change in
Percent,
1987-1993

Change in
Percent,
1994-2000

Change in
Percent,
2000-2006

Change in
Percent,
1987-2006

-5.6
-6.2
-3.8
-3.5
-4.8
-4.4

0.7
4.4
3.2
1.8
-0.6
1.2

-4.2
-4.3
-3.7
-3.0
-1.7
-2.1

-9.1a
-6.1
-4.2
-4.6
-7.1
-5.3

-4.4
-7.2
-6.1
-5.2
-5.2
-4.8

1.5
5.6
3.8
1.0
-0.7
2.6

-5.2
-6.6
-4.1
-4.0
-2.2
-3.9

-8.1
-8.1
-6.3
-8.3
-8.1
-6.1

-6.7
-3.7
-2.9
-2.3
-3.2
-3.7

0.5
2.5
4.8
0.1
-0.5
-0.3

-3.9
-1.9
-3.4
-1.1
-0.2
0.2

-10.1
-3.1
-1.4
-3.3
-4.0
-3.7

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Notes: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.
a. Because of changes in the CPS health insurance questions in 1994, the change shown from 1987 to 2006 is the sum of the change from 1987 to 1993 and from
1994 to 2006.

CRS-37

Table 4a. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1987-1999
(percent)
Percentile

1987

1988

1989

1990

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

59.2
82.2
87.6
91.4
92.4
88.8

58.9
80.1
87.0
90.9
93.1
89.5

58.3
80.7
86.7
91.1
91.1
86.4

55.8
78.5
85.4
89.6
90.9
86.7

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

55.4
80.7
88.4
92.2
91.8
88.2

53.5
78.7
87.7
91.7
92.9
89.7

53.9
79.9
87.1
91.8
90.1
86.4

50.2
76.1
85.1
90.0
90.0
86.7

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

60.3
83.9
89.2
91.8
94.0
91.6

60.8
82.8
88.6
92.0
94.5
89.0

60.7
81.1
88.6
91.9
93.2
89.4

58.8
82.6
88.7
90.7
92.0
90.5

1991

1992
1993
1994
1995
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
56.8
53.4
53.3
55.4
55.4
77.4
77.5
76.1
77.8
76.4
86.6
85.3
83.8
84.6
83.5
90.2
89.2
87.6
90.7
90.0
90.9
90.5
88.1
92.1
91.3
85.6
85.7
85.0
88.9
88.1
Men
51.4
48.4
48.2
50.1
52.1
76.2
74.8
73.4
74.4
73.4
84.9
84.8
82.7
84.8
83.3
90.1
89.0
87.5
90.5
89.7
90.0
88.6
86.8
91.6
90.4
86.5
86.6
84.2
88.0
88.3
Women
59.9
56.4
56.8
59.2
57.7
81.4
81.2
79.3
80.9
79.9
88.1
87.5
87.9
88.7
84.5
92.3
91.3
89.6
91.7
91.1
92.8
93.1
90.0
93.6
94.4
89.7
88.9
88.6
92.2
91.1

1996

1997

1998

1999

55.8
77.6
84.1
90.0
90.7
88.8

55.0
76.3
84.8
89.7
90.5
87.5

54.3
76.4
84.5
89.0
90.9
88.5

55.5
76.6
85.9
89.4
91.2
88.7

51.1
73.8
85.1
89.7
90.6
88.5

51.0
73.4
85.2
89.6
90.0
86.3

50.1
73.8
84.8
89.8
89.9
88.7

51.1
75.0
86.3
89.4
90.8
87.7

58.5
81.1
86.8
90.9
92.8
89.8

57.5
79.8
86.3
90.9
91.7
91.7

57.6
79.3
86.0
89.2
92.1
90.4

56.1
80.9
87.4
90.0
93.0
90.0

CRS-38

Table 4b. Employment-Based Health Insurance Coverage: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 2000-2006
(percent)

Percentile

2000

2001

2002

2003

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

55.9
78.3
86.1
90.2
91.4
89.7

55.9
76.5
86.5
89.9
91.0
88.4

55.2
74.4
85.4
88.7
89.9
86.7

52.0
74.7
83.9
89.0
90.0
88.1

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

51.3
76.9
85.8
90.2
91.1
89.0

51.5
74.8
85.9
89.3
90.7
87.7

49.3
72.5
84.9
88.7
89.2
85.8

47.7
73.3
82.9
88.0
88.9
88.1

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

58.0
81.9
86.5
91.4
93.6
92.2

58.0
79.1
87.8
92.3
93.8
89.5

57.5
79.6
86.6
91.0
91.5
89.1

54.5
77.7
85.8
91.6
91.9
90.3

Change in
Percent,
2004
2005
2006
1987-1993
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
52.5
50.9
50.6
-6.0
74.0
73.8
72.7
-6.1
83.7
84.1
83.4
-3.7
89.0
88.4
87.7
-3.8
90.1
89.9
89.6
-4.3
88.2
88.7
87.1
-3.8
Men
47.6
46.1
45.0
-7.2
70.8
70.6
69.9
-7.3
82.1
82.4
82.2
-5.7
88.0
87.5
86.8
-4.7
89.4
89.0
88.3
-5.0
87.5
88.1
86.1
-4.0
Women
55.7
55.7
55.5
-3.5
77.9
77.6
76.2
-4.6
88.5
86.6
86.6
-1.3
91.7
90.7
89.5
-2.1
91.6
92.9
92.8
-4.0
90.3
89.6
89.8
-3.0

Change in
Percent,
1994-2000

Change in
Percent,
2000-2006

Change in
Percent,
1987-2006

0.5
0.6
1.5
-0.5
-0.7
0.8

-5.3
-5.6
-2.7
-2.5
-1.9
-2.6

-10.8
-11.1
-4.9
-6.8
-6.9
-5.6

1.2
2.5
1.0
-0.3
-0.5
1.0

-6.3
-7.0
-3.5
-3.4
-2.8
-2.9

-12.3
-11.8
-8.2
-8.5
-8.3
-5.9

-1.1
1.0
-2.2
-0.3
0.0
0.0

-2.5
-5.7
0.1
-1.9
-0.8
-2.4

-7.1
-9.3
-3.4
-4.3
-4.8
-5.4

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Notes: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.
a. Because of changes in the CPS health insurance questions in 1994, the change shown from 1987 to 2006 is the sum of the change from 1987 to 1993 and from
1994 to 2006.

CRS-39

Table 5a. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage: All Workers, 1979-1994
(percent)
Percentile

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile

7.4
24.4
46.2

7.0
24.2
46.6

6.2
23.2
45.7

5.9
23.1
44.3

5.8
21.4
45.0

5.6
21.2
43.4

5.9
21.1
43.3

Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

63.4
73.7
64.9

63.9
73.0
66.2

63.0
73.4
66.9

63.0
71.9
65.6

63.0
71.4
65.0

60.6
71.5
64.0

61.8
72.3
65.4

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

9.1
31.8
56.0
70.5
73.3
63.9

7.9
30.3
54.5
69.8
73.9
64.1

7.2
28.4
52.1
69.2
72.1
63.6

6.7
27.7
51.7
68.5
71.9
62.8

7.1
25.2
50.4
66.8
71.8
63.8

6.7
25.6
51.7
67.2
72.3
65.4

6.8
26.0
51.2
66.1
71.2
62.5

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

5.3
18.0
33.0
53.6
68.0
71.9

5.2
16.0
34.6
56.0
69.3
69.3

4.7
16.8
34.7
53.7
70.0
70.0

4.4
15.7
35.5
55.8
70.5
69.5

4.5
14.9
35.2
57.4
69.3
69.3

3.8
15.3
35.8
55.3
68.5
66.8

3.9
16.0
34.7
55.6
70.3
67.6

1986
1987
All Workers
6.1
5.5
21.2
20.6
43.5
41.4

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

5.9
21.0
41.3

6.3
22.2
42.3

6.8
22.1
43.2

6.6
22.2
44.2

6.3
21.6
43.8

6.3
21.2
43.3

7.6
23.2
45.1

62.0
57.2
70.5
68.8
64.3
61.6
Men
6.8
6.6
26.0
24.7
51.2
46.7
66.1
63.2
71.2
69.7
62.5
60.3
Women
5.3
4.4
14.9
14.9
34.8
34.7
55.8
51.9
70.2
66.4
69.9
65.7

57.4
69.2
63.5

60.1
69.8
61.7

60.1
70.1
61.7

60.8
71.3
63.4

60.8
71.5
64.7

59.9
69.7
62.4

62.5
72.1
65.6

7.4
24.5
45.6
64.4
69.7
62.1

7.5
24.4
48.0
64.6
70.0
60.0

7.9
27.0
47.6
63.6
70.8
60.4

6.9
26.3
47.9
65.1
71.9
61.7

6.2
24.3
46.9
64.9
69.9
64.3

6.6
23.3
46.7
63.6
68.8
60.9

7.9
26.8
48.9
66.0
72.5
64.9

4.3
16.6
33.7
54.0
66.4
64.3

5.3
17.0
36.8
56.4
68.5
64.8

5.3
17.0
36.9
56.6
68.6
65.7

5.7
18.3
38.0
57.8
69.6
68.1

5.9
18.2
38.4
59.6
70.2
70.8

5.4
18.5
38.5
58.3
68.9
66.1

6.3
19.3
39.7
60.5
71.0
68.1

CRS-40

Table 5b. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage: All Workers, 1995-2006
(percent)

Percentile

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

7.8
22.9
44.9
62.1
70.5
66.9

7.9
24.2
45.4
62.8
72.2
65.5

7.9
25.7
46.0
63.2
70.1
65.8

9.4
27.2
49.0
64.3
72.2
67.6

9.7
27.0
49.2
64.9
71.9
68.7

10.4
28.8
50.4
64.1
71.7
67.7

9.7
27.5
47.7
63.7
70.6
64.4

9.2
26.7
46.7
61.3
68.9
63.3

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

8.4
25.5
49.5
64.2
71.0
66.1

8.7
27.0
48.3
66.6
71.4
65.1

8.7
27.6
50.1
65.2
71.4
65.1

10.0
30.3
53.6
66.6
72.5
66.8

10.0
30.7
53.6
66.9
71.6
68.8

10.8
31.0
52.1
68.0
71.7
68.0

9.8
30.2
51.7
65.2
69.9
65.4

9.3
28.1
49.7
63.0
67.6
63.0

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

6.5
18.6
40.5
59.4
71.4
68.4

6.8
20.5
41.5
60.1
72.4
67.9

6.9
21.1
42.0
61.4
71
65.5

8.2
23.0
44.4
62.3
72.3
68.1

9.2
22.0
45.0
62.3
73.1
68.4

9.5
24.8
48.2
62.2
71.3
68.4

8.3
24.0
44.7
61.5
71.9
64.5

8.1
24.6
44.0
59.9
69.3
68.2

2003
2004
All Workers
9.1
9.1
26.0
26.9
47.3
46.5
61.3
61.4
70.2
68.5
64.6
65.9
Men
8.9
9.3
28.2
27.7
47.7
47.5
64.1
63.4
69.7
67.8
62.7
66.7
Women
8.6
8.4
23.2
23.5
44.6
45.2
60.9
61.5
71.2
69.3
68.1
68.7

2005

2006

Change in
Percent,
1979-1987

9.1
25.6
45.9
60.4
66.3
64.2

9.7
25.6
43.8
57.1
64.6
60.9

-1.8
-3.9
-4.8
-6.2
-4.8
-3.4

4.9
8.3
9.0
7.0
2.9
6.2

-0.7
-3.2
-6.6
-7.0
-7.1
-6.8

2.4
1.1
-2.4
-6.2
-9.1
-4.0

9.3
27.3
46.7
60.6
67.0
61.7

9.5
26.2
44.7
58.2
64.1
59.4

-2.5
-7.2
-9.3
-7.3
-3.6
-3.6

4.2
6.3
5.4
4.9
2.1
7.7

-1.2
-4.8
-7.5
-9.8
-7.7
-8.6

0.4
-5.6
-11.3
-12.3
-9.2
-4.5

7.8
24.0
43.1
60.3
68.4
68.0

8.8
22.1
42.8
58.5
66.7
63.7

-0.9
-3.1
1.7
-1.7
-1.6
-6.2

5.2
9.9
13.5
10.2
5.0
2.8

-0.8
-2.7
-5.5
-3.6
-4.6
-4.7

3.5
4.1
9.7
4.9
-1.3
-8.2

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.

Change in
Percent,
1987-2000

Change in
Percent,
2000-2006

Change in
Percent,
1979-2006

CRS-41

Table 6a. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994
(percent)
Percentile

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

29.5
53.1
64.0
74.7
76.2
65.9

29.1
53.4
65.6
73.8
75.4
67.6

28.1
53.2
65.4
73.1
76.1
68.6

28.3
51.6
64.7
72.4
75.4
67.5

26.3
51.3
64.1
72.9
73.8
65.4

25.5
49.3
62.6
70.8
75.4
65.8

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

28.7
56.2
69.5
75.7
74.8
63.3

29.6
54.5
69.2
75.6
75.3
66.3

28.3
55.1
68.1
75.2
76.1
64.8

27.3
52.8
67.1
73.9
74.6
66.5

25.8
52.3
67.5
73.1
73.1
64.2

24.0
50.9
64.1
73.8
72.9
65.7

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

27.3
45.0
60.7
70.9
77.3
78.6

25.9
48.0
61.5
72.3
77.1
72.2

25.3
47.7
61.1
72.4
77.2
75.4

24.9
49.3
62.2
72.0
77.7
73.6

23.7
48.1
62.1
71.5
76.6
72.2

23.8
46.8
61.1
69.4
75.9
75.3

1985
1986
1987
1988
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
25.3
24.0
22.7
23.2
48.3
48.6
45.4
44.5
63.8
62.3
58.1
57.4
71.3
70.6
68.2
68.7
75.2
74.0
71.9
72.8
69.4
66.3
64.4
65.1
Men
23.1
22.4
22.6
22.3
50.5
49.7
45.6
43.9
65.2
65.5
60.6
59.2
73.6
71.5
69.7
70.7
75.2
72.8
71.8
73.2
68.0
64.3
61.2
65.0
Women
24.1
22.4
20.0
21.9
45.6
45.2
43.6
41.9
60.3
60.2
56.3
57.5
71.5
70.4
65.5
66.8
77.2
76.2
74.9
74.6
70.6
74.5
71.1
66.4

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

24.0
46.0
59.2
69.3
72.6
62.1

23.6
45.7
59.8
69.2
74.2
65.9

23.3
46.4
62.4
70.7
75.2
66.0

23.6
46.9
62.2
70.4
75.3
69.9

22.2
45.0
60.4
69.6
73.3
65.7

23.7
48.4
61.2
71.7
75.8
69.8

21.7
46.1
60.1
71.7
70.5
63.6

23.0
45.5
60.2
71.9
73.0
64.1

22.5
47.8
62.2
73.1
73.7
66.8

21.5
46.0
63.1
73.1
71.7
69.3

19.6
43.7
61.1
70.9
71.6
64.4

22.4
46.1
62.8
72.0
75.8
68.7

22.8
45.0
59.1
68.6
74.0
70.5

22.3
44.0
59.2
68.8
75.6
71.1

22.6
44.8
60.0
71.0
75.8
72.0

22.7
48.2
61.6
70.2
77.7
77.5

22.5
45.9
60.9
70.2
74.8
73.6

22.4
48.8
62.3
72.9
76.3
74.9

CRS-42

Table 6b. Employer- or Union-Provided Pension Coverage: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006
(percent)

Percentile

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

23.3
45.8
60.2
69.9
74.3
70.9

24.4
47.5
60.7
71.6
74.9
70.8

24.9
46.8
61.7
70.4
73.6
70.9

25.8
48.3
63.7
70.9
75.2
71.2

25.8
48.1
63.6
71.4
75.7
74.0

25.3
48.7
61.3
71.6
74.8
71.9

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

21.9
45.2
60.7
69.6
74.3
69.5

22.5
45.4
61.5
72.6
74.6
68.9

23.2
45.4
62.7
69.3
74.5
70.9

23.9
47.9
62.5
72.6
74.2
70.8

24.2
48.3
63.9
72.1
75.5
72.8

22.3
47.8
61.8
72.4
75.9
69.8

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

22.7
46.5
57.9
71.6
78.8
71.9

24.4
48.3
61.0
72.3
77.5
72.7

24.5
47.2
62.2
71.9
75.4
71.9

26.5
48.6
63.7
71.0
78.4
73.2

24.2
48.4
63.9
70.9
79.5
73.0

25.1
50.9
62.0
70.3
76.6
75.6

2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
24.7
24.0
22.4
22.7
20.6
21.4
46.3
44.3
46.3
44.6
43.5
40.2
60.4
59.1
58.1
58.2
58.0
55.1
70.1
67.9
68.9
68.3
66.0
63.2
73.4
71.7
73.7
72.6
70.6
67.2
68.8
69.1
69.2
70.0
67.4
65.5
Men
22.5
20.8
19.6
19.4
18.8
18.7
44.6
43.1
45.0
41.7
42.2
38.3
61.5
59.9
57.3
58.5
56.0
53.4
70.7
68.7
69.2
67.9
65.2
62.1
72.5
70.1
72.6
70.9
69.5
66.9
68.7
65.8
67.1
69.8
65.0
62.8
Women
24.6
25.2
23.9
24.6
22.6
23.3
46.5
45.5
45.9
47.3
44.5
42.4
61.1
59.9
61.5
60.9
59.8
57.0
70.0
67.8
70.1
70.3
68.2
65.6
76.7
74.0
75.4
72.8
73.3
70.8
70.9
76.2
74.0
74.8
73.5
68.2

Change in Change in Change in Change in
Percent,
Percent,
Percent,
Percent,
1979-1987 1987-2000 2000-2006 1979-2006

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.

-6.8
-7.7
-6.0
-6.5
-4.2
-1.5

2.6
3.3
3.3
3.4
2.9
7.5

-3.9
-8.5
-6.2
-8.4
-7.7
-6.4

-8.1
-12.9
-8.9
-11.5
-9.0
-0.4

-6.1
-10.6
-8.9
-6.0
-3.0
-2.1

-0.4
2.2
1.2
2.8
4.0
8.6

-3.6
-9.5
-8.4
-10.3
-8.9
-7.1

-10.0
-17.9
-16.1
-13.6
-7.9
-0.5

-7.3
-1.4
-4.4
-5.3
-2.4
-7.5

5.1
7.3
5.7
4.8
1.7
4.5

-1.8
-8.4
-5.0
-4.7
-5.8
-7.3

-4.0
-2.5
-3.8
-5.3
-6.5
-10.3

CRS-43

Table 7. Gini Coefficients for All Workers and for Full-Time,
Year-Round Workers, 1979-2006
Year
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000

Total

Men

A. All Workers
0.40772
0.36699
0.40458
0.36412
0.41460
0.38118
0.42016
0.39090
0.42395
0.39558
0.42782
0.39854
0.42871
0.40032
0.43131
0.40484
0.42781
0.40176
0.42833
0.40340
0.42862
0.40583
0.42366
0.40144
0.42495
0.40517
0.42216
0.40455
0.43125
0.41309
0.43524
0.41660
0.47431
0.46835
0.46406
0.45790
0.46617
0.46026
0.46628
0.45756
0.45288
0.44374
0.46679
0.46885
0.47068
0.46564
0.47152
0.47456
0.46831
0.46403
0.46678
0.46611
0.47500
0.47887
0.46989
0.46681
B. Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
0.31643
0.29432
0.31033
0.28875
0.32316
0.30657
0.32826
0.31427
0.32863
0.31627
0.33670
0.32520
0.33538
0.32558
0.33976
0.32949
0.33660
0.32673
0.33782
0.32844
0.33997
0.33139
0.33706
0.33259
0.33624
0.32979
0.33613
0.33215
0.34172
0.33803
0.34654
0.34220
0.38731
0.39594
0.39246
0.40016
0.39093
0.39941
0.38999
0.39703
0.38020
0.38363
0.40197
0.41458

Women
0.37528
0.37835
0.37901
0.38632
0.39450
0.40189
0.40559
0.40460
0.40683
0.40792
0.40934
0.40931
0.40967
0.40809
0.41992
0.42328
0.44358
0.43515
0.43605
0.44347
0.42834
0.42539
0.44669
0.43294
0.44594
0.43695
0.43933
0.44776
0.25941
0.25965
0.26195
0.27251
0.27586
0.28272
0.28473
0.29375
0.29380
0.29908
0.30308
0.30005
0.30412
0.30317
0.31204
0.31959
0.33095
0.34233
0.33888
0.34263
0.33654
0.33904

CRS-44
Year
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006

Total
0.40573
0.40194
0.39841
0.40204
0.40645
0.40868

Men
0.41449
0.41410
0.40673
0.41409
0.42065
0.41705

Women
0.35912
0.34917
0.35634
0.35386
0.35455
0.37138

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the
Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over. The Gini coefficient is a measure of earnings
equality that ranges from 0 to 1. A larger coefficient indicates a greater degree of inequality.

CRS-45

Table 8a. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1979-1994
(percent)
Percentile

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

4.1
10.3
16.3
24.4
27.8
17

4.2
10.4
16.3
24.6
27.9
16.6

4
10.2
16.1
24.3
27.8
17.6

3.9
10
16
24.3
28
17.8

3.8
9.8
16
24.3
28.1
18

3.8
9.7
15.8
24.3
28.1
18.3

3.8
9.7
15.8
24.1
28
18.6

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

4.8
11.7
17.7
24.5
26.1
15.3

4.8
11.7
17.8
24.8
26.3
14.7

4.5
11.2
17.4
24.5
26.2
16.2

4.3
10.9
17.2
24.4
26.7
16.5

4.2
10.7
17.1
24.6
26.9
16.6

4.1
10.6
17
24.5
26.9
16.9

4.2
10.6
16.8
24.4
26.9
17.2

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

4.6
11.5
17.5
24.4
26.4
15.6

4.5
11.4
17.4
24.4
26.6
15.8

4.5
11.2
17.4
24.5
26.8
15.5

4.3
10.9
17.2
24.7
27.2
15.6

4.2
10.7
17
24.6
27.3
16.1

4.1
10.5
16.8
24.5
27.3
16.9

4.1
10.4
16.7
24.4
27.3
17.1

1986
1987
All Workers
3.8
3.8
9.6
9.7
15.7
15.9
24.1
24.1
28
28.1
18.7
18.4
Men
4.2
4.2
10.4
10.5
16.7
16.8
24.2
24.3
26.7
27.1
17.7
17.1
Women
4.1
4.1
10.3
10.3
16.6
16.6
24.7
24.4
27.7
27.6
16.7
17

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

3.8
9.7
15.9
24.2
28
18.5

3.8
9.7
15.8
24
28
18.7

4
9.8
15.9
23.9
28
18.4

3.9
9.7
15.9
24.1
28
18.3

3.9
9.8
16
24.1
28.2
18

3.8
9.6
15.7
23.9
28.4
18.6

3.9
9.5
15.4
23.6
28.3
19.2

4.2
10.5
16.7
24.2
26.9
17.5

4.2
10.5
16.5
24.1
27.1
17.6

4.4
10.5
16.5
24
27.3
17.3

4.3
10.4
16.5
24.1
27.4
17.3

4.3
10.3
16.5
24.2
27.8
16.9

4.1
10.2
16.2
24
28.1
17.4

4.3
10.1
15.9
23.7
28.1
18

4
10.2
16.6
24.6
27.8
16.8

4.1
10.2
16.4
24.4
27.8
17.1

4.1
10.2
16.4
24.4
27.6
17.3

4.1
10.2
16.3
24.4
27.8
17.2

4.1
10.2
16.4
24.6
27.8
16.9

3.9
10
16.1
24.2
27.9
17.9

4.1
9.9
15.8
23.9
27.8
18.5

CRS-46

Table 8b. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: All Workers, 1995-2006
(percent)

Percentile

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

3.6
8.9
14.4
21.9
26.2
25

3.8
9.1
14.6
22.1
26.6
23.8

3.7
9.1
14.6
21.9
26.4
24.3

3.8
9.1
14.6
21.8
26.3
24.4

3.9
9.3
14.9
22.4
27.3
22.1

3.9
9.2
14.4
21.6
26.2
24.7

3.8
9.1
14.3
21.4
26.3
25.1

3.8
9.1
14.3
21.4
26.3
25.1

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

3.8
9.2
14.6
21.6
25.3
25.5

3.9
9.4
14.8
21.9
25.7
24.3

4
9.4
14.7
21.5
25.7
24.7

4
9.5
14.8
21.6
25.9
24.3

4.1
9.7
15.1
22.3
26.9
22

4
9.2
14.2
21.1
25.4
26

4
9.3
14.3
21.1
25.8
25.4

4
9.1
14.1
20.9
25.8
26.2

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

3.9
9.6
15.3
23
26.9
21.4

4.1
9.7
15.5
23.1
27
20.7

4
9.7
15.5
23.1
26.9
20.8

4.1
9.6
15.2
22.6
26.4
22.1

4.2
9.9
15.6
23.2
27.3
19.8

4.2
10
15.8
23.1
27
19.9

4.1
9.6
15.1
22.3
26.2
22.7

4.1
9.9
15.5
22.9
26.7
20.9

2003 2004 2005
All Workers
3.8
3.8
3.8
9.1
9.2
9
14.4
14.4
14.1
21.6
21.7
21.3
26.7
26.7
26.3
24.4
24.2
25.5
Men
4
4
3.9
9.3
9.3
9
14.4
14.3
13.9
21.4
21.3
20.8
26.3
26.2
25.8
24.6
25
26.6
Women
4
4
4.1
9.6
9.8
9.7
15.2
15.5
15.3
22.4
22.8
22.6
26.5
27.1
26.9
22.2
20.8
21.4

Change in Change in Change in Change in Change in
Percent, Percent, Percent, Percent, Percent,
2006 1980-1986 1986-1992 1992-1994 1995-1999 1999-2006
3.9
9.1
14.2
21.5
26.4
24.9

-0.4
-0.8
-0.6
-0.5
0.2
2.1

0.2
0.2
0.2
0.0
0.1
-0.8

0.0
-0.3
-0.5
-0.6
0.1
1.3

0.3
0.4
0.5
0.5
1.1
-2.8

0.0
-0.2
-0.7
-1.0
-0.9
2.8

4.1
9.2
14.2
21.1
26.1
25.3

-0.6
-1.2
-1.1
-0.7
0.5
3.1

0.1
-0.1
-0.2
0.0
1.0
-0.8

0.0
-0.3
-0.6
-0.5
0.3
1.1

0.2
0.5
0.6
0.7
1.6
-3.5

0.0
-0.4
-0.9
-1.2
-0.8
3.3

4.1
9.5
15
22.4
26.6
22.5

-0.4
-1.1
-0.8
0.3
1.1
0.9

0.0
-0.1
-0.2
0.0
0.2
0.2

0.0
-0.4
-0.6
-0.7
0.0
1.7

0.3
0.3
0.3
0.2
0.4
-1.5

-0.1
-0.4
-0.6
-0.9
-0.7
2.6

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.

CRS-47

Table 9a. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1979-1994
(percent)
Percentile

1979

1980

1981

1982

1983

1984

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

7.5
12.7
17.3
23.5
25
14

7.6
12.7
17.4
23.7
25
13.5

7.4
12.4
17.2
23.4
24.9
14.8

7.2
12.4
17.1
23.2
25.2
14.9

7.1
12.4
17.1
23.4
25.3
14.7

6.9
12.2
17
23.3
25.2
15.4

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

7.7
13.5
18.1
23.4
24.4
12.9

7.8
13.6
18.3
23.5
24.4
12.3

7.5
13.1
17.9
23.3
24.2
14

7.2
13
17.7
23.2
24.8
14.1

7
12.9
17.8
23.4
24.9
13.9

6.8
12.7
17.6
23.3
24.7
14.8

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

9.2
14.4
18.2
22.9
23
12.2

9.1
14.5
18.2
23
23.1
12.1

9
14.3
18.2
23.3
23.3
11.9

8.7
14.1
18.1
23.2
23.4
12.6

8.5
14
18
23.3
23.6
12.6

8.3
13.7
18
23.4
23.7
12.9

1985
1986
1987
1988
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
7
6.8
6.9
6.9
12.2
12.1
12.2
12.1
17
17
17
17
23.3
23.3
23.3
23.3
25.2
25.3
25.4
25.3
15.3
15.5
15.2
15.4
Men
6.9
6.8
6.9
6.9
12.6
12.5
12.5
12.5
17.5
17.5
17.5
17.5
23.4
23.3
23.4
23.3
24.8
25
25
25.2
14.8
14.9
14.6
14.7
Women
8.3
8
8
7.8
13.6
13.4
13.5
13.3
18
17.9
17.8
17.8
23.5
23.5
23.4
23.4
23.9
24
24.1
24.3
12.8
13.3
13.3
13.5

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

6.8
12.2
16.8
23.2
25.5
15.5

6.9
12.2
16.9
23.2
25.6
15.2

6.9
12.2
17
23.3
25.6
15

6.9
12.1
17.1
23.3
25.7
14.9

6.7
12
16.9
23.3
26.1
15

6.7
11.8
16.7
23.3
26.4
15.2

6.9
12.4
17.2
23.3
25.5
14.7

6.8
12.3
17.2
23.4
25.7
14.6

6.8
12.4
17.3
23.5
25.7
14.2

6.7
12.3
17.3
23.5
26
14.2

6.7
12.1
17
23.6
26.4
14.2

6.6
12
16.9
23.5
26.7
14.3

7.7
13.2
17.6
23.4
24.4
13.7

7.8
13.2
17.7
23.5
24.3
13.5

7.8
13.1
17.6
23.3
24.3
13.8

7.7
13.1
17.8
23.4
24.5
13.5

7.4
13
17.6
23.4
24.8
13.9

7.3
12.7
17.3
23.3
24.9
14.4

CRS-48

Table 9b. Share of Total Weekly Earnings: Full-Time, Year-Round Workers, 1995-2006
(percent)

Percentile

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

6.3
11.1
15.6
21.8
24.6
20.7

6.3
11.1
15.3
21.4
24.4
21.5

6.3
11.1
15.4
21.4
24.4
21.4

6.3
11.1
15.5
21.5
24.6
21.1

6.3
11.2
15.7
22.0
25.5
19.3

6.1
10.8
15.1
21.2
24.6
22.2

6.1
10.7
14.9
20.9
24.6
22.7

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

6.1
11.0
15.5
21.5
24.3
21.7

6.0
10.9
15.3
21.2
24.2
22.3

6.1
11.0
15.3
21.1
24.3
22.2

6.1
11.0
15.4
21.3
24.7
21.6

6.2
11.2
15.7
22.0
25.4
19.6

5.9
10.5
14.8
21.0
24.4
23.5

5.9
10.5
14.7
20.8
24.5
23.5

Lowest Quintile
Second Quintile
Third Quintile
Fourth Quintile
81-95%
Top 5%

7.2
12.5
17.0
22.8
24.6
15.9

7.3
12.3
16.5
22.2
24.2
17.5

7.3
12.3
16.7
22.4
24.3
17.1

7.2
12.2
16.6
22.2
24.3
17.4

7.1
12.3
16.9
22.7
24.8
16.2

7.1
12.4
16.7
22.5
24.6
16.7

7.0
11.9
16.1
21.8
24.2
19.0

Change in Change in Change in Change in Change in
Percent, Percent, Percent, Percent, Percent,
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 1980-1986 1986-1992 1992-1994 1995-1999 1999-2006
All Full-Time, Year-Round Workers
6.2
6.2
6.1
6.1
6.0
-0.8
0.1
-0.2
0.1
-0.3
10.8
10.9
10.8
10.6
10.6
-0.6
0.1
-0.3
0.1
-0.7
15.0
15.1
15.0
14.9
14.9
-0.5
0.1
-0.4
0.4
-0.8
21.1
21.3
21.2
21.1
21.1
-0.4
0.0
-0.1
0.6
-0.9
25.0
25.2
25.0
25.1
25.1
0.3
0.4
0.6
1.1
-0.4
22.0
21.4
21.8
22.1
22.4
2.0
-0.7
0.3
-2.2
3.1
Men
5.9
6.0
5.8
5.8
5.8
-1.0
0.0
-0.2
0.1
-0.3
10.5
10.6
10.5
10.3
10.3
-1.0
-0.2
-0.4
0.2
-0.8
14.8
15.0
14.9
14.7
14.8
-0.8
-0.2
-0.4
0.4
-0.9
21.0
21.3
21.0
20.9
20.9
-0.2
0.2
0.0
0.8
-1.1
25.0
25.3
25.1
25.0
25.2
0.5
1.0
0.8
1.2
-0.2
22.9
21.8
22.7
23.4
22.9
2.6
-0.7
0.1
-2.7
3.3
Women
7.1
6.9
6.9
7.0
6.8
-1.1
-0.3
-0.3
-0.1
-0.4
12.1
12.0
12.0
11.8
11.5
-1.1
-0.3
-0.4
0.0
-0.8
16.3
16.2
16.3
16.3
15.8
-0.3
-0.1
-0.5
0.4
-1.1
22.1
22.0
22.1
22.2
21.7
0.4
0.0
-0.2
0.5
-0.9
24.4
24.4
24.7
24.9
24.5
0.9
0.6
0.4
0.7
-0.3
17.9
18.4
17.9
17.8
19.7
1.2
0.2
1.0
-1.4
3.5

Source: Calculated by CRS from the Annual Social and Economic (ASEC) Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS).
Note: Estimates are for persons age 16 and over.

---

Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/documents/crs%3ARL34469. Public record. Not legal advice.