Library Index :: Social Issues & Debate Topics :: The American Worker - A Diverse Workforce, Protecting American Workers, Labor Unions, Wages And Benefits: Compensating American Workers
 

The American Worker - America's Workforce In The Global Economy

American workers typically spend more hours on the job each year than their European counterparts and, since 2001, about the same number of hours as Japanese workers. (See Table 6.11.) As shown in Table 6.12, U.S. manufacturing sector productivity grew at a rate higher than that of Japan and most of Europe, but it fell short of productivity gains in countries such as Taiwan and Korea.

FIGURE 6.1

FIGURE 6.2

TABLE 6.5

Health insurance coverage, by race and Hispanic origin, 2001–03
(Numbers in thousands. People as of March of the following year.)
People without health insurance coverage Change in coverage (2002–2003 average less 2001–2002 average)3
3-year average 2-year average
2001–20031 2001–20022 2002–2003 Uninsured Insured
Race and Hispanic origin Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate Estimate
1The 2003 and 2004 Current Population Surveys (CPS) offered respondents the option of choosing more than one race. The 2002 CPS recorded only one race for each respondent. The 3-year averages are based on combining the 2003 and 2004 CPS race categories shown in the stub with the relevant single race categories of white, black, American Indian and Alaska Native, or Asian and Pacific Islander recorded in the 2002 CPS.
2The 2-year average for 2001–2002 is based on combining the 2003 CPS race categories shown in the stub with the relevant single race categories of white, black, American Indian and Alaska Native, or Asian and Pacific Islander recorded in the 2002 CPS.
3Details may not sum to totals because of rounding.
4White alone refers to people who reported white and did not report any other race category. The use of this single-race population does not imply that it is the preferred method of presenting or analyzing data. The Census Bureau uses a variety of approaches. Information on people who reported more than one race, such as white and American Indian and Alaska Native or Asian and black or African American, is available from Census 2000 through American FactFinder. About 2.6 percent of people reported more than one race in Census 2000.
5Black alone refers to people who reported black and did not report any other race category.
6Amerian Indian and Alaska Native alone refers to people who reported American Indian and Alaska Native and did not report any other race category.
7Asian alone refers to people who reported Asian and did not report any other race category.
8Asian and/or Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander refers to people who reported either or both of these categories, but did not report any other category.
SOURCE: "Table 6. Health Insurance Coverage of People by Race and Hispanic Origin Using 2- and 3-Year Averages: 2001 to 2003," in Current Population Survey, 2002 to 2004 Annual Social and Economic Supplements, U.S. Census Bureau, http://www.census.gov/hhes/hlthins/hlthin03/hi03t6.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
Percentage
All races 15.1 14.9 15.4 0.5 0.5
White alone or in combination 14.2 13.9 14.5 0.6 −0.6
White alone4 14.1 13.9 14.4 0.5 −0.5
White alone, not Hispanic 10.6 10.4 10.9 0.5 −0.5
Black alone or in combination 19.4 19.5 19.7 0.2 −0.2
Black alone5 19.6 19.6 19.9 0.3 −0.3
American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination 23.8 24.0 22.7 −1.3 1.3
American Indian and Alaska Native alone6 27.5 27.4 28.3 0.9 −0.9
Asian alone or in combination 18.3 18.1 18.3 0.2 −0.2
Asian alone7 18.5 18.3 18.6 0.3 −0.3
Asian, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, alone or in combination 18.3 18.2 18.3 0.2 −0.2
Asian and/or Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander8 18.6 18.5 18.8 0.3 −0.3
Hispanic origin (of any race) 32.8 32.8 32.6 −0.3 0.3
Number
All races 43,247 42,391 44,268 1,877 1,223
White alone or in combination 33,109 32,257 34,067 1,811 1,591
White alone4 32,627 31,950 33,345 1,395 −304
White alone, not Hispanic 20,591 20,096 21,182 1,087 −1,059
Black alone or in combination 7,190 7,131 7,368 237 577
Black alone5 7,047 7,031 7,154 124 −75
American Indian and Alaska Native alone or in combination 1,054 986 1,129 143 658
American Indian and Alaska Native alone 729 781 641 −140 −479
Asian alone or in combination 2,309 2,263 2,325 62 141
Asian alone7 2,213 2,205 2,180 −25 −291
Asian, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, alone or in combination 2,430 2,364 2,506 143 531
Asian and/or Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander8 2,316 2,296 2,336 40 −4
Hispanic origin (of any race) 12,803 12,587 12,997 410 1,084

TABLE 6.6

Workers with access to retirement and health care benefits, by selected characteristics, 20031
Retirement benefits Health care benefits3
Characteristics All plans2 Defined benefit Defined contribution Medical care Dental care Vision care
1The survey covers all 50 States and the District of Columbia.
2Includes defined benefit pension plans and defined contribution retirement plans. The total is less than the sum of the individual items because many employees have access to both types of plans.
3The March 2003 estimates were originally published in April 2004 in Summary 04–02. Health care benefits included estimates for "Plan type not available," which represented workers with access to some type of health plan that the establishment was unable to identify.
4A classification system involving about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy. Employees are classified as working full-time or part-time based on the definitions used by each establishment. Union workers are those whose wages are determined through collective bargaining. Averages for occupations within an establishment were used to produce estimates for wages below $15 and $15 per hour or more.
Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals. Where applicable, dash indicates no employees in this category or data do not meet publication criteria.
SOURCE: "Summary Table 1. Percent of Workers with Access to Retirement and Health Care Benefits, by Selected Characteristics, Private Industry," in Workers with Retirement and Health Care Benefits, March 2003, Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ebs/sp/sum2003table1.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
All workers 57 20 51 69 45 28
Worker characteristics:4
White-collar occupations 67 23 62 75 52 32
Blue-collar occupations 59 24 49 75 45 28
Service occupations 28 8 23 41 25 16
Full-time 67 24 60 83 55 34
Part-time 24 8 21 22 11 8
Union 86 74 45 90 74 55
Nonunion 54 15 51 67 42 25
Average wage less than $15 per hour 45 12 40 58 33 20
Average wage $15 per hour or higher 76 34 67 87 63 41
Establishment characteristics:
Goods-producing 70 31 60 81 56 35
Service-producing 53 17 48 65 41 26
1–99 workers 42 9 38 58 30 18
100 workers or more 75 34 65 82 62 40
Geographic areas:
Metropolitan areas 58 21 51 69 46 28
Nonmetropolitan areas 52 15 47 65 37 24
New England 51 16 44 67 45 23
Middle Atlantic 61 30 49 73 45 36
East North Central 64 24 56 74 48 26
West North Central 56 22 47 59 42 23
South Atlantic 57 17 53 67 43 21
East South Central 60 14 59 77 49 40
West South Central 53 18 49 65 39 22
Mountain 51 12 47 57 39 28
Pacific 53 20 46 71 49 35

TABLE 6.7

Workers with access to selected leave benefits, by selected characteristics, 20031
Characteristics Paid holidays Paid vacations Paid jury duty leave Paid military leave
1The survey covers all 50 States and the District of Columbia.
2Employees are classified as working either a full-time or part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment. Union workers are those whose wages are determined through collective bargaining.
3A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy.
4Data are presented for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area divisions as well as nine census divisions.
Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals. Where applicable, dash indicates no employees in this category or data do not meet publication criteria.
SOURCE: "Table 3. Percent of Workers with Access to Selected Leave Benefits, by Selected Characteristics, Private Industry," in Employee Benefits in Industry, 2003, Bureau of Labor Statistics, September 17, 2003, http://bls.gov/ncs/ebs/sp/ebnr0008.pdf (accessed January 4,2005)
All employees 79 79 70 50
Worker characteristics:2
White-collar occupations3 86 84 79 59
Blue-collar occupations3 85 84 69 46
Service occupations3 54 61 46 34
Full-time 91 91 77 56
Part-time 43 40 45 33
Union 91 90 85 56
Nonunion 78 78 68 50
Average wage less than $15 per hour 72 73 60 42
Average wage $15 per hour or higher 91 90 84 64
Establishment characteristics:
Goods-producing 90 87 76 56
Service-producing 76 77 68 48
1–99 workers 74 73 57 38
100 workers or more 86 87 84 64
Geographic areas:4
Metropolitan areas 79 79 71 51
Nonmetropolitan areas 80 79 61 44
New England 77 79 69 54
Middle Atlantic 83 85 72 54
East North Central 83 81 73 53
West North Central 74 71 70 50
South Atlantic 79 80 71 50
East South Central 81 79 72 45
West South Central 77 79 68 53
Mountain 75 73 71 51
Pacific 80 79 62 41

TABLE 6.8

Workers participating in life and disability insurance benefits, by selected characteristics, 2003
Disability benefits
Characteristics Life Short-term disability Long-term disability
1The survey covers all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
2Employees are classified as working either a full-time or part-time schedule based on the definition used by each establishment. Union workers are those whose wages are determined through collective bargaining.
3A classification system including about 480 individual occupations is used to cover all workers in the civilian economy.
4Data are presented for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan area divisions as well as nine census divisions.
Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals. Where applicable, dash indicates no employees in this category or data do not meet publication criteria.
SOURCE: "Table 2. Percent of Workers Participating in Life and Disability Insurance Benefits, by Selected Characteristics, Private Industry," in Employee Benefits in Industry, 2003, Bureau of Labor Statistics, September 17, 2003, http://bls.gov/ncs/ebs/sp/ebnr0008.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
All employees 47 37 28
Worker characteristics:2
White-collar occupations3 54 40 40
Blue-collar occupations3 50 44 20
Service occupations3 25 20 10
Full-time 59 45 36
Part-time 9 12 4
Union 61 68 27
Nonunion 46 34 29
Average wage less than $15 per hour 37 27 16
Average wage $15 per hour or higher 64 52 49
Establishment characteristics:
Goods-producing 58 54 29
Service-producing 44 32 28
1–99 workers 33 26 18
100 workers or more 64 50 40
Geographic areas:4
Metropolitan areas 48 38 30
Nonmetropolitan areas 45 31 17
New England 42 33 29
Middle Atlantic 46 76 27
East North Central 53 37 30
West North Central 46 36 29
South Atlantic 49 29 31
East South Central 59 38 26
West South Central 48 28 28
Mountain 40 19 23
Pacific 41 27 28

FIGURE 6.3

FIGURE 6.4

TABLE 6.9

Characteristics of self-employed individuals, 1995–2002
(thousands unless noted)
1995 2000 2001 2002
Characteristic Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent Rate
Notes: Represents individuals whose primary occupation was self-employment (incorporated and unincorporated) during the year. Asian/American Indian Asian, Pacific, American Indian and Aleut Eskimo. Disability consists of disabilities or health problems that restrict or prevent the amount or kind of work. The rate is the percent with any self-employment earnings out of the total number of individuals that had any job during the year.
SOURCE: "Table A.10. Characteristics of Self-Employed Individuals, 1995–2002" in The Small Business Economy, U.S. Small Business Administration, 2004, http://www.sba.gov/advo/stats/sb_econ2004.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
Total 13,921.9 100.0 13,832.4 100.0 13,722.4 100.0 14,697.8 100.0 9.7
Sex
Female 4,614.7 33.1 4,819.6 34.8 4,711.3 34.3 4,927.8 33.5 6.9
Male 9,307.2 66.9 9,012.8 65.2 9,011.0 65.7 9,770.0 66.5 12.1
Race
Asian/American Indian 547.5 3.9 759.8 5.5 745.0 5.4 728.2 5.0 9.4
Black 612.1 4.4 679.3 4.9 711.5 5.2 753.7 5.1 4.5
White 12,762.4 91.7 12,393.3 89.6 12,265.9 89.4 13,072.2 88.9 10.4
Multiple NA NA NA 143.7 1.0 7.7
Origin or descent
Hispanic 698.9 5.0 775.6 5.6 942.1 6.9 1,081.9 7.4 5.8
Age
<25 501.0 3.6 375.8 2.7 382.4 2.8 493.4 3.4 2.1
25–34 2,181.8 15.7 1,824.3 13.2 1,921.1 14.0 1,929.4 13.1 5.8
35–44 4,132.6 29.7 3,941.1 28.5 3,702.1 27.0 3,925.8 26.7 10.5
45–54 3,576.0 25.7 3,995.0 28.9 3,981.3 29.0 4,160.8 28.3 12.4
55–64 2,214.3 15.9 2,274.6 16.4 2,523.5 18.4 2,928.3 19.9 16.0
65+ 1,316.2 9.5 1,421.6 10.3 1,212.0 8.8 1,260.1 8.6 22.2
Educational level
High school or less 6,055.0 43.5 5,485.1 39.7 5,408.7 39.4 5,865.1 39.9 8.9
Some college 3,575.2 25.7 3,822.5 27.6 3,553.1 25.9 3,886.9 26.4 8.9
Bachelor's degree 2,643.4 19.0 2,838.9 20.5 2,962.4 21.6 3,017.9 20.5 10.7
Master's degree or above 1,648.3 11.8 1,685.9 12.2 1,798.1 13.1 1,927.8 13.1 13.7
Veteran status 2,492.5 17.9 2,029.3 14.7 1,890.0 13.8 1,902.7 12.9 13.0
Disability 628.6 4.5 592.5 4.3 530.1 3.9 558.5 3.8 12.6
Born in the United States 12,411.0 89.1 12,078.8 87.3 11,838.0 86.3 12,669.2 86.2 9.8
Location
Central city 2,650.1 19.0 2,506.2 18.1 2,600.7 19.0 2,774.1 18.9 8.0
Suburban 5,988.6 43.0 6,095.6 44.1 6,081.0 44.3 6,484.3 44.1 9.8
Rural 3,382.9 24.3 3,321.5 24.0 3,106.1 22.6 3,253.4 22.1 12.3
Not identified 1,900.3 13.7 1,909.1 13.8 1,934.5 14.1 2,186.0 14.9 10.4

TABLE 6.10

Unemployment, by industry and sex, 2002–03
Thousands of persons Unemployment rates
Total Total Men Women
Industry 20021 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003
Total, 16 years and over 8,378 8,774 5.8 6.0 5.9 6.3 5.6 5.7
Nonagricultural private wage and salary workers 6,926 7,131 6.2 6.3 6.3 6.6 6.0 6.0
Mining 33 37 6.3 6.7 6.3 6.3 6.3 9.1
Construction 800 810 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.6 7.2 6.7
Manufacturing 1,205 1,166 6.7 6.6 5.9 6.1 8.4 7.7
Durable goods 789 762 6.9 6.9 6.2 6.6 8.8 7.7
Nonmetallic mineral products 31 31 5.4 5.7 4.6 5.4 8.8 6.8
Primary and fabricated metal products 144 126 6.8 6.1 6.9 5.9 6.6 7.2
Machinery manufacturing 97 84 7.1 6.2 6.6 6.3 8.7 5.6
Computer and electronic products 154 154 9.0 8.9 7.7 8.3 11.6 9.9
Electrical equipment and appliances 41 40 6.9 7.0 5.5 5.7 9.4 10.0
Transportation equipment 136 151 5.3 6.4 4.8 6.1 6.7 7.2
Wood products 41 43 7.9 8.0 8.6 8.0 4.2 8.0
Furniture and fixtures 53 52 7.3 8.2 5.6 8.2 11.3 8.0
Miscellaneous manufacturing 93 81 7.7 6.6 6.3 6.5 9.6 6.8
Nondurable goods 416 404 6.2 6.1 5.3 5.2 7.8 7.7
Food manufacturing 108 106 6.6 6.3 5.2 6.0 8.9 6.8
Beverage and tobacco products 5 11 2.0 4.4 2.2 3.6 1.4 6.7
Textile, apparel, and leather 110 99 9.7 9.1 8.1 7.0 11.0 10.8
Paper and printing 67 80 5.0 5.8 4.1 5.1 6.8 7.3
Petroleum and coal products 13 9 6.9 5.4 7.6 6.0 4.1 2
Chemicals 60 47 4.9 3.5 5.3 3.0 4.2 4.4
Plastic and rubber products 52 52 6.0 7.0 5.3 5.8 7.4 9.7
Wholesale and retail trade 1,202 1,237 6.1 6.0 5.5 5.6 6.7 6.5
Wholesale trade 205 226 5.0 5.1 4.5 4.3 6.1 6.8
Retail trade 997 1,011 6.4 6.3 5.9 6.1 6.8 6.4
Transportation and utilities 274 283 4.9 5.3 4.6 5.3 5.8 5.1
Transportation and warehousing 250 256 5.4 5.7 5.1 5.9 6.3 5.2
Utilities 24 27 2.5 3.1 2.3 2.6 3.2 4.6
Information3 253 246 6.9 6.8 6.8 6.6 7.1 7.1
Publishing, except Internet 36 40 4.2 4.7 3.7 4.4 4.6 5.1
Motion picture and sound recording industries 38 47 10.3 11.2 10.5 12.2 10.1 9.2
Broadcasting, except Internet 27 27 5.0 5.1 5.1 5.2 4.7 5.1
Telecommunications 122 113 7.9 7.5 7.3 6.7 8.8 8.6
Internet service providers and data processing services — 13 — 6.8 — 6.5 — 7.1
Other information services 24 5 10.2 4.8 12.5 4.3 7.3 5.2
Financial activities 320 319 3.5 3.5 3.2 3.6 3.8 3.4
Finance and insurance 216 217 3.3 3.3 2.9 3.3 3.5 3.2
Finance 144 151 3.4 3.5 3.3 3.7 3.5 3.3
Insurance 72 67 3.0 2.9 2.0 2.6 3.6 3.0
Real estate and rental and leasing 104 101 4.3 4.1 4.0 4.1 4.6 4.1
Real estate 68 71 3.6 3.6 2.9 3.6 4.2 3.7
Rental and leasing services 36 30 7.0 5.9 6.8 5.4 7.2 6.9
Professional and business services 1,009 1,042 7.9 8.2 7.3 7.9 8.5 8.7
Professional and technical services 419 396 5.5 5.4 5.4 5.1 5.8 5.8
Management, administrative, and waste services3 589 645 11.2 12.1 10.1 11.5 12.8 12.9
Administrative and support services 571 626 11.7 12.6 10.6 12.2 13.1 13.2
Waste management and remediation services 16 17 4.9 5.2 5.4 4.9 3.1 6.5
Education and health services 570 640 3.4 3.6 3.1 3.8 3.4 3.6
Educational services 126 145 3.9 4.5 3.7 4.5 3.9 4.5
Health care and social assistance 444 494 3.2 3.4 2.9 3.5 3.3 3.4
Hospitals 92 92 1.9 1.8 2.5 2.4 1.8 1.6
Health services, except hospitals 240 278 3.4 3.8 2.5 3.4 3.6 3.9
Social assistance 112 125 5.8 6.3 5.7 7.9 5.9 5.9
Leisure and hospitality 961 1,006 8.4 8.7 8.1 8.6 8.6 8.8
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 171 155 8.2 7.8 8.7 8.2 7.6 7.4
Accommodation and food services 789 851 8.4 8.9 7.9 8.7 8.8 9.1
Accommodation 115 126 7.5 7.9 6.4 6.7 8.3 8.7
Food services and drinking places 674 725 8.6 9.1 8.2 9.0 8.9 9.2

1Industry detail will not sum to total because of minor changes in the industry classification system between 2002 and 2003.
2Data not shown where base is less than 35,000.
3Includes other industries, not shown separately.
Note: Industries reflect the introduction of the 2002 Census industry classification system derived from the 2002 North American Industry Classification System into the Current Population Survey. Beginning in January 2003, data reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.
SOURCE: "Table 26. Unemployed Persons by Industry and Sex," in Household Data Annual Averages, Bureau of Labor Statistics, http://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat26.pdf (accessed January 4, 2005)
Other services 301 347 5.1 5.7 5.6 6.4 4.7 5.1
Other services, except private households 239 273 4.7 5.3 5.4 6.1 3.9 4.2
Repair and maintenance 113 133 6.9 7.8 6.9 8.0 7.1 5.9
Personal and laundry services 63 69 4.2 4.5 4.8 4.8 3.9 4.3
Membership associations and organizations 63 71 3.3 3.7 3.2 3.5 3.3 3.8
Private households 62 74 7.6 8.8 10.3 17.7 7.3 8.0
Agricultural and related private wage and salary workers 139 140 10.1 10.2 9.4 9.3 12.6 13.0
Government workers 512 568 2.5 2.8 2.7 3.0 2.4 2.7
Self-employed and unpaid family workers 265 294 2.6 2.7 2.7 2.9 2.4 2.5
No previous work experience 536 641 — — — — — —

TABLE 6.11

Annual hours worked per employed person in selected countries, 1990 and 2001
Country Hours
Note: 2000 for Japan. 1991 for Germany. Korean data refer to employees in private industry and services. Data per job for Australia, France, Norway, and Sweden.
SOURCE: "Chart 19. Annual Hours Worked per Employed Person, 1990 and 2001," in A Chartbook of International Labor Comparisons: United States, Europe, and Asia, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, May 2003, http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/oiea/chartbook/chart19.htm (accessed January 4, 2005)
U.S. 1990 1,838
U.S. 2001 1,821
Australia 1990 1,866
Australia 2001 1,837
Japan 1990 2,031
Japan 2001 1,821
Korea 1990 2,514
Korea 2001 2,447
New Zealand 1990 1,820
New Zealand 2001 1,817
Denmark 1990 1,492
Denmark 2001 1,482
France 1990 1,657
France 2001 1,532
Germany 1990 1,560
Germany 2001 1,467
Ireland 1990 1,922
Ireland 2001 1,674
Italy 1990 1,674
Italy 2001 1,606
Netherlands 1990 1,654
Netherlands 2001 1,346
Norway 1990 1,432
Norway 2001 1,364
Spain 1990 1,824
Spain 2001 1,816
Sweden 1990 1,549
Sweden 2001 1,603
U.K. 1990 1,838
U.K. 2001 1,711

TABLE 6.12

Annual rates of manufacturing productivity growth in selected countries, 1990–2001
Country Percent
Note: 1990–2000 for the Netherlands.
SOURCE: "Chart 15. Average Annual Rates of Growth in Manufacturing Productivity, 1990–2001," in A Chartbook of International Labor Comparisons: United States, Europe, and Asia, U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, May 2003, http://www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/oiea/chartbook/chart15.htm (accessed January 4, 2005)
U.S. 3.8
Japan 2.8
Korea 9.7
Taiwan 5.5
France 4.1
Germany 2.8
Italy 1.7
Netherlands 3.1
Norway 0.7
Sweden 4.9
U.K. 2.7
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