In 1979, the median usual weekly earnings of a full-time employee amounted to *** current U.S. dollars. In 2023, this number had risen to ***** current U.S. dollars. The term current U.S. dollars describes the value of the currency in that particular year. Wages adjusted for inflation can be found here.

In 2023, the median hourly earnings of wage and salary workers in the United States was 19.24 U.S. dollars. This is an increase from 1979, when median hourly earnings were at 4.44 U.S. dollars. Hourly Workers The United States national minimum wage is 7.25 U.S. dollars per hour, which has been the minimum wage since 2009. However, each state has the agency to set their state minimum wage. Furthermore, some cities are able to create their minimum wage. Many argue that the minimum wage is too low and should be raised, because it is not considered a living wage. There has been a movement to raise the minimum wage to 15 U.S. dollars per hour, called “Fight for 15” which began in the early 2010s. While there has been no movement at the federal level, some states have moved to increase their minimum wages, with at least three states and the District of Columbia setting minimum wage rates at or above 15 dollars per hour. More recently, some proponents of increasing the minimum wage say that 15 dollars is too low, and lawmakers should strive toward a higher goal, especially given that a 2021 analysis found that the minimum wage in the U.S. should be 22.88 U.S. dollars if it grew at the same rate as economic productivity. Salary Workers On the other hand, salary workers in the United States do not get paid on an hourly basis. The median weekly earnings of salary workers have significantly increased since 1979. Asian salary workers had the highest hourly earnings in the U.S. in 2021. Among female salary workers, those ages 45 to 54 years old had the highest median hourly earnings in 2021, likewise for male salary workers.

In 2023, the median weekly earnings of a full-time employee in the United States of America was ***** U.S. dollars, an increase from 2022. Dollar value is based on constant 2023 U.S. dollars. In 1979, the median weekly earnings of a full-time employee was *** constant 2023 U.S. dollars. Median weekly earnings not adjusted for inflation can be found here.

Graph and download economic data for Employed full time: Median usual weekly real earnings: Wage and salary workers: 16 years and over: Men from Q1 1979 to Q1 2025 about full-time, males, salaries, workers, earnings, 16 years +, wages, median, real, employment, and USA.

In 2023, the usual median hourly rate of a worker's wage in the United States was 19.24 U.S. dollars, a decrease from the previous year. Dollar value is based on 2023 U.S. dollars. In 1979, the median hourly earnings in the U.S. was 17.48 dollars.

Graph and download economic data for Employed full time: Median usual weekly nominal earnings (second quartile): Wage and salary workers: 16 years and over (LEU0252881500Q) from Q1 1979 to Q1 2025 about second quartile, full-time, salaries, workers, earnings, 16 years +, wages, median, employment, and USA.

This map layer portrays 1979, 1980, and 1981 estimates for total personal income, per capita personal income, annual number of full-time and part- time jobs, average wage per job in dollars, population, and per capita number of jobs, for counties in the United States. Total personal income is all the income that is received by, or on behalf of, the residents of a particular area. It is calculated as the sum of wage and salary disbursements, other labor income, proprietors' income with inventory valuation and capital consumption adjustments, rental income of persons with capital consumption adjustment, personal dividend income, personal interest income, and transfer payments to persons, minus personal contributions for social insurance. Per capita personal income is calculated as the total personal income of the residents of a county divided by the resident population of the county. The Census Bureau's annual midyear population estimates were used in the computation. The average annual number of full-time and part-time jobs includes all jobs for which wages and salaries are paid, except jury and witness service and paid employment of prisoners. The jobs are counted at equal weight, and employees, sole proprietors, and active partners are all included. Unpaid family workers and volunteers are not included. Average wage per job is the total wage and salary disbursements divided by the number of wage and salary jobs in the county. Wage and salary disbursements consist of the monetary remuneration of employees, including the compensation of corporate officers; commissions, tips, and bonuses; and receipts in kind, or pay-in-kind, such as the meals furnished to the employees of restaurants. It reflects the amount of payments disbursed, but not necessarily earned during the year. Per capita number of jobs is calculated as the average annual number of full-time and part-time jobs in a county divided by the resident population of the county. The Census Bureau's annual midyear population estimates were used in the computation. All dollar estimates are in current dollars, not adjusted for inflation. The information in this map layer comes from the Regional Economic Information System (REIS) that is distributed by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, http://www.bea.gov/. This is an updated version of the November 2004 map layer.

Graph and download economic data for Employed full time: Median usual weekly real earnings: Wage and salary workers: 16 years and over (LEU0252881600A) from 1979 to 2024 about full-time, salaries, workers, earnings, 16 years +, wages, median, real, employment, and USA.

The total number of business establishments, mid-March employment figures, and first-quarter and annual payrolls are supplied in this collection at the county, state, and national levels. Also provided are data on the number of establishments by employment-size class.

Graph and download economic data for Real Median Household Income in New York (MEHOINUSNYA672N) from 1984 to 2023 about NY, households, median, income, real, and USA.

In 1979 the median usual weekly earnings of a male full-time employee in the United States of America amounted to 292 current U.S. dollars. In 2023, that figure had risen to 1,202 current U.S. dollars. The term current U.S. dollars describes the value of the currency in that particular year. Men's median weekly earnings adjusted for inflation can be accessed here.

In 1979, the median usual weekly earnings of a Latino full-time employee in the United States amounted to 194 current U.S. dollars, which was 47 U.S. dollars beneath the general average. In 2023, this figure was 874 current U.S. dollars. The median weekly earnings of Hispanic Americans adjusted for inflation can be accessed here.

The Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) series was designed to provide comprehensive information on various aspects of postsecondary education in the United States and its territories (American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Marshall Islands) and Department of Defense schools outside the United States. Data are available for both public and private two-year and four-year institutions. The HEGIS Salaries component for 1979-1980 sought data from 3,190 institutions of higher education. Key data elements, presented for up to ten record types for each institution (corresponding to length of contract and sex), include academic rank, number of faculty, salaries, tenure status, and fringe benefits.

Household data are collected as of March.

As stated in the Census's "Source and Accuracy of Estimates for Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2011" (http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/p60_243sa.pdf):

Estimation of Median Incomes. The Census Bureau has changed the methodology for computing median income over time. The Census Bureau has computed medians using either Pareto interpolation or linear interpolation. Currently, we are using linear interpolation to estimate all medians. Pareto interpolation assumes a decreasing density of population within an income interval, whereas linear interpolation assumes a constant density of population within an income interval. The Census Bureau calculated estimates of median income and associated standard errors for 1979 through 1987 using Pareto interpolation if the estimate was larger than $20,000 for people or $40,000 for families and households. This is because the width of the income interval containing the estimate is greater than $2,500.

We calculated estimates of median income and associated standard errors for 1976, 1977, and 1978 using Pareto interpolation if the estimate was larger than $12,000 for people or $18,000 for families and households. This is because the width of the income interval containing the estimate is greater than $1,000. All other estimates of median income and associated standard errors for 1976 through 2011 (2012 ASEC) and almost all of the estimates of median income and associated standard errors for 1975 and earlier were calculated using linear interpolation.

Thus, use caution when comparing median incomes above $12,000 for people or $18,000 for families and households for different years. Median incomes below those levels are more comparable from year to year since they have always been calculated using linear interpolation. For an indication of the comparability of medians calculated using Pareto interpolation with medians calculated using linear interpolation, see Series P-60, Number 114, Money Income in 1976 of Families and Persons in the United States (www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-114.pdf).

CIP11 - Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990). Published by Central Statistics Office. Available under the license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0).Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990)...

CIP04 - Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990). Published by Central Statistics Office. Available under the license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0).Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990)...

Graph and download economic data for Employed full time: Median usual weekly nominal earnings (second quartile): Wage and salary workers: 16 years and over (LEU0252881500A) from 1979 to 2024 about second quartile, full-time, salaries, workers, earnings, 16 years +, wages, median, employment, and USA.

Analysis of ‘CIP11 - Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990)’ provided by Analyst-2 (analyst-2.ai), based on source dataset retrieved from http://data.europa.eu/88u/dataset/9d742d25-fcd9-4064-890e-df02977a3fef on 19 January 2022.

--- Dataset description provided by original source is as follows ---

Wages and Salaries for Industrial Production (1979-1990)

--- Original source retains full ownership of the source dataset ---

's Wages and salaries (Two-or-more-person Households - Workers' Households) (National Survey of Family Income and Expenditure) is 426,333[yen] which is the 21st highest in Japan (by Prefecture). Transition Graphs and Comparison chart between Nagano and Niigata(Niigata) and Gifu(Gifu)(Closest Prefecture in Population) are available. Various data can be downloaded and output in csv format for use in EXCEL free of charge.

The Higher Education General Information Survey (HEGIS) series was designed to provide comprehensive information on various aspects of postsecondary education in the United States and its territories (American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Marshall Islands) and Department of Defense schools outside of the United States. Data are available for both public and private two-year and four-year institutions. The HEGIS College and University Libraries component for 1978-1979/1979-1980 sought data on libraries in 3,190 institutions of higher education in addition to 21 Federal Interagency Committees on Education (FICES) representing joint libraries. Key data elements, presented for up to 12 record types, include number of library collections, number of hours of student assistance and expenditures for wages of library staff, developmental areas, number of library loan transactions for the year, number of transactions per week, library hours and days open per week, library operating expenditures, and library receipts from federal government grants.