1996 Average Annual Pay by State and Industry — 1997-09-11

The average annual pay of all workers covered by State and Federal Unemployment Insurance (UI) programs was $28,945 in 1996, a 3.9 percent increase over the 1995 national average, according to preliminary data released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor. The annual pay of private industry workers, who comprise 84.2 percent of the nation's employment, rose 4.2 percent in 1996, while pay for government workers rose 3.1 percent. Pay growth in the private sector outpaced that of government workers for the second straight year. In 1995, the increase in pay for private sector employees was 3.6 percent and for government workers, 2.6. Annual pay data are compiled from reports submitted by employers subject to state and federal UI laws, covering 118.0 million full- and part- time workers.