Yes, wage inequality in America is increasing. The earnings of the bottom 90% of U.S. wage earners grew by only 24% over the past 40 years, while the top 1% of wage earners saw a 158% increase and the top 0.1% of wage earners experienced a 341% increase.
Source: EPI analysis of Kopczuk, Saez, and Song, Earnings Inequality and Mobility in the United States: Evidence from Social Security Data Since 1937 (2010), Table A3, and Social Security Administration wage statistics, as constructed by Mishel and Kassa; see “Top 1.0% of Earners See Wages Up 157.8% Since 1979” (December 2019)
Last updated: 2019
Yes, median hourly wages have increased over the past 15 years, but jobs in the Food Serving and Preparation sector are paid the lowest of any major category in the county.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
Last updated: 2019
Note: Adjusted for inflation to 2019 dollars.
Yes, median hourly wages have increased over the past 15 years, but jobs in the food system are some of the lowest paid jobs in San Diego County.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
Last updated: 2019
Note: Adjusted for inflation to 2019 dollars.
Yes, jobs are segregated by race/ethnicity in San Diego County, although only 7% of the variation in median wages can be attributed to the racial composition of the occupation.
Source: San Diego Workforce Partnership
Last updated: 2018
Yes, when we focus explicitly on food system jobs we see a much higher percentage of occupational segregation (29% of the variation in median wages can be attributed to the racial composition of the occupation). For example, we see that back-of-the-house occupations like fast food cooks (73% BIPOC), restaurant cooks (72% BIPOC), and food preparation workers (67% BIPOC) are overwhelmingly BIPOC and low wage.
Source: San Diego Workforce Partnership
Last updated: 2018
No, national data for union membership at grocery stores, restaurants, bars, and distributors has steeply declined.
Source: Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson, Union Membership, Coverage, and Earnings from the CPS, https://www.unionstats.com/
Last updated: 2020
No, national data for union membership at bakeries and fruit processing has steeply declined.
Source: Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson, Union Membership, Coverage, and Earnings from the CPS, https://www.unionstats.com/
Last updated: 2020
No, total union membership in San Diego has decreased, particularly private sector union membership. While public sector union membership has fluctuated over the years, there are much higher rates of unionization in the public sector compared to the private sector.
Source: Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson, Union Membership, Coverage, and Earnings from the CPS, https://www.unionstats.com/
Last updated: 2020
