Work hours have typically grown most among the lowest earners and those working the fewest hours: Average annual work hours of earners ages 25--54, by race and ethnicity, gender, and wage quintile, 1979–2016
| Average annual hours | Percent change, 1979–2016 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | 2000 | 2016 | Annual hours | Weeks worked | Weekly hours | |
| Panel A: All prime-age earners by wage quintile | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,357.9 | 1,695.9 | 1,688.5 | 24.3% | 20.1% | 3.5% |
| Second fifth | 1,686.6 | 1,917.0 | 1,964.2 | 16.5% | 11.6% | 4.4% |
| Middle fifth | 1,869.0 | 2,052.1 | 2,044.7 | 9.4% | 6.2% | 3.0% |
| Fourth fifth | 1,997.3 | 2,093.5 | 2,076.8 | 4.0% | 2.7% | 1.2% |
| Top fifth | 1,976.4 | 2,083.3 | 2,047.2 | 3.6% | 1.8% | 1.8% |
| Panel B: Prime-age women by race, ethnicity, and wage quintile | ||||||
| White women | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,120.0 | 1,411.2 | 1,530.0 | 36.6% | 27.0% | 7.6% |
| Second fifth | 1,384.6 | 1,713.8 | 1,753.3 | 26.6% | 17.3% | 8.0% |
| Middle fifth | 1,569.8 | 1,867.3 | 1,940.0 | 23.6% | 13.4% | 9.0% |
| Fourth fifth | 1,694.9 | 1,927.4 | 1,966.6 | 16.0% | 8.0% | 7.4% |
| Top fifth | 1,593.4 | 1,861.3 | 1,903.2 | 19.4% | 8.3% | 10.3% |
| Black women | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,314.1 | 1,669.4 | 1,606.9 | 22.3% | 15.4% | 6.0% |
| Second fifth | 1,521.4 | 1,889.5 | 1,833.1 | 20.5% | 15.5% | 4.3% |
| Middle fifth | 1,686.7 | 1,957.6 | 1,958.0 | 16.1% | 10.2% | 5.3% |
| Fourth fifth | 1,816.9 | 1,972.8 | 1,963.3 | 8.1% | 5.1% | 2.8% |
| Top fifth | 1,770.4 | 1,871.9 | 1,845.8 | 4.3% | 2.4% | 1.8% |
| Hispanic women | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,268.5 | 1,592.7 | 1,664.9 | 31.3% | 28.8% | 1.9% |
| Second fifth | 1,487.5 | 1,777.3 | 1,770.9 | 19.1% | 19.9% | -0.7% |
| Middle fifth | 1,624.4 | 1,860.7 | 1,867.2 | 14.9% | 12.8% | 1.9% |
| Fourth fifth | 1,649.4 | 1,888.2 | 1,925.0 | 16.7% | 11.3% | 4.8% |
| Top fifth | 1,551.2 | 1,698.5 | 1,814.6 | 17.0% | 11.9% | 4.6% |
| Panel C: Prime-age men by race, ethnicity, and wage quintile | ||||||
| White men | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,953.4 | 2,000.3 | 1,893.8 | -3.1% | 7.5% | -9.8% |
| Second fifth | 2,140.0 | 2,204.3 | 2,134.2 | -0.3% | 2.6% | -2.8% |
| Middle fifth | 2,162.2 | 2,229.5 | 2,213.0 | 2.3% | 2.4% | 0.0% |
| Fourth fifth | 2,150.5 | 2,260.7 | 2,217.0 | 3.1% | 0.9% | 2.2% |
| Top fifth | 2,106.5 | 2,272.9 | 2,194.4 | 4.2% | 0.5% | 3.6% |
| Black men | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,737.7 | 1,871.5 | 1,809.6 | 4.1% | 7.5% | -3.1% |
| Second fifth | 1,975.1 | 2,088.0 | 2,059.2 | 4.3% | 3.8% | 0.5% |
| Middle fifth | 1,983.4 | 2,109.8 | 2,072.2 | 4.5% | 3.2% | 1.2% |
| Fourth fifth | 2,005.2 | 2,084.9 | 2,060.7 | 2.8% | 2.7% | 0.1% |
| Top fifth | 1,879.0 | 2,043.5 | 1,937.9 | 3.1% | -0.3% | 3.4% |
| Hispanic men | ||||||
| Bottom fifth | 1,850.0 | 1,974.2 | 1,990.9 | 7.6% | 11.3% | -3.3% |
| Second fifth | 1,956.2 | 2,085.9 | 2,074.8 | 6.1% | 6.1% | -0.1% |
| Middle fifth | 2,037.0 | 2,086.4 | 2,059.0 | 1.1% | 2.4% | -1.3% |
| Fourth fifth | 2,040.7 | 2,112.1 | 2,073.8 | 1.6% | 0.4% | 1.2% |
| Top fifth | 1,956.6 | 2,076.7 | 2,051.9 | 4.9% | 0.7% | 4.2% |
Notes: Earners includes all adults ages 25–54 who reported any hours worked or any wages earned during the reporting year. The wage quintiles in this table reflect the earnings distribution by gender. For example, white, black, and Latino men are placed in the wage quintiles based on their distribution in the population of male earners as a whole, not in wage quintiles based only on white men, only black men, and only Latino men.
Source: Authors’ analysis of Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement microdata