Maryland workers get a break today, but state and national statistics show many Baltimore-area employees already enjoy a break compared with the rest of the nation, with lower unemployment statewide than the national average, and slightly higher wages and earnings.
Statewide unemployment increased 0.2 percent in July to 4.0 percent, according to the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, but remained below the 4.6 percent unemployment reported nationwide.
The average hourly wage in the state last year was $20.75, with an average annual wage of $42,975. National hourly wage figures are broken down by job, from a high of $44.20 for management occupations to $8.86 for food preparation and serving-related occupations, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In the Baltimore/Towson metropolitan area, those same two job categories paid higher average hourly wages. Local management occupations averaged $46.71 per hour, while Baltimore food- and service-related jobs averaged $9.38 per hour.
However, comparing wage numbers across the state, let alone the country, can be tricky, said Bo Szczepaniak, manager of Bureau of Labor Statistics programs. But Maryland stacks up well against the rest of the country for wages in comparable jobs.
“We?re pretty much in line; you take the South, they?re going to be a little bit lower, in New York they?re going to pay a little bit higher,” he said. “It has a lot to do with the cost of living. [But] we?re pretty good as wages go.”
The state?s work force may be bit smaller in September, with the pool of teenage labor back in class.
On Tuesday, The Examiner looks at teen workers and their impact on the economy.
