Looking at Labor Day income and debt statistics

Labor Day is a great time to think about your job and financial status. Historically, Labor Day was established to celebrate the American worker. These days, Labor Day usually has more to do with the end of summer instead of the plight of the blue collar worker. However, with new economic numbers coming out, the news was full of income and employment statistics this year. Here are some Labor Day figures from the US Census to consider:

• 2005 was the first year since 1999 that real median household income increased. This figure increased 1.1% to $46,236.
• The poverty rate remained unchanged at 12.6% between 2004 and 2005. That equals 37 million people below the official poverty line of $19,000 a year for a family of four.
• The number of people without health insurance rose by 46.6 million people to 15.9%.
• Black households had the lowest median income in 2005 ($30,858) among race groups. Asian households had the highest median income ($61,094). The
  median income for non-Hispanic white households was $50,784. Median income for Hispanic households was $35,967.
• New Jersey has the highest household income estimate at $61,672. Mississippi has the lowest estimate at $32,938.
• In each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, median earnings were less for women than they were for men in 2005. In the District of Columbia, women earned about 91 cents for every dollar that men earned, the highest
  among all states.

Let’s crunch these numbers using some of our commonly known debt statistics to get a clear picture of how that average household is doing.  The average family has $9,200 in credit card debt and $9,000 in other debts such as auto loans. If this family owns a home, they probably owe somewhere between $69,000 and $100,000 in mortgage principal too. So, this average family is bringing home $2,800 a month and paying out $230 in credit card minimums, $800 a month in other debt payments and at least $600 a month in mortgage payments. And don’t forget that you still need to subtract food, insurance, utilities and other costs from the remaining $1,200 a month.

How do you measure up compared to these Labor Day statistics? Are you counting your blessings? Or thinking that you deserve a raise? Share your feedback in the comments section below.

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