Median Earnings Research Articles

Technique description and outcome evaluation of Thoroughbred racehorses following soft palate thermocautery performed under standing sedation.

Palatal dysfunction (PD), which encompasses palatal instability (PI) and intermittent dorsal displacement of the soft palate, is the most common performance-limiting upper respiratory tract obstruction in young Thoroughbred racehorses. Soft palate thermocautery (SPT) performed under general anaesthesia is a routinely performed procedure for PD in some countries, but the procedure for and outcome of SPT performed under standing sedation has not been published. (1) To describe a technique for SPT performed under standing sedation; and (2) to assess post-operative performance in horses compared to controls using the Racing Post rating (RPR), British Horseracing Authority official rating (OR), Performance Index and Earnings. Retrospective case series. Medical records were reviewed for all horses that had SPT performed under standing sedation following topical and local infusion of lidocaine hydrochloride into the rostral soft palate, and that were identified to have PI by overground endoscopy. Two matched controls were identified for each case. The median RPR, OR, Performance Index and Earnings for the three pre-operative and three post-operative races were compared. No significant differences were identified between the SPT (n=23) and Control groups (n=46) for baseline characteristics or outcomes. Retrospective study design, small sample size. No significant differences in racing performance were identified between horses that had SPT performed under standing sedation and controls.

College Selectivity, Choice of Major, and Post-College Earnings

<p style="text-align:justify"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman,Times,serif"><span style="font-size:16px"><span dir="ltr" lang="EN-US"><span style="color:black">College choice and choice of major are the most important decisions for future earnings. It is still unclear, however, what makes a greater difference—college or major—or whether a choice of college matters more for some majors, but not the others. Using cross-classified models and College Scorecard data, I show that a discipline is more consequential for future earnings than a college. The effect of STEM is substantial but is less pronounced at institutions with higher overall median earnings. The effect of college selectivity on earnings is more pronounced for non-STEM disciplines. Institutional characteristics—such as tuition, shares of graduates receiving different forms of financial aid, institutional size and location, and type of college—correlate with earnings of graduates. Racial and gender composition of an educational program correlate with expected earnings of its graduates even after control for other institutional and disciplinary characteristics. Models presented here provide a better understanding of the effect of college and major choices on future earnings.</span></span></span></span></p>

Academic Productivity at Orthopedic Spine Surgery Fellowships is Positively Correlated With Nonresearch Lifetime Industry Earnings: A Retrospective Study.

Retrospective Analysis. The objective of the study was to assess the impact of academic productivity at both individual and program levels on lifetime industry earnings within US orthopedic spine fellowships. Physician-industry transparency was codified by the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (PSSA) in 2010. No study has explored the relationship between academic productivity and industry earnings at the fellowship level. Inclusion criteria encompassed physicians with complete academic and industry data from orthopedic spine fellowship programs listed on the North American Spine Society (NASS) 2022-2023 fellowship directory. Academic productivity was defined via H-index on the Scopus website, and industry productivity by total lifetime earnings on the Open Payments Database (OPD). This analysis included 75 orthopedic spine fellowship programs with 320 individual physicians. Median individual physician lifetime earnings were $86,852.71 (mean: $666,580.23 ± $1,887,734.64; minimum-maximum: $10.86-$27,164,431.49) and the median individual physician (n=320 physicians) H-index was 17.0 (mean: 21.82 ± 19.28; minimum-maximum: 0-109). Median combined physician H-index per fellowship (n=75 fellowships) was 65.0 (mean: 93.08 ± 85.67; minimum-maximum: 3-434) and median combined physician lifetime earnings was $927,771.60 (mean: $2,844,075.64 ± $4,942,089.56; minimum-maximum: $1,112.32-$29,983,900.69). A positive correlation was observed between academic productivity and industry productivity at an individual level (P<0.001; Spearman's rho = 0.467). This correlation was stronger at the fellowship level (P<0.001; Spearman's rho = 0.734). There was no significant difference in total lifetime earnings (P=0.369) or H-index per fellowship (P=0.232) when stratified by region of the fellowship program in the United States. Orthopedic spine surgery fellowship programs in the United States exhibit a positive correlation between academic productivity and nonresearch industry lifetime earnings at both individual and program levels. This correlation is stronger at the program level, and regional differences among fellowship programs do not significantly impact academic or industry productivity.

Varieties occupational change in Europe after the great recession

ABSTRACT This paper empirically explores occupational change in Europe after the 2008-crisis (the Great Recession). During this period, which has remained relatively unexplored by the literature so far, many European economies have implemented profound institutional changes in their labour markets and transformed their growth models. Using individual-level data of 18 economies, I build three indicators of job quality -the average educational attainment, the median earnings and an index of job instability based on the contractual characteristics of the job- and analyse relative employment growth of jobs. The findings suggest that there is not just one pattern of occupational change in Europe, in opposition to the mainstream view of pervasive polarisation. On the contrary, I detect a variety of occupational change profiles, which even differ within the same country depending on the indicator employed.

How the 1963 Equal Pay Act and 1964 Civil Rights Act Shaped the Gender Gap in Pay.

In the 1960s, two landmark statutes-the Equal Pay and Civil Rights Acts-targeted the long-standing practice of employment discrimination against U.S. women. For the next 15 years, the gender gap in median earnings among full-time, full-year workers changed little, leading many scholars to conclude that the legislation was ineffectual. This article revisits this conclusion using two research designs, which leverage (i) cross-state variation in preexisting state equal pay laws and (ii) variation in the 1960 gender gap across occupation-industry-state-group cells to capture differences in the legislation's incidence. Both designs suggest that federal antidiscrimination legislation led to striking gains in women's relative wages, which were concentrated among below-median wage earners. These wage gains offset preexisting labor market forces, which worked to depress women's relative pay growth, resulting in the apparent stability of the gender gap at the median and mean in the 1960s and 1970s. The data show little evidence of short-term changes in women's employment but suggest that firms reduced their hiring and promotion of women in the medium to long term. The historical record points to the key role of the Equal Pay Act in driving these changes.

Federal Student Loan Debt in Public Health and the Opportunities for Loan Repayment Programs.

A need persists for graduates with public health training in government public health roles; however, earnings for these positions tend to be lower when compared with earnings for people with undergraduate or graduate training who are working in other sectors, such as private health care or pharmaceuticals. This study assessed federal student loan debt associated with education for public health, with an aim to quantify the need that may be met through the federal Public Health Workforce Loan Repayment Program (PHWLRP), which is one tool that policy makers have proposed to incentivize people with public health training to pursue employment in government public health. We analyzed federal student loan data provided by the National Center for Education Statistics College Scorecard for the 2018-2019 academic year. We merged these data with the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System to estimate the number of degrees awarded. We used Spearman rank correlation to compare associations between debt and annual earnings by award level (bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees). Across all award levels, the median level of federal student loan debt associated with education for public health was $33 366. The median annual earnings 1 year after graduation were $80 687 for graduates with doctoral degrees and $33 279 for graduates with bachelor's degrees. As policy makers attempt to strengthen the public health workforce with a focus on funding and implementing the PHWLRP, the existing levels of student debt should be considered to ensure that programs such as the PHWLRP are funded and reflect the needs of graduates and government public health employers.

Financial Return on Investment: An Analysis of the Top-Ranked Private Universities in the United States

The increasing cost of an undergraduate education in the United States of America has caused alarming degrees of student loan debt with deleterious consequences to the lives of graduates. Although there are myriad considerations when choosing an institution to attend, the avoidance of unmanageable debt should be prioritized. In this regard, institutions of interest should be examined based upon potential earnings in light of the actual cost of attendance. The purpose of this study was to examine the return on investment for an undergraduate education (i.e., the ratio of median annual earnings after attendance to the average annual cost of attendance) between the top-ranked private universities in the United States as per the U.S. News &amp; World Report top-20 rankings for 2024. Annual earnings and cost of attendance data were gathered from the College Scorecard. Findings for 18 private universities reveal major differences between published tuition and fees and the actual cost of attendance (on average, the latter is 32% of the former) with an average return on investment of 6.6; however, there is a wide range of return on investment (2.9–24.4). Findings further reveal that the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, and Princeton University are the top three institutions with respect to both the ROI and U.S. News &amp; World Report rankings

Projected Lifetime Earnings of a Radiation Oncologist

The estimated lifetime earnings of a radiation oncologist depend on many choices and have not been calculated. The objective of this work is to project the year-by-year and cumulative lifetime earnings of a US-based radiation oncologist based on various career pathways. We modeled lifetime earnings based on undergraduate training (reference: assumes starting at age 18, tuition/loans of $40,000 x 4 years), MD/DO (reference: assumes tuition/loans of $55,000 x 4 years, 8% interest) vs MD/PhD program (assumes no tuition, $30,000 yearly stipend x 8 years), gap year(s), fellowship, employment paths (academic, private practice, hospital employed, physician scientist with NIH salary cap), adjustable salary during employment (based on 2016-2018 AAMC and MGMA; e.g., promotion for academic track, partnership for private practice), adjustable state and federal income taxes, loan repayment options (e.g., out of pocket, NIH loan repayment program [LRP], public service loan forgiveness [PSLF]). The primary outcome was cumulative lifetime earnings, and additional analyses were conducted based on changes in career paths. We created a web-based application to simulate the various choices using R Shiny: https://physician-earnings.shinyapps.io/rshiny/. For an academic radiation oncologist, assuming MD/DO degree, national average of $220,000 in loans at medical school graduation, 5% state income tax, no gap years, pursuing PSLF, starting as assistant professor, 7 year promotion until associate professor, and 7 subsequent year promotion to full professor, and retirement age of 65, the post-tax median lifetime earnings are $9,610,675 (IQR $8,097,433 - $10,885,824), with $5,242,653 federal + state taxes. With the private practice setting, the median lifetime earnings are $11,383,781 (IQR $9,875,040 - $13,325,316). As a hospital employee, the median lifetime earnings are $8,834,886 (IQR $8,127,132 - $10,166,145). As an NIH-salary capped physician scientist, the median lifetime earnings are $4,678,668 (IQR not provided, given one set cap). Using the academic track as the reference group, the median lifetime earnings would change as follows: $9,333,434 (IQR $7,876,310 - $10,572,388) for those who pursue one paid undergraduate gap year; $9,125,590 (IQR $7,822,115 - $10,274,801) for those who pursue MD/PhD programs; $10,365,300 (IQR $8,725,954 - $11,746,712) for those with 0% state income tax during practice; and $9,565,364 (IQR $7,875,284 - $10,802,830) for those who repay their loans out of pocket at 50% of their attending salary. PSLF and NIH LRP allow one to cross a net worth of $0 by their mid-30s; pursuit of fellowship, starting as an instructor in academics, salary in bottom quartile %, paying loans out of pocket, and gap years all delay this landmark by 1-4 years. NIH-salary capped positions have the largest negative impact on lifetime earnings, by > $5,000,000. We created a model to estimate lifetime earnings of a radiation oncologist in the US.

Earnings business cycles: The Covid recession, recovery, and policy response

Using a panel of tax data, we follow individuals’ earnings over business cycles. Compared to prior recessions, the Covid policy response and recovery were more progressive. Among workers starting in the bottom quintile, median real earnings including fiscal relief increased 66 percent in 2020—after the prior two recessions this measure decreased. This resulted from substantial Covid-era stimulus payments and unemployment insurance. With fiscal relief ending, bottom-quintile earnings in 2022 returned near pre-Covid levels. Among those starting in the top quintile, median real market earnings rose in 2020. Top-quintile earnings subsequently fell, although by less than around previous recessions.

Firm performance & effective mitigation of adverse business scenarios

An important question for firm management and markets is whether superior capabilities to mitigate the impact of adverse business scenarios lead to higher firm valuation and performance. We address this question by identifying empirical hypotheses from a new channel of the shareholder value maximization theory of risk management and evaluate them by using a new broadly applicable methodology based on the insight that effective risk management practices (e.g., financial, operational, strategic hedging) and other “unclassified” activities should result in a “hedging profile” with a lesser frequency of “bad” business outcomes relative to “good” outcomes. We measure the hedging profile of 5105 firms across 53 industries from quarterly earnings-based return on assets reported in Compustat, and relate it to firm performance using panel regressions while controlling for critical firm characteristics including median earnings and fixed effects for firm, industry, and year. The estimation reveals a strong positive effect of the hedging profile on Tobin's Q, excess returns, and return on assets (with R-squares above 74%). The study's empirical and theoretical results show that firms that exhibit greater capability to mitigate downside business risk experience higher valuations consistent with a new mechanism for shareholder value maximization theory of hedging based on skewness in firm earnings-based returns.

Stalled Racial Progress and Japanese Trade in the 1970s and 1980s

Abstract We assess the impact of a rapid rise in Japanese import competition on the growth in racial earnings and employment gaps during the 1970s and 80s. Using commuting zone level variation in exposure, we find Japanese competition led to a decrease in manufacturing employment and labour force participation for blacks. This was driven by a shift in demand for skill in manufacturing. The difference in effects between the 10th percentile most and least exposed commuting zone was equivalent to 36–46% of the relative rise in black non-labour force participation, and 78–96% of the relative decline in black median male earnings.

Earnings Business Cycles: The Covid Recession, Recovery, and Policy Response

Using a panel of tax data, we follow the earnings of individuals over business cycles. Compared to prior recessions, the Covid policy response and recovery were far more progressive. Among workers starting in the bottom quintile, median real earnings including fiscal relief increased 66 percent in 2020 and earnings increases offset relief decreases in the 2021 recovery. After the prior two recessions, this measure had decreased by 24 percent. Among those starting in the top quintile, median and average real earnings were approximately unchanged. This difference from prior recessions is largely attributable to larger Covid-era stimulus payments and unemployment insurance.

Trends in Degree Conferrals, Degree-Associated Debt, and Employment Outcomes Among Undergraduate Public Health Degree Graduates, 2001‒2020

Objectives. To characterize the trends in degree conferrals, degree-associated debt, and employment outcomes among undergraduate public health degree (UGPHD) graduates. Methods. We reported administrative data on degree conferrals from 2001 to 2020 from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). For alumni graduating from 2015 to 2019, we also reported degree-associated debt and earnings 1 year after graduation compiled by NCES. Finally, we utilized a data set on 1-year postgraduation employment outcomes for graduates from 2015 to 2020 from the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. Results. As of 2020, more than 18 000 UGPHDs were awarded each year, more than 140 000 in total over the past 20 years. UGPHD graduates are highly diverse, with more than 80% being women and 55% being individuals from communities of color. We find alumni worked mostly in for-profit organizations (34%), health care (28%), nonprofits (11%), academic organizations (10%), government (10%), and other (6%). Degree-associated debt was $24 000, and the median first-year earnings were $34 000. Conclusions. While growth in UGPHD conferrals has slowed, it remains among the fastest-growing degree in the nation. However, the limited pathways into government remains a significant challenge. (Am J Public Health. 2023;113(1):115-123. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.307113).

The Impact of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act on Agency-Level Vocational Rehabilitation Outcomes for Adults and Youth With Blindness and Low Vision

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the U.S. Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) on outcomes (competitive employment rates and median earnings) for adult and youth vocational rehabilitation consumers with blindness or low vision (B/LV) and to determine whether impacts differed by agency type. We utilized RSA-911 data to create two agency-level longitudinal datasets, one for youth and one for adults, with 6-year pre-WIOA and 3-year post-WIOA periods. Data were analyzed using discontinuous growth modeling to assess longitudinal changes in agency-level outcomes through the inclusion of variables representing WIOA and subsequent change in response to WIOA. After WIOA, both youth and adult agency-level competitive employment rates decreased significantly for consumers with B/LV, with a larger impact on youth, and median earnings increased. Results document that the impact of WIOA on agencies varied widely. Separate agencies had a significant decrease in adult competitive employment rates for consumers with B/LV and a significant increase in median earnings compared with combined agencies. Overall, the influence of WIOA on B/LV consumer outcomes appears to be mixed at best, and the effect is surprisingly similar for youth and adults.

Lifetime Earnings in the United States over Six Decades

Between the 1957 and 1983 labor market entry cohorts, median lifetime earnings declined by 10–19 percent for men and increased by 22–33 percent for women, albeit relative to very low median lifetime earnings for the early cohorts. The difference between newer and older cohorts comes from differences in median earnings at the time of labor market entry. Inequality in lifetime earnings has increased significantly within each gender group, but the closing lifetime gender gap has kept overall lifetime inequality flat. The increase among men is largely attributable to subsequent cohorts entering the labor market with progressively higher levels of inequality. (JEL D15, J16, J31, J32)

Foundations of a New Democracy: Schooling, Inequality, and Voting in the Early Republic

Democratic theorists have long argued that states can create more resilient democracies through education. Educational investments are thought to produce more economic equality and instill in citizens greater capacity and responsibility to participate in politics. Using a geographic regression discontinuity design and township-level data from Antebellum New York State, we examine whether state funding for common schools led to higher voter turnout as well as higher earnings and lower inequality. Our estimates support the view that a participatory democratic culture emerged not only because of initial favorable endowments but also because of subsequent government decisions to fund education. New York townships that received more school funding later had higher median earnings, lower earnings inequality, and higher levels of voter turnout. Our findings support the view that maintaining democracy requires active investments by the state, something that has important implications for other places and other times—including today.

The State of the Humanities circa 2022

The State of the Humanities circa 2022

Person‐years of life lost and lost earnings from cigarette smoking‐attributable cancer deaths, United States, 2019

State-specific information on lost earnings due to smoking-attributable cancer deaths to inform and advocate for tobacco control policies is lacking. We estimated person-years of life lost (PYLL) and lost earnings due to cigarette smoking-attributable cancer deaths in the United States nationally and by state. Proportions and numbers of cigarette smoking-attributable cancer deaths and associated PYLL among individuals aged 25 to 79 years in 2019 were calculated and combined with annual median earnings to estimate lost earnings attributable to cigarette smoking. In 2019, estimated total PYLL and lost earnings associated with cigarette smoking-attributable cancer deaths in ages 25 to 79 years in the United States were 2 188 195 (95% CI, 2148 707-2 231 538) PYLL and $20.9 billion ($20.0 billion-$21.7 billion), respectively. States with the highest overall age-standardized PYLL and lost earning rates generally were in the South and Midwest. The estimated rate per 100 000 population ranged from 352 (339-366) in Utah to 1337 (1310-1367) in West Virginia for PYLL and from $4.3 million ($3.5 million-$5.2 million) in Idaho to $14.8 million ($10.6 million-$20.7 million) in Missouri for lost earnings. If age-specific PYLL and lost earning rates in Utah had been achieved by all states, 58.2% (57.0%-59.5%) of the estimated total PYLL (1 274 178; 1 242 218-1 306 685 PYLL) and 50.5% (34.2%-62.4%) of lost earnings ($10.5 billion; $7.1 billion-$13.1 billion) in 2019 nationally would have been avoided. Lost earnings due to smoking-attributable cancer deaths are substantial in the United States and are highest in states with weaker tobacco control policies.

Impact of earnings and self-employment opportunities on overeducation: evidence from occupations in the United States labor market 2002-2016

ABSTRACT This is an applied econometric analysis of labour market data for the United States. We study the impact of several factors on overflow of overeducated employees into various job categories. We use panel data regression analysis with fixed and random effects. We also use data visualisation to investigate the overeducation trends during 2002–2016 for various occupation categories. Our dataset consists of seven sets of annual data for 704 occupations. We investigate this phenomenon at two levels: 1) overflow of university graduates into occupations that do not require a university degree, and 2) overflow of Masters and PhD degree holders into occupations that require a bachelor’s degree or less. We observe that the overeducation has increased in most occupations and it causes a crowding out effect; an adequately educated worker might be outcompeted by an overeducated worker. While the income premium of a university education has decreased over time, the income advantage of university education over a high school degree has persisted. Furthermore, our regression analysis has shown that the overeducation ratio has a positive correlation with the median earnings of an occupation and its opportunities for self-employment. The results hold for both college graduates and holders of graduate degrees.

An evaluation of the Paycheck Protection Program using administrative payroll microdata

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a principal element of the fiscal stimulus enacted by Congress in response to the COVID-19 economic shock, was intended to assist small businesses to maintain employment and wages during the crisis, as well as cover other expenses. We use high-frequency administrative payroll data from ADP—one of the world’s largest payroll processing firms—to estimate the causal effect of the PPP on the evolution of employment at PPP-eligible firms relative to PPP-ineligible firms, where eligibility is determined by industry-specific firm-size cutoffs. Our estimates indicate that the PPP boosted employment at eligible firms by between 2 percent to 5 percent at its peak effect around mid-May 2020. The boost to employment waned thereafter and ranged from no effect to a 3 percent boost at the end of 2020. Our estimates imply that employers retained an additional 3.6 million jobs as of mid-May 2020, and 1.4 million jobs at the end of 2020, as a consequence of PPP. The estimated cost per year of employment retained was $169,000 to $258,000, equal to 3.4 to 5.2 times median earnings.