OVERPAID OR UNDERPAID PUBLIC EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION IN … › static › legacy_publication... · Wages Total compensation (Wages plus bene˜ts) $42 $39 $58 $52 $60 $62 $82 $80 Private

OVERPAID OR UNDERPAID? PUBLIC EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION

IN ALASKA

Prepared for Alaska Department of Administration

Prepared by

Mouhcine Guettabi and Matthew Berman Institute of Social and Economic Research

University of Alaska Anchorage 3211 Providence Drive

Anchorage, Alaska 99508

July 2016 All ISER publications are solely the work of the individual authors. This report and its findings should be attributed to the authors, not to ISER, the University of Alaska Anchorage, or the research sponsors.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank Mali Abrahamson and Joshua Warren of the Research and Analysis Section of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development for their help with the statistical analysis of employment records. Also, staff of the Alaska Department of Administration provided help and useful comments. Linda Leask, ISER’s editor, and Clemencia Merrill, ISER’s graphic artist, prepared an ISER Research Summary (issued separately and also included in this report) highlighting the findings of the analysis.

About This Report The Alaska Department of Administration asked us to assess whether state workers are overpaid or underpaid,

compared with their counterparts in private industry. We analyzed the question in two ways, using different data sources for cash wages but the same assumptions about benefit levels.* Using two sources helped us better answer the question, and both methods of analysis reached the same broad conclusion: Alaska’s public employees are not on average paid more than those in private industry.

The Research Summary at the beginning of this report summarizes the findings of both methods of analysis, then

Parts I and II provide detailed discussions. Part I describes the method of analysis by Mouhcine Guettabi. He compared the pay and total compensation of all

resident wage and salary employees of state and local governments and private businesses, based mainly on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) for the years 2009-2013.

Part II describes the analysis by Matthew Berman, who looked at pay and total compensation of just the

resident workers who actually changed jobs—from state to private, or private to state—from 2001 through 2014. Unlike the first method, this assessment did not include local government workers.

*We used national average benefit levels for private and public employees in each occupation, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2014 National Compensation Survey. Although exact benefits percentages could be derived for Alaska state government workers, Alaska-specific figures are not available for private sector employees. Consequently, we determined that it would be best to use the national averages for private and public sector workers in each occupation.

Are state workers better paid than their counterparts in private industry? That question is likely to come up more often, as the state deals with a huge budget shortfall. The answer is generally no, but there are exceptions.

We analyzed the question in two ways, using different data sources for cash wages but the same assumptions about benefit levels.1 Using two sources helped us better answer the question, and each yielded the same broad conclusion: state workers are not on average paid more.

That’s true, whether we consider just wages, or total compensation—wages plus benefits. But there are significant differences in pay and total compensation of public and private workers in individual occupations. We did this research for the Alaska Department of Administration (see back page). Below we summarize our findings, and inside report more details.All Resident WoRkeRs in PRivAte And stAte And locAl Jobs

Mouhcine Guettabi compared the pay and total compensation of all resident wage and salary employees of state and local governments and private businesses, based mainly on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) for the years 2009-2013. He found:• Government workers earned 8% less on average for all occupations.• But total compensation (wages plus benefits) was not significantly differ-ent on average for all public and private workers, because government benefits were more valuable.• For occupations in the lower- and mid-ranges of the pay scale, govern-ment wages were generally lower—but more valuable benefits made government compensation equal to or higher than private.• In higher-paying occupations, both government wages and total com-pensation were considerably less than private pay and compensation.

WoRkeRs Who Moved fRoM stAte to PRivAte Jobs—oR vice-veRsA Matthew Berman looked at pay and total compensation of the residents

who actually moved from state to private jobs—or vice-versa—from 2001 through 2014. He used data from employment records of the Alaska Department of Labor and Permanent Fund dividend applications.

This summary reports just his findings about those who changed jobs but stayed in the same occupations and same communities.2 He found:• Women earned less than men in all occupations, before and after they changed jobs, and whether they changed from state to private jobs or from private to state jobs (Figure 1 and Figure 8, back page).• Workers who moved from private to state jobs saw smaller paychecks—on average 7% lower for women and 10% for men.• But the higher value of state benefits mostly erased the wage differences. On average, women moving from private to state jobs saw a gain of about 3% in total compensation and men a loss of 2.5%.• Workers moving from state to private jobs improved their total compensa-tion, even though their benefits were less valuable—because they gained so much in wages. Women on average gained 18% in wages and men 20%. Total compensation increased 16% for women and 11% for men.• The overall pattern of workers seeing higher wages and total compensa-tion when they moved from state to private jobs was true for most individ-ual occupations. Notable exceptions were health-care support and pro-tective-service jobs, where state wages and compensation were higher for those who had moved from private to state jobs.

Figure 1. Average Annual Wages and Compensation of Workers Before and After They Changed Jobs*(Among Those Who Changed Jobs and Stayed in the Same Occupations, 2001 to 2014, In Thousands of 2013 Dollars)

Workers who left private jobs for state jobs

Women

Men

Workers who left state jobs for private jobs

Women

Men

PrivateState

WagesTotal compensation

(Wages plus bene�ts)$42$39

$58$52

$60$62

$82$80

PrivateState

WagesTotal compensation (Wages plus bene�ts)

$43$51

$64$77

$63$73

$99$110

-7%

-10%

+3%

-2.5%

+18%

+20%

+16%

+11%

Source: Evidence from Transitions Between Private Sector and Alaska State Government Employment, author’s calculations, based on data from Alaska Department of Labor*Based on 4,617 workers who changed jobs and stayed in the same occupation and place. About 15,000 workers changed jobs from 2001-2014, but most changed occupations and some moved.

Institute of Social and Economic Research · University of Alaska Anchorage

Who Has Better Pay and Benefits—Workers in State Government or Private Industry? By Mouhcine Guettabi and Matthew Berman

No. 82Research Summary

July 2016

2

Figure 3. How Do Speci�c Characteristics of Alaska Workers A�ect Their Pay?(All Alaska Resident Wage and Salary Workers)

48%67%

95%117%

14%

-41% -28% -36%-22%

Compared with workers who didn’t �nish high school, all those with more

education are paid more

Older workers onaverage earn moreWomen are paid

41% less than menWorkers of all other races are paid less than white workers

Education

Age

High-school Some college

4-year degree

Post-graduate

Gender and Race

BlackAK Native

Other race

Source: A Wage and Compensation Analysis of Alaska’s Public Sector Employees, author’s calculations, data from American Community Survey, 2009-13

By Age(Average age)

By Gender(Percent women)

By Diversity(Percent Races

other than white)

By Education(Percent with 4 or

more years of college)

39 years44 years44 years

43%55%56%

30%29%

39%

21%54%

41%

Figure 4. Characteristics of Resident Workers in Private Firms and State And Local Governments in Alaska

(Average 2009-2013)Private

Local Government

Source: A Wage and Compensation Analysis of Alaska’s Public Sector Employees, author’s calculations, with data from American Community Survey, 2009-2013

Figure 2. Composition of Workers in ACS Survey(2009-2013)

54%Private industry*

22%State/ local

government

Federalgovernment

*Includes wage and salary workers and self-employed

• State and local government workers• Private wage and salary workers

11%Non-pro�ts*


13%

Which Workers Are Included in the Analysis?

Why tWo Methods of AnAlysis?Using two data sources to compare public and private compensation

gave us more information than just a single source would have. The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, used for one

part of the study, gave us information on the race and education levels of public and private employees—and as we discuss below, those charac-teristics are known to affect pay. But census data can’t tell us how some other characteristics—like skill levels—might affect pay.

Employment records and Permanent Fund dividend applications, used for another part of the study, don’t include information about race or education. But they allow us to follow the same person from job to job. That makes comparisons straightforward, because we know that workers bring the same characteristics to the new job as they did to the old job. coMPensAtion of Resident WAge And sAlARy eMPloyees of PRivAte industRy And stAte And locAl goveRnMents, 2009-2013

Mouhcine Guettabi’s analysis is based mainly on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (average 2009 - 2013). It compares the pay and total compensation (wages plus benefits) of resi-dent wage and salary workers employed by state and local governments and private businesses. It does not include non-resident workers, em-ployees of the federal government or non-profits, or the self-employed.

In 2014, there were about 26,700 state government employees and 37,800 local government employees, for a total of 64,500. Figure 2 shows that on average from 2009-2013, state and local government workers made up about 22% of workers in the American Community Survey.

chARActeRistics of WoRkeRsTo compare public/private compensation, the

analysis controls for characteristics known to affect pay: gender, race, education, and experi-ence. Figure 3 shows how those influenced pay of all resident Alaska wage and salary workers (including those with jobs in government and in private industry) during the period 2009-2013.• Women earned on average 41% less than men.• Workers from minorities earned less than white workers—Black workers 28% less, Alaska Natives 36% less, and workers of other races 22% less.• Compared with workers who didn’t finish high school, Alas-kans with high-school degrees earned 48% more, those with at least some college 67% more, those with four-year degrees 95% more, and those with post-graduate degrees 117% more.• Older workers earned on average 14% more than those with less experience.

Figure 4 shows how characteristics differed among public and private workers during the analysis period.• State and local government workers were on average five years older than those in private industry—44 years old, com-pared with 39.• Women made up a considerably larger share of public workers —55%, compared with 43% among private workers.

• Local government workers were more diverse than private or state workers—about 39% were of races other than white, compared with around 30% among private and state workers.• State government workers were on average better educated. More than half held at least four-year degrees, compared with about 41% among local government workers and 21% among private workers.

3

Both government wages and total compensation much higher

Life, physical, social sciences

Personal care/service wages much lower

in government

Management

O�ce and admin wages not signi�cantly di�erent ingovernment and private

Installation and repair wages lower in government

Figure 5. How Does Pay of State and Local Government Workers Compare With Pay in Private Industry?(All resident wage and salary workers in private industry and state and local government, average 2009-2013)

WagesTotal compensation (wages plus bene�ts)

On average for all occupations, government workers earn 8% less. But the higher average valueof government bene�ts means there is no signi�cant di�erence in total compensation.

-8%

-49%

In higher-paying occupations, both government pay and total compensation are considerably less than private pay and compensation.

But no signi�cant di�erence in total compensation

In many lower- and mid-pay occupations, government wages are lower, but the higher value of bene�ts makes government compensation equal to or higher than private.

+49%Building and grounds maintenance wages not signi�cantly

di�erent in government and private

+52%+78%

-21% But no signi�cant di�erence in total compensation

+16%

But total government compensation higher

But total government compensation somewhat higher

Health-care support jobs are exceptions

-39%-36%

-33%-29%

No signi�cant di�erence in total compensation


hoW did Public And PRivAte PAy coMPARe?Figure 5 shows how pay and total compensation—adjusted for char-

acteristics of workers—compared among state and local government workers and private workers overall, and among workers in specific occupations, in the period 2009-2013.• Government workers on average earned 8% less than private workers. But because government benefits were more valuable, there was no significant difference in total compensation (wages plus benefits) among government and private workers overall.• For a number of occupation in the lower- and mid-ranges of the pay scale, government wages were lower than or about the same as in private industry. But government benefits were typically more valu-able, so total compensation for those occupations was equal to or more than in private industry. • Health-care support jobs didn’t fit that general pattern: both wages and total compensation were significantly higher among government workers.• In higher-paying occupations—for example, physical and social sciences and management—both wages and total compensation were considerably lower among government workers.

4

(Among Those Who Changed Jobs and Stayed in Same Occupation and Place*)

Women46%

Men23%

Women20%

Men11%

Workers who leftprivate jobs for state jobs: 69%

Workers who left state jobs forprivate jobs:

31%

Figure 6. Who Changed Jobs, 2001-2014?

Source: Evidence from Transitions Between Private Sector and Alaska State Government Employment, author’scalculations, based on data from Alaska Department of Labor and Permanent Fund dividend applications

*Based on 4,617 workers who changed jobs and stayed in the same occupation and place. About 15,000 workers changed jobs from 2001-2014, but most changed occupations and some moved.

coMPensAtion of WoRkeRs Who chAnged fRoM PRivAte to stAte Jobs—And vice-veRsA, 2001-2014

In his analysis, Matthew Berman compared compensation for workers who actually changed from state to private jobs—or private to state jobs—from 2001 through 2014. Unlike the analysis we just described, this assessment doesn’t need to be adjusted for characteristics of workers: it’s based on data for specific Alaskans who changed jobs, and compares what they were paid before and after their job changes.

The assessment uses data—with confidential information about individual Alaskans removed—that the Alaska Department of Labor provided, from its own employment records and from Permanent Fund dividend applications.

Who chAnged Jobs?About 15,000 Alaskans changed either from private to state jobs or

state to private jobs from 2001 to 2014. Many of those workers changed occupations when they changed jobs, and some moved to different places. About 4,600 changed jobs and stayed in the same occupations and places, and figures 6 and 7 profile those workers. • Workers were much more likely to move from private to state jobs, accounting for about two-thirds of those who changed jobs.• Women were far more likely than men to change jobs—whether they moved from private to state jobs or state to private. Women made up 66% of all those who changed jobs.

Figure 7 shows details about the occupations of these workers.• Office and administrative support jobs were by far the most com-mon occupations among women who changed jobs—whether from private to state or vice-versa. More than half the women who moved from state to private jobs, and nearly two-thirds of those who moved from private to state jobs, were in office and administrative support.• Jobs related to health care—practitioners, technicians, or sup-port—were the next most common occupations among women who changed jobs, in either direction. They accounted for 16% of women who left state jobs and 12% who moved to state jobs.• More than one-quarter of men shifting from state to private jobs, or private to state, were in construction, repair, installation, or transport occupations.• Men in higher-paying occupations—including management, architec-ture and engineering, and legal—were more likely to move from state to private jobs. • Occupations in the lower- and mid-ranges of the pay scale—including administrative support and protective services—were more likely to draw men from private to state jobs.

5

Moved from state to private jobs

Moved from private to state jobs

Women (Total: 911) Men (Total: 522)

Women (Total: 2,108) Men (Total 1,050)

1.5%

0.5%

0.5% 1.5%

1%2%

0.5%

Building/grounds maintenance

Protective service

Health-care practitioners /technical

Legal

All otherManagement Business/Financial/Computer

Architecture/EngineeringLife/Physical/Social Sciences

53%

8.5%5.5%

4%

6.5%

9.5%

5.5%

5%

O�ce/Admin Support

Health-care support

Management

Business/Financial/Computer

Architecture/Engineering

Life/Physical/Social Sciences

Legal

16%

5.5% 8%

12%

10%

4%

10%

4.5%

1%

7%

9%

12%

Health-care practitioners /technicalBuilding/grounds maintenanceProtective service

O�ce/Admin Support

Construction

Install/repair/produce/transport

All other

64%

5% 3% 3%

6.5%

3%

8%

4%O�ce/Admin Support

All otherManagement


Architecture/EngineeringLife/Physical/Social Sciences

Community/Social services

Legal

Health-care practitioners /technical

Health-care support

Health-care support

Building/grounds maintenance

4%10.5%

7.5%

3%

4%

4%3%

1.5%6%

2%16.5%

14%

18%

6%Management


Architecture/Engineering


Community/Social services

Legal

Health-care practitioners /technicalHealth-care support

Protective serviceBuilding/grounds/maintenanceO�ce/Admin Support

Construction

Install/repair/produce/transportAll other

Figure 7. Occupations of Workers Who Changed Jobs, 2001 - 2014(Among Workers Who Changed Jobs and Stayed in the Same Occupation and Place*)

*Based on 4,617 workers who changed jobs and stayed in the same occupation and place, excluding those where the number of transitions was fewer than 4, to avoid disclosing con�dential information.Overall, about 15,000 workers changed jobs from 2001-2014, but most changed occupations and some moved.

Source: Evidence from Transitions Between Private Sector and Alaska State Government Employment, author’s calculations, based on data from Alaska Department of Labor

6

www.iser.uaa.alaska.eduEditor: Linda LEask • Graphics: cLEmEncia mErriLL

PAy And coMPensAtion in individuAl occuPAtionsFigure 1 (front page) shows average changes in pay and compensation for

workers who moved from public to private jobs—or private to public—in the analysis period. Figure 8 shows changes in some occupations.• In any given occupation, women who changed jobs earned less than men in the same occupation, before and after they changed jobs. That includes office and administrative support jobs, where a big share of the women who changed jobs were concentrated—although the gap was smaller than in other occupations. • The overall pattern of lower pay for workers (men and women) moving to state jobs—and higher pay for those moving to private jobs—held for most individual occupations. Exceptions are health-care support jobs, where those moving to state jobs were better compensated, and pro-tective services, where those moving to private jobs lost pay and had reduced total compensation.endnotes1. We used national average benefit levels for private and public employees in each occupation, because figures specifically for Alaska’s private sector aren’t available.2. Figures reported here are based on just the 4,617 workers who changed jobs and stayed in the same occupation and same place. Roughly 15,000 workers changed jobs—from private to state or vice-versa—from 2001 through 2014. Many of those changed occupations, and some moved to different places. The full study (see adjacent box) includes information on changes in pay and compensation for those workers.

About the studyThe study summarized here, Overpaid or Underpaid? Public Employee Compensation in the State of Alaska, was prepared for the Alaska Depart-ment of Administration. It is in two sections: I. A Wage and Compensation Analysis of Alaska’s Public Sector Workers, by Mouhcine Guettabi, and II. Evidence from Transitions Between Private Sector and Alaska State Gov-ernment Employment, by Matthew Berman. The study is available on ISER’s website, www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu. Mouhcine Guettabi is an assistant professor of economics at ISER. If you have questions about his analysis, get in touch with him at 907-786-5496 or [email protected] Berman is a professor of economics at ISER. If you have questions about his analysis, get in touch with him at 907-786-5426 or [email protected].

Management

(No signi�cant di�erencein private/public compensation)


Legal Occupations

Health-Care Support(No signi�cant di�erencein private/public wages)

O�ce and Administrative Support

Architecture and Engineering


Protective Services(No signi�cant di�erencein public/private wages)

Building/Grounds Maintenance

(No signi�cant di�erencein public/private compensation)(No signi�cant di�erencein public/private compensation)

O�ce and Administrative Support

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

$79

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

Men

Women

$67$86

$76

$115$99-15%

-12%

-14%

$59$49

$84$73

$64$56

$76$66

$95$74

$109$97

$135$109

$30$41

$50$61

$40$71

$35$32$36$33

$51$54

$56$77$76

$95

$83$110$113

$135

$50$72

$68$82

$74$103$100

$117

$74$55

$83$51

$129$73

$33$58

$37

$35$40

$37$46

-17%

-12%

-13%

-13%

-22%

-11%

-19%

+37%

+22%

+77%

-8%

-8%

+6%

+37%

+25%

+32%

+19

+44%

+21%

+39%

+17%

-26%

-39%

-43%

-39%

-36%

+14%

+24%



(No signi�cant di�erencein public/private wages)(No signi�cant di�erencein public/private wages)

Source: Evidence from Transitions Between Private Sector and Alaska State Government Employment, author’s calculations, based on data from Alaska Department of Labor

Figure 8. Average Annual Wages and Compensation of Workers Before and After Job Changes, Selected Occupations*(Among Those Who Changed Jobs and Stayed in the Same Occupations, 2001 to 2014, In Thousands of 2013 Dollars)

Workers Who Left Private Jobs for State Jobs Workers Who Left State Jobs for Private Jobs

State Total compensation (Wages plus bene�ts)

Private WagesPrivate

State Wages Total compensation (Wages plus bene�ts)

$54

*Based on 4,617 workers who changed jobs and stayed in the same occupation and place. About 15,000 workers changed jobs from 2001-2014, but most changed occupations and some moved.

Part I. A Wage and Compensation Analysis of Alaska’s Public Sector Employees

By Mouhcine Guettabi

All ISER research is solely the work of the individual authors. The findings should be attributed to the authors, not to ISER, the University of Alaska Anchorage, or the sponsors of the research. For more information about this section of the report, please contact: Mouhcine Guettabi, assistant professor of economics.

E-mail: mguettabi@alaska,edu • Phone: 907-786-5496

I-1

Executive Summary, Part I.

Given the importance of the public sector in Alaska, it is paramount to understand how resources are allocated and if the compensation of government employees is appropriate. Levels of compensation help assess both the competence and the efficiency of governmental services. On the one hand, overpayment wastes resources, restricting the government’s opportunity to address other objectives or to reduce the burden on taxpayers. On the other hand, insufficient pay makes it very difficult to recruit and retain qualified workers who can provide the quality services demanded by citizens.

The data analysis in this section of the report indicates that in general public employees, including both state and local government workers, are not overpaid compared with their counterparts in private industry. Comparability with pay in the private sector is the most generally accepted standard by which economists and compensation specialists judge whether the processes for determining compensation in the public sector are working.

In this report we define “compensation” to include both wages and salaries and the value of benefits. Comparisons controlling for the effects of education, experience, gender, race, and ethnicity on compensation reveal no significant overpayment among public sector workers. There is, however, considerable variation across occupations, with some public sector jobs paying more than the private sector and others less.

In this section of the report, we use publicly available data primarily from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, but also from the Alaska Department of Labor and the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. We rely on established methodology, used by researchers since the 1970s, to compare earnings and benefits across and between the private and the public sectors, with the public sector including both state and local government employees.

The analysis finds that:

� The public and private workforces in Alaska differ in important ways. Employees in state and local sectors are twice as likely as their private sector counterparts to have a college or advanced degree. They are also older, more diverse, and more likely to be women.

� Across the educational spectrum, average wages in the public sector are lower than those in the private sector.

� After accounting for individual characteristics, we find that public employees typically earn 8 percent less than their private sector counterparts.

� Benefits (for example, pensions and health insurance) make up a greater share of total employee compensation in the public sector. Once we account for benefit differences, there are no significant differences overall in full compensation among public and private employees.

� But our disaggregated analysis across occupations shows considerable variation.

� In most occupations, the public sector premium benefit differential offsets the wage discount.

� Management and life physical occupations show considerable public sector penalties, even after we correct for benefit differences.

� Building and grounds maintenance occupations, health-care support occupations, and office-support occupations show considerable public sector premiums, even after accounting for benefit differences.

� Analysis across the wage distribution shows that public sector wage penalties are most pronounced in higher paid occupations.

I-2

Introduction

This report investigates whether state and local public employees are overpaid or underpaid relative to their private sector counterparts. As the big budget shortfall continues to worry the legislature, it is important to understand if excessive public compensation is an area of concern—in which case some remedies would be freezing pay, reducing benefits, or taking other measures. The data analysis in this section of the report indicates that in general public employees—including both state and local government employees—are not overpaid. Comparisons controlling for the effects of education, experience, gender, race, and ethnicity reveal no significant overpayment.

On average, full-time state and local employees earn wages that are 8% lower than those of private-sector workers. But once we account for differences in benefits of public and private employees, there is no statistically significant difference in total compensation. Our more disaggregated analysis does show considerable differences across occupations, with compensation penalties or premiums persisting even after the benefit correction.

Our results are based solely on applying standard statistical and economic methods to available data, requiring few subjective judgments. The numbers themselves tell a compelling a story. They also confirm intuitive judgments about public-sector compensation.

Literature Review

The fundamental question is whether public and private sector workers receive about the same compensation. This issue is difficult to parse, for a couple of reasons. First, the human capital (education, training, experience) of public and private sector workers may differ. For example, if public sector employees are more educated than their private sector counterparts, then higher wages would be justified. The second reason why public-private comparisons are complex is that compensation consists of more than just wages. Pension benefits comprise an important part of compensation, so comparisons of just wages and salaries may be misleading. Previous empirical evidence suggests that the inflationary forces on public sector wages prevail. The U.S. literature is rich with public–private sector wage comparisons. Smith (1976, 1997a, b, 1981), Quinn (1979), and Bellante and Long (1981), to name a few, have studied public sector wage premiums using various definitions of public sector and of compensation. More recently, Poterba and Rueben (1994) showed that the wage distribution was wider in the private sector and that state and local government workers enjoyed a wage premium at the lower tail of the distribution, but a wage penalty at the upper tail.

When comparing the pay of two different groups, the economics literature has typically followed one of two paths (Moulton 1990; Belman and Heywood 2004b). One approach is the “opportunity wage definition” of comparability, sometimes also called the “people approach,” in which workers with given characteristics in the government sector should be paid the same as they would be in the private sector. The alternative is a “positions approach,” in which one would search the private sector for positions that match the descriptions of those in the public sector and then compare compensation, ignoring the characteristics of those who actually hold the positions. As Moulton (1990) has observed in the case of federal/non-federal comparisons, the two approaches need not provide an answer of the same sign, let alone similar magnitudes.

Our approach is somewhat hybrid but leans more heavily towards the people approach. The U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community survey, which is a household survey, lets us account for the respondents’ characteristics in addition to their class of work. Additionally, we use disaggregated regressions at the occupational level, thereby comparing wages and compensation at a more homogenous level. The Employer Costs for Employee Compensation dataset, from which we obtain benefit information, however, is a sample of jobs rather than of individuals. Thus, when we use these data, we are primarily examining the characteristics of positions.

Characteristics of the Alaska Economy

TotalAlaskanon-farmemploymentin2014,asestimatedbytheU.S.BureauofEconomicAnalysis,andincludingnon-wageandsalaryemployment,was463,970(Figure1).ThesixlargestAlaskaindustriesin

I-3

-2%

-1%

0%1%

2%3%

Gro

wth

Rat

e

35,0

0036

,000

37,0

0038

,000

39,0

00

Loca

l gov

ernm

ent e

mpl

oym

ent

2000 2005 2010 2015year

Employment Growth Rate

Local government employment

-2%

2%0%

4%G

row

th R

ate

22,0

0023

,000

24,0

0025

,000

26,0

0027

,000

Sta

te g

over

nmen

t em

ploy

men

t

2000 2005 2010 2015year

Employment Growth Rate

State government employment 2000-2015

2,2113,313

5,9587,3167,480

10,69111,406

13,00714,921

15,87317,14517,758

21,15022,406

23,64224,95325,084

26,34726,684

33,76537,786

45,135

49,939

Overall Nonfarm employment was 463,970 in 2014 with state and local government employment being almost 14% of that total.

0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000Employment

Utilities Management of companies and enterprises

Educational services Information

Wholesale trade Arts, entertainment, and recreation

Finance and insurance Forestry, fishing, and related activities

Federal, civilianReal estate and rental leasing

Manufacturing Administrative and waste management services

Other services, except public administration Mining

Transportation and warehousing Professional, scientific, and technical services

Construction Military

State government Accommodation and food services

Local government Retail trade

Health care and social assistance

Employment by sector for Alaska in 2014

2014,asmeasuredbyemployment,werehealth-careandsocialassistance,retailtrade,localgovernment,accommodationandfoodservices,federalmilitary,andstategovernment.Thepublicsectoraswedefineitiscomprisedofstateandlocalgovernmentemployment.Thesetwosectorstogetheraccountedfor64,470jobsin2014,oralmost14%oftheAlaskaworkforce.

Figure 1.

The role of state and local government has always been important in the state’s economy. The current budgetary shortfalls could potentially mean significant changes in the near future. Looking back, we can see that state government employment has grown at an average of 1.3 % (Figure 2) per year over the last decade. There has not been year-over-year negative growth since 2004, when the state experienced two straight years of decline. Local government employment, however, declined in both 2013 and 2014, at an average of 1.295% per year.

Figure 2.

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Data Description

The data for this section of the report are from the pooled 2009-2013 American Community Survey (ACS) microdata samples, obtained from IPUMS (Ruggles et al 2010). The microdata are composed of individual records containing information collected on persons and households. We restrict the data to people who lived in Alaska during the years of interest. To generate a representative dataset, we apply person-weights to obtain the underlying population. The ACS includes data on the individual’s sex, age, race, highest level of education completed, annual earnings, hours worked, and weeks worked. The data also include occupational, industrial codes, and class of the worker (state, local, private). The data analysis is further restricted to people ages 16-64 and excludes the self-employed. We identify people as “public sector workers” if they are employed in either state of local government and private sector workers if they are wage and salary employees at private firms. Public sector workers made up 22.4% of total employment in the IPUMS sample for 2009-2013.

Table 1. Characteristics of the labor force

Wage Age Male Black Native Other

Self-employed $75,748 50 70% 2.3% 2.8% 8%

Wage/salary, private $48,230 39 57% 6.8% 6.8% 16.4%

Wage/salary at non-profit $45,048 42 35.5% 5.9% 16.2% 13.2%

Federal gov’t employee $54,956 36 70.7% 16.7% 5.4% 8.4%

State gov’t employee $50,463 44 45.4% 8.7% 11.4% 9%

Local gov’t employee $44,814 44 44.3% 4.2% 23.7% 11.4%

In analyzing public- and private-sector compensation, it is tempting to simply compare average salaries, and it is not uncommon to see such comparisons in the media. But a simple comparison of average salaries will be misleading without taking into account differences in skills among workers.

We start in Table 1 by examining the characteristics of workers employed across different sectors. It is clear that the demographics of the two labor forces (state/local versus private) differ substantially, with public-sector workers on average older (44 years versus 39 years), more likely to be women (56% versus 43%), and more diverse, with the percent White smaller (64% versus 70%).

Looked at the other way, private sector workers are more likely to be White, younger, and men. These demographic differences make it clear that simply comparing wage averages may be misleading. The differences are relevant because there are significant earning differences between men and women, Whites and other races, and older versus younger workers.

Table 2 and Figure 4 show there are also significant education differences between private and public workers. Employees with a college degree or more represent half of the state government’s workers but only 21% of the private workforce. Another significant difference is how much each sector relies on those with just high-school educations—a third of the private sector’s workforce but only 1.3% and 4.7% of the state and local government’s workforces. People with a bachelor’s degree or more represent 46.07% of the state government’s labor force but only 19% of the private labor force. Education is an important driver of earnings.

State government employees are less likely to be high-school dropouts or just high-school graduates, and more likely to have college or graduate degrees. These differences could be either driven by the educational requirements of positions in the respective sectors or self-selection. This means that the public sector may require more education

I-5

32%

39%

15%

5%

17%

32%

26%

21%

0%10

%20

%30

%40

%

Private Public

Education level, Private Sector versus State & Local Public Employees

High School Some CollegeCollege Post College

than the private, or that more educated people are drawn to the public sector. This self-selection could be due to non-pecuniary aspects of the work environment, more flexible hours, or the general match between skills and job requirements.

Figure 4.

Table 2. Education by Type of Worker

Less than

High School

High School

Some College College degree

Post College

College or more

Self-employed, not incorporated

6.5% 30.4% 34.5% 16.7% 10.7%

Self-employed, incorporated 2.7% 21% 38.3% 19.6% 18.3% Wage/salary, private 7.8% 32.1% 38.8% 15% 5.1% 21% Wage/salary at non-profit 3.1% 17.5% 39% 24.9% 15.4% Federal gov’t employee 1.5% 18.7% 51.9% 17.6% 10.2% State gov’t employee 1.3% 13.9% 30.3% 30.2% 24.2% 54% Local gov’t employee 4.7% 20.1% 34% 22.7% 18.1% 41% Unpaid family worker 23.2% 12.4% 48.4% 13% 3%

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Table 3. Average earnings in Alaska by Education Level: Private Sector Employees Compared with State and Local Government Employees

Public Private Compare Penalty

Less than high school 19,623 24,251 -4,628 -19.08% High school

34,484 39,543 -5,059 -12.79%

Some college 40,094 43,272 -3,178 -7.34% Associate's degree 46,306 52,113 -5,807 -11.14% Bachelor's degree 53,484 68,986 -15,502 -22.47% Master's degree 59,662 91,635 -31,973 -34.89% Professional Degree 80,331 128,682 -48,351 -37.57% Doctoral degree 74,813 114,431 -39,618 -34.62% Total 47,641 48,230 -589 -1.22%

One interesting way to compare the public and private sectors is earnings by degree across classes of workers. This comparison examines average earnings by level of education in the public/private sectors. It is very clear that there are wage discounts in the public sector. A wage discount means that similarly educated workers earns less in the public sector than their counterparts in the private sector. For example, a person with an associate degree earns on average $46,306 in the public sector but $52,113 in the private. State and local governments pay college-educated labor on average 22.47% percent less than private employers do (Table 3). The earnings differential is greatest for those with advanced degrees. The differences are less pronounced for lower-wage workers.

Empirical Strategy

Our results are based solely on applying standard statistical and economic methods to available data, requiring few subjective judgments about one state relative to another. The numbers themselves tell the story.

The empirical strategy is to estimate the Mincer’s earning equation (Mincer 1974), in which worker's wage is a function of worker's demographic, human capital, and socioeconomic characteristics. The model is specified as

log (𝑊!") = 𝑋!" + 𝑃𝑢𝑏!" +ε

The dependent variable is the logarithm of yearly wage for worker i in year t. In order to investigate the relative importance of worker characteristics we include vector 𝑋!" , which includes the usual worker's demographic and socioeconomic characteristics— gender, race, education, and age. We use gender as a dummy variable that takes the value of 1 for men and zero for women. To account for race, we use three race categories (Black, Native, Other) with the omitted category being White. We use four education categories (High school, some college, college degree, post-college degree), with the omitted category being less than high school. We also include a worker’s age, to reflect experience, and age square to account for the life cycle wage differential. The variable of interest in this estimation is 𝑃𝑢𝑏!"; which is a dummy variable that takes the value of 1 if the worker is employed in either state or local government and zero for those in the private sector.1 Controlling for these characteristics allows us to determine how the sector of employment affects workers’ earnings.

1We also estimate regressions with the omitted variable including the federal government and non-profits (results not shown but available on request.)

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Table 4. Regression Analysis

(1) (2) VARIABLES Wages Full compensation

Public -0.081*** 0.018

(0.027) (0.028)

Male 0.41*** 0.42***

(0.025) (0.025)

Black -0.28*** -0.28***

(0.077) (0.079)

Native -0.36*** -0.35***

(0.047) (0.048)

Other -0.22*** -0.22***

(0.035) (0.036)

High School 0.48*** 0.49***

(0.069) (0.069)

Some College 0.67*** 0.68***

(0.067) (0.067)

College 0.95*** 0.96***

(0.071) (0.071)

Post College 1.17*** 1.16***

(0.076) (0.076)

Age 0.14*** 0.14***

(0.006) (0.006)

Age^2 -0.0015*** -0.0015***

(7.82e-05) (7.86e-05)

Constant 6.35*** 6.66***

(0.141) (0.142)

Observations 10,339 10,339

R-squared 0.327 0.330

I-8

117%

95%

67%

48%

22%

36%

0.015%

14%

28%

41%

8.1%

-50% 0% 50% 100% 150%Wage premium or penalty associated with specific attributes

Post College

College

Some College

High School

Other

Native

Exp(squared)

Experience

Black

Male

Public sector

Figure 5.

Notes: For “0/1” variables, the bars represent the relationship between the characteristic and wages; for continuous variables, the bars represent the impact of a one-unit change on the wage. All coefficients are significant at the 1-percent level. Source: Authors’ calculations from IPUMS (2009-2013).

What do we mean by statistical significance?

We would like to determine if the data contains enough evidence to enable us to conclude that the computed relationships observed between variables can be interpreted as being true statements, or if the results observed in our sample data are simply due to chance. More technically, it means that if the Null Hypothesis is true (which means there really is no difference), there's a low probability of getting a result that large or larger. This provides a “p-value” representing the probability that random chance could explain the result.

Base Estimation Results

While the descriptive statistics we show from Tables 1-3 are informative about the different characteristics of the labor force, the regression analysis above (Table 4 and Figure 5) accounts for all those characteristics and estimates the premium and or discount earned as a result of being employed in the public sector. Column 1 assesses the wage differentials after accounting for the effects of gender, race, education, and experience. The coefficient on the public sector (Table 4, column 1) shows that on average public sector employees in Alaska earn 8.1% less than their private sector counterparts, after accounting for the effects of demographic and education characteristics. To be clear, these differences are wage differentials after accounting for individual-level characteristics. We also find that men earn about 41% more than their female counterparts, and college-educated people earn 95% more than people with less than a high school education. Additionally, the age effect is positive and highly significant, with a non-linear effect reflecting the wage’s lifecycle pattern.

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What about Benefits? Given that there are differences in benefits between the private and public sectors, we augment wages by what we call benefit markups, from Table 11 in the appendix. These are obtained from the National Compensation Survey, which produces comprehensive data on the incidence (the percentage of workers with access to and participation in employer provided benefit plans) and provisions of selected employee benefit plans. The detailed benefits across the public and private sectors are provided in the appendix in Table 10. State and local government employees receive a higher portion of their compensation in the form of employer-provided benefits, and the mix of benefits is different from the private sector. Some benefits are more generous in the public sector, but it is a serious error to imagine that comparability requires that each and every element of compensation is the same. It is the total cost of compensation package—not the mix of cash and benefits—that is important in making a comparison. Public employers contribute on average 35.6% of employee compensation expenses to benefits, whereas private employers devote between 26.5% and 34.5% of compensation to benefits, depending on the employer’s size. Public employers provide better health insurance and pension benefits. Health insurance accounts for 6.3% to 8.3% of private-sector compensation but 11.2% of state and local government employee compensation. Retirement benefits also account for a substantially greater share of public-employee compensation, 8.1% compared with 2.8% to 4.8% in the private sector. Most public employees also continue to participate in defined-benefit plans managed by the state, while most private-sector employers have switched to defined-contribution plans, particularly 401(k) plans. On the other hand, public employees receive considerably less supplemental pay and vacation time, and public employers contribute significantly less to legally mandated benefits.

We present these augmented results, which account for benefits2 in Table 4, column 2. Once we account for the full compensation, the public/private differences are no longer statistically significant—which means that the benefit advantages in the public sector offset the wage discount. While the average differences are obviously informative and important, the market for different occupations is substantially heterogeneous which renders an analysis at a more disaggregated level (occupational level in this case) more informative and therefore more conducive to decision-making.

Occupational Groupings

The market for different occupations is substantially heterogeneous, which renders an analysis at a more disaggregated level (occupational level in this case) more informative and therefore more conducive to decision-making. Below, we conduct more disaggregated analyses by focusing on two-digit occupational codes. The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system is used by federal statistical agencies to classify workers into occupational categories for the purpose of collecting, calculating, or disseminating data. To facilitate classification, detailed occupations are combined to form 461 broad occupations, 97 minor groups, and 23 major groups (the ones we use). Detailed occupations in the SOC with similar job duties, and in some cases skills, education, and/or training, are grouped together. We group occupations at the two-digit level, which allows us to estimate the premium or discount at this level rather than just averages.

Before delving into the estimation that accounts for personal- level characteristics, Table 5 presents wages by occupation in both the public and private sectors. This allows us to compare wage earnings at the two-digit level for both private and public workers. It also allows us to generate in column 4 what we call “Public benefit premium/discount necessary for the full compensation across sectors to be equal.” It is calculated as wages in the private sector minus the wage in the public sector for a specific occupation. It becomes apparent as we compare wages that the differential varies considerably from one occupation to the next. Some of these differences can be explained by education, experience, and the demographic characteristics of the workers. In order to fully account for such differences, we estimate the same regression from Table 4 at each of the two-digit codes. The result can be interpreted as a “wage differential (penalty/premium)” that is due to employment in the public sector after accounting for gender, race, education, and age.

2We use benefit differentials obtained from the BLS, derived from a national survey.

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Table 5. Wages by occupation

Two digit codes Two-digit names Public wages Private wages Size of the public benefit

differential necessary for the

full compensation to

be the same3

11 Management occupations 65,913 93,299 27,386 13 Business operations/Financial

specialists 50,554 76,143 25,589

15 Computer and Mathematical occupations

60,078 66,841 6,763

17 Architecture and Engineering Occupations

78,132 98,184 20,052

19 Life, Physical and science Occupations

54,639 77,157 22,518

21 Community and Social occupations

51,364 45,839 -5,525

23 Legal occupations 75,684 89,090 13,406

25 Education, Training, and Library occupations

45,757 37,984 -7,773

27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

47,182 52,757 5,575

29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations

67,111 80,222 13,111

31 Healthcare Support Occupations

32,188 27,146 -5,042

33 Food Preparation and Serving Occupations

65,280 42,750 -22,530

35 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations

25,669 22,371 -3,298

37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations

28,900 26,190 -2,710

39 Personal Care and Service Occupations

15,412 27,433 12,021

41 Sales Occupations

42,323 42,513 190

43 Office and Administrative Support Occupations

40,004 36,940 -3,064

45 Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations

12,377 44,869 32,492

3This calculates the amount by which the public sector’s benefits would need to exceed those of the private sector’s for the full compensations to be equal.

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47 Construction, Extraction and

maintenance occupations

52,450 66,001 13,551

49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers

52,805 61,049 8,244

51 Production Occupations

40,887 41,416 529

53 Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

44,390 49,825 5,435

Occupational Estimation Results

Wage Estimations

Figure 6 shows the coefficient on the public sector dummy variable (indicator variable that identifies public sector employment). It can be interpreted as the percent wage difference due to public sector employment. We find statistically significant differences in five occupations. In the rest of the occupations, those differences are not statistically significant, which means that the likelihood of those differences being a result of chance is high. We turn our attention to the occupations where the differences are real—that is, statistically different.

There are large penalties to public sector employment in management occupations, life physical science occupations, personal care service occupations, and installation and repair occupations. We find wage premiums in health-care support occupations. For example, a person working in a management occupation in the public sector earns almost 33% person less than a person with similar characteristics (age, gender, race, and education) in the private sector. Figure 6 shows these coefficients for each of the occupations and has accompanying percentages for categories that are significantly different across the sectors.

Compensation Estimations

A pressing question is whether these differences are still important, once we account for the public sector’s more generous benefits. An employer typically thinks of the overall compensation, which is comprised of both wages and benefits. In order to make comparisons including both wages and benefits, we use benefit markups obtained from the National Compensation Survey to augment wages with the benefits typically earned in each of these occupations( see Table 11 in the appendix). We re-estimate the occupational regressions with the full compensation as the dependent variable and summarize the results in Figure 7 and Table 12 (in the appendix). These full compensation estimations show that there are still penalties in the management and life science occupations of 2% and 36% respectively. We also find that there are premiums in maintenance occupations, office administration occupations, and health-care support occupations of 48.6%, 15.7%, and 78% respectively.

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32.8%39.1%

48.6%

21.1%52.1%

-50% -40% -30% -20% -10% 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

Public wage penalty/premium

Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

Sales Occupations

Production Occupations

Personal Care and Service Occupations

Office and Administrative Support Occupations

Management occupations

Life, Physical and science Occupations

Legal occupations

Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers

Healthcare Support Occupations

Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations

Food Preparation and Serving Occupations

Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations

Education, Training, and Library occupations

Construction, Extraction and maintenance occupations

Computer and Mathematical occupations

Community and Social occupations

Business operations/Financial specialists

Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

Architecture and Engineering Occupations

Public wage penalty/premium at the occupational level

Not statistically significant Wage premium Wage penalty

Figure 6.

Source: Authors’ calculations IPUMS (2009-2013)

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-29.4%-35.7%

48.6%

78%

15.6%

-50% -30% -10% 10% 30% 50% 70% 90%

Compensation premium/penalty of public sector employees


Sales Occupations






Legal occupations







Construction, Extraction and maintenance occupations







Compensation premium/penalty of public employees by occupation

Not statistically significant Compensation penalty Compensation premium

Figure 7.

Source: Authors’ calculations IPUMS (2009-2013)

I-14

2.29%

25.8%

-25% -20% -15% -10% -5% 0%

Wage premium/penalty by quintile

Larger than 69,000

43,300 to 68,000

26,100 to 43,200

11,000 to 26,000

Public wage penalty/premium by quintile

Not statistically significant Wage premium Wage penalty

Estimation by Wage Quintile

Table 6. Regressions by Wage Quintiles

Wage Quintiles

11 to 26,000 dollars -0.0191

26,100 to 43,200 -0.0101

43,300 to 68,000 0.0229***

Larger than 69,000 -0.258***

Figure 8.

Source:Authors’calculationsfromIPUMS(2009-2013).

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To provide some sense of the heterogeneity of the wage penalty by type of worker, we re-estimated the wage equation was by wage quintile. That is, a separate wage equation was estimated from the lowest paid one-fifth to the highest paid one-fifth. The results confirm what other studies have found.4 Public employees in the lowest one-third of the wage distribution are paid more than their private sector counterparts. Those in the middle third are paid about the same. And those state-local workers in the top one-third are paid about 20 percent less than private sector workers. Despite the variation by wage level, the message from the wage analysis is clear: state-local workers as a group are paid less than their private sector counter-parts. So far, researchers have no real disagreements. Conclusion: Are state and local public employees overpaid? No, there is no consistent evidence that state and local government employees are overcompensated. In this section of the report, we investigated if public sector employees (state and local) are over/undercompensated relative to their private sector counterparts. We specifically assessed wage/compensation differentials between public and private sector workers in Alaska, both on average and across occupations. Our general findings are consistent with the national research, which agrees that wages of similarly situated workers are lower in the state-local government sector than in the private sector. The disagreement hinges on the extent to which benefits offset the wage penalty. Our re-estimation of the much-used wage equation, plus adjustments for valuation of benefits, indicates that the two balance out on average. There are, however, significant differences across occupations. In most occupations, we find no differences between the sectors once we account for benefits. This indicates that workers in these occupations are paid a similar package to one that can be obtained in the private sector. Management occupations and science occupations are considerably undercompensated in the public sector relative to the private sector—which means attracting and keeping employees may be challenging. Maintenance, health-care support, and office and administrative occupations have a higher compensation in the public sector than in the private. In general, benefits play a bigger role in the compensation package of lower-wage workers, which means that the public sector is less competitive as we move up the ladder. The variation across occupations makes it clear that one needs to be careful in comparing public and private sector compensation.

4See Borjas (2002); Fogel and Lewin (1974); Katz and Krueger (1991); Poterba and Reuben (1994); and Schmitt (2010).

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References Asher, Martin, and Robert Defina. 1999. The impact of changing union density on earnings inequality: Evidence

from the private and public sectors. Journal of Labor Research.Vol XVIII, Number 3. Summer.

Belman, Dale and John Heywood. 1993. “The Truth About Public Employees: Underpaid or Overpaid?” Washington, DC: Economic Policy Institute.

http://www.epinet.org/briefingpapers/1993_bp_truth.pdf

Bender, Keith A. and John S. Heywood. 2010. “Out of Balance? Comparing Public and Private Sector Compensation over 20 Years.” Center for State and Local Government Excellence and National Institute on Retirement Security. April.

Blanchflower, David G. 2006 A Cross-Country Study of Union Membership. Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). Discussion Paper No. 2016. Bonn, Germany, March.

Borjas, George J. 2002. “The Wage Structure and the Sorting of Workers into the Public Sector.”Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.

Johnson, Simon, and James Kwak. 2010. 13 Bankers: The Wall Street Takeover and the Next Financial Meltdown. N.Y.: Pantheon.

King, Miriam, Steven Ruggles, Trent Alexander, Donna Leicach, and Matthew Sobek. 2009. Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, Current Population Survey: (IPUMS CPS) Version 2.0. (Machine-readable database). Minneapolis, Minn.: Minnesota Population Center (producer and distributor).

Krueger, Alan B. 1988. “Are Public Sector Workers Paid More Than Their Alternative Wage?Evidence from Longitudinal Data and Job Queues,” in Richard B. Freeman and Casey Ichniowski (eds.), When Public Sector Workers Unionize, Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Lav, Iris J. 2010. “Property Tax Cap Wouldn’t Improve State and Local Policies: A Response to the Manhattan Institute.” Washington, D.C.: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. June.

Lee, David S. 1999. Wage inequality in the U.S. during the 1980s: rising dispersion or falling minimum wage? Quarterly Journal of Economics, vol. 114(3), pp. 941–1023.

McNichol, Elizabeth, and Nicholas Johnson. 2010. “Recession Continues to Batter State Budgets; State Responses Could Slow Recovery.” Washington, D.C.: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. May 2010.

Miller, Michael A. 1996. “The public-private pay debate: what do the data show?” Monthly Labor Review 119(5):18-29.

Munnell, Alicia H., and Mauricio Soto. 2007. “State and Local Pensions Are Different from Private Plans.” Cambridge, Mass.: Center for Retirement Research, Boston College.

Schmitt, John. 2010. “The Wage Penalty for State and Local Government Employees.” Washington, D.C.: Center for Economic and Policy Research. May.

Troske, Kenneth. 1999. Evidence on the employer size-wage premium from worker-establishment matched data. The Review of Economics and Statistics, Vol. 81(1): pp. 15–26. February.

U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 2014. National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in the United States.

U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (U.S. DOL), 2014 Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW).

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Appendix We use the Employer Cost of Employee Compensation data to calculate full compensation costs. Given the expensive nature of the survey, the Bureau of Labor of Statistics does not provide state-level estimates. While public sector benefits are available for Alaska, there is no equivalent information for the private sector. Therefore, we use national estimates for both private and public benefits as shown in the tables below. We did the adjustment by calculating the relative markup for each private sector employee based on his or her occupation. We also adjusted state and local government worker wages using occupation-specific weights, with the same data. (See Table 11 for the occupation markups.)

Table 10. Role of benefits

Distribution of compensation cost for private sector and state and local workforce (2014) Private employers

Employees 1

to 99 Employees 100 to

499 Employees

500+

State and Local Government

workers

Total Compensation 100% 100% 100% 100% Wages and Salaries 73.5 68.8 65.5 64.4

Total Benefits 26.5 31.2 34.5 35.6 Paid Leave

6 7.2 8.4 7.3

Vacation

3 3.8 4.4 2.7

Holiday

1.9 2.2 2.4 2.1

Sick

0.7 0.8 1.1 1.9

Other

0.3 0.4 0.4 0.5

Supplemental pay

2.1 2.8 4.1 0.8

Overtime

0.7 1 0.9 0.4

Shift Differential

0.2 0.4 0.1

Nonproduction bonuses 1.3 1.6 2.8 0.3

Insurance

6.9 9.2 9.7 11.9

Life

0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1

Health

6.6 8.7 9.1 11.7

Short Term disability 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.1

long term disability 0.1 0.2 0.2 0.1 Retirement and savings 2.7 3.8 5.6 9.6

Defined benefit 1 1.6 2.8 8.8

Defined contribution 1.7 2.2 2.9 0.9 Legally required

8.8 8.1 7.1 6

Social security/Medicare 6 5.8 5.6 4.5

Federal Unemployment insurance 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.2

State Unemployment insurance 0.9 0.8 0.5 0.6

State Workers' compensation 1.7 1.4 0.9 1.2

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Table 11. Benefit Markups

Occupational name Two digit code

Private Public

Management Occupations 11 1.44 1.49

Business Operations/Financial Specialists 13 1.44 1.49

Computer and Mathematical Occupations 15 1.43 1.48

Architecture and Engineering Occupations 17 1.43 1.48

Life, Physical and science Occupations 19 1.43 1.48

Community and Social occupations 21 1.43 1.48

Legal occupations 23 1.43 1.48

Education, Training, and Library occupations 25 1.43 1.48

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations 27 1.43 1.48

Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations 29 1.43 1.48

Healthcare Support Occupations 31 1.32 1.71

Protective Service Occupations 33 1.32 1.71

Food Preparation and Serving Occupations 35 1.32 1.71

Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations 37 1.32 1.71

Personal Care and Service Occupations 39 1.32 1.71

Sales Occupations 41 1.4 1.67

Office and Administrative Support Occupations 43 1.45 1.67

Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations 45 1.45 1.67

Construction Trades 47 1.43 1.56

Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 49 1.43 1.56

Production Occupations 51 1.43 1.56

Transportation and Material Moving Occupations 53 1.43 1.56

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Table 12. Regressions by occupation

The regressions below show the premium and or penalty for the public sector in each of the following occupations:

Code Wages Compensation By occupation*


11 -0.328***

-0.294***


13 -0.107

-0.0724


15 -0.145

-0.111


17 -0.176

-0.142


19 -0.391***

-0.357***


21 0.0316

0.066

Legal occupations 23 0.156

0.19


25 -0.0725

-0.0382 -


27 0.167

0.201


29 -0.0922

-0.0578


31 0.521***

0.780***


35 0.0326

0.291*


37 0.212

0.471***

I-20


39 -0.486***

-0.227

Sales Occupations

41 -0.0793

0.0971


43 0.0151

0.156***


45 -0.385

-0.244


49 -0.210**

-0.123


51 -0.0178 0.0693


53 -0.0327

0.0543

*All the regressions contain Education, age and age squared, gender, and race Robust standard errors in parentheses

*** p<0.01, ** p<0.05, * p<0.1

Table 13. Detailed occupational codes Management Occupations (code 11) Chief Executives General and Operations Managers Legislators Advertising and Promotions Managers Marketing and Sales Managers Public Relations Managers Administrative Services Managers Computer and Information Systems Managers Financial Managers Human Resources Managers Industrial Production Managers Purchasing Managers Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers

I-21

Farm, Ranch, and Other Agricultural Managers Farmers and Ranchers Construction Managers Education Administrator Engineering Managers Food Service Managers Funeral Directors Gaming Managers Lodging Managers Medical and Health Services Managers Natural Sciences Managers Postmasters and Mail Superintendents Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers Social and Community Service Managers Managers, All Other Business Operations Specialists/Financial Specialists (13) Agents and Business Managers of Artists, Performers, and Athletes Purchasing Agents and Buyers, Farm Products Wholesale and Retail Buyers, Except Farm Products Purchasing Agents, Except Wholesale, Retail, and Farm Products Claims Adjusters, Appraisers, Examiners, and Investigators Compliance Officers, Except Agriculture, Construction, Health and Safety, and Transportation Cost Estimators Human Resources, Training, and Labor Relations Specialists Logisticians Management Analysts Meeting and Convention Planners Other Business Operations Specialists Computer and Mathematical Occupations (15) Computer Scientists and Systems Analysts Computer Programmers Computer Software Engineers Computer Support Specialists Database Administrators Network and Computer Systems Administrators Network Systems and Data Communication Analysts Actuaries Mathematicians Operations Research Analysts Statisticians Miscellaneous mathematical science occupations

I-22

Architecture and Engineering Occupations (17) Architects, Except Naval Surveyors, Cartographers, and Photogrammetrists Aerospace Engineers Agricultural Engineers Biomedical Engineers Chemical Engineers Civil Engineers Computer Hardware Engineers Electrical and Electronics Engineers Environmental Engineers Industrial Engineers, Including Health and Safety Marine Engineers Materials Engineers Mechanical Engineers Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers Nuclear Engineers Petroleum engineers Petroleum, Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers

Engineers, all other Miscellaneous Engineers, Including Agricultural and Biomedical

Drafters Engineering Technicians, Except Drafters Surveying and Mapping Technicians Life, Physical and Social Science Occupations (19) Agricultural and Food Scientists Biological Scientists Conservation Scientists and Foresters Medical Scientists Astronomers and Physicists Atmospheric and Space Scientists Chemists and Materials Scientists Environmental Scientists and Geoscientists Physical Scientists, All Other Economists Market and Survey Researchers Psychologists Sociologists Urban and Regional Planners

I-23

Miscellaneous social scientists and related workers Miscellaneous Social Scientists, Including Sociologists

Agricultural and Food Science Technicians Biological Technicians Chemical Technicians Geological and Petroleum Technicians Nuclear Technicians Other life, physical, and social science technicians Miscellaneous Life, Physical, and Social Science Technicians, Including Social Science Research Assistants and Nuclear Technicians Community and Social Service Occupations (21) Counselors Social Workers Miscellaneous Community and Social Service Specialists Clergy Directors, Religious Activities and Education Religious Workers, All Other Legal Occupations (23) Lawyers Judges, Magistrates, and Other Judicial Workers Paralegals and Legal Assistants Miscellaneous Legal Support Workers Education, Training, and Library Occupations (25) Postsecondary Teachers

Preschool and Kindergarten Teachers

Elementary and Middle School Teachers

Secondary School Teachers

Special Education Teachers

Other Teachers and Instructors

Archivists, Curators, and Museum Technicians

Librarians

Library Technicians

Teacher Assistants

Other Education, Training, and Library Workers

I-24

Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations (27) Artists and Related Workers Designers Actors Producers and Directors Athletes, Coaches, Umpires, and Related Workers Dancers and Choreographers Musicians, Singers, and Related Workers Entertainers and Performers, Sports and Related Workers, All Other Announcers News Analysts, Reporters, and Correspondents Public Relations Specialists Editors Technical Writers Writers and Authors Miscellaneous Media and Communications Workers Broadcast and sound engineering technicians and radio operators Broadcast and Sound Engineering Technicians and Radio Operators and Other Media and Communication Equipment Workers Photographers Television, Video, and Motion Picture Camera Operators and Editors Media and Communications Workers, All Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations (29) Chiropractors Dentists Dietitians and Nutritionists Optometrists Pharmacists Physicians and Surgeons Physician Assistants Podiatrists Registered Nurses Audiologists Occupational Therapists Physical Therapists Radiation Therapists Recreational Therapists Respiratory Therapists Speech-Language Pathologists Therapists, All Other Veterinarians Health Diagnosing and Treating Practitioners, All Other

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Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians Dental Hygienists Diagnostic Related Technologists and Technicians Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics Health Diagnosing and Treating Practitioner Support Technicians Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses Medical Records and Health Information Technicians Opticians, Dispensing Miscellaneous Health Technologists and Technicians Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations Healthcare Support Occupations (31) Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides Occupational Therapist Assistants and Aides Physical Therapist Assistants and Aides Massage Therapists Dental Assistants Medical Assistants and Other Healthcare Support Occupations Protective Service Occupations (33) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Correctional Officers First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Police and Detectives First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Fire Fighting and Preventions Workers Supervisors, Protective Service Workers, All Other Fire Fighters Fire Inspectors Bailiffs, Correctional Officers, and Jailers Detectives and Criminal Investigators Fish and Game Wardens Parking enforcement workers Miscellaneous Law Enforcement Workers

Police officers Police and sheriff's patrol officers

Transit and Railroad Police Animal Control Workers Private Detectives and Investigators Security Guards and Gaming Surveillance Officers Crossing Guards Lifeguards and Other Protective Service Workers

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Food Preparation and Serving Occupations (35) Chefs and Head Cooks First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Food Preparation and Serving Workers Cooks Food Preparation Workers Bartenders Combined Food Preparation and Serving Workers, Including Fast Food Counter Attendants, Cafeteria, Food Concession, and Coffee Shop Waiters and Waitresses Food Servers, Non-restaurant Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants and Bartender Helpers Dining Room and Cafeteria Attendants, Bartender Helpers, and Miscellaneous Food Preparation and Serving Related Workers Dishwashers Hosts and Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, and Coffee Shop Food Preparation and Serving Related Workers, All Other Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations (37) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Housekeeping and Janitorial Workers First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers Janitors and Building Cleaners Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners Pest Control Workers Grounds Maintenance Workers Personal Care and Service Occupations (39) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Gaming Workers First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Personal Service Workers Animal Trainers Nonfarm Animal Caretakers Gaming Services Workers Motion Picture Projectionists Ushers, Lobby Attendants, and Ticket Takers Miscellaneous Entertainment Attendants and Related Workers Funeral Service Workers Barbers Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists Miscellaneous Personal Appearance Workers Baggage Porters, Bellhops, and Concierges Tour and Travel Guides Transportation Attendants Child Care Workers Personal and Home Care Aides Recreation and Fitness Workers Residential Advisors Personal Care and Service Workers, All Other

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Sales Occupations (41) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Retail Sales Workers First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Non-Retail Sales Workers Cashiers Counter and Rental Clerks Parts Salespersons Retail Salespersons Advertising Sales Agents Insurance Sales Agents Securities, Commodities, and Financial Services Sales Agents Travel Agents Sales Representatives, Services, All Other Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing Models, Demonstrators, and Product Promoters Real Estate Brokers and Sales Agents Sales Engineers Telemarketers Door-To-Door Sales Workers, News and Street Vendors, and Related Workers Sales and Related Workers, All Other Office and Administrative Support Occupations (43) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Office and Administrative Support Workers Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service Telephone Operators Communications Equipment Operators, All Other Bill and Account Collectors Billing and Posting Clerks and Machine Operators Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks Gaming Cage Workers Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks Procurement Clerks Tellers Brokerage Clerks Correspondence Clerks Court, Municipal, and License Clerks Credit Authorizers, Checkers, and Clerks Customer Service Representatives Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs File Clerks Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan Library Assistants, Clerical Loan Interviewers and Clerks New Accounts Clerks

I-28

Order Clerks Correspondence Clerks and Order Clerks

Human Resources Assistants, Except Payroll and Timekeeping Receptionists and Information Clerks Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks Information and Record Clerks, All Other Cargo and Freight Agents Couriers and Messengers Dispatchers Meter readers, Utilities Postal Service Clerks Postal Service Mail Carriers Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators Production, Planning and Expediting Clerks Shipping, Receiving, and Traffic Clerks Stock Clerks and Order Filers Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Record keeping Secretaries and Administrative Assistants Computer Operators Data Entry Keyers Word Processors and Typists Desktop Publishers Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service Office Clerks, General Office Machine Operators, Except Computer Proofreaders and Copy Markers Statistical Assistants Office and Administrative Support Workers, All Other Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations (45) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers Agricultural Inspectors Animal Breeders Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products Miscellaneous Agricultural Workers Miscellaneous Agricultural Workers, Including Animal Breeders

Fishing and Hunting Workers Fishers and Related Fishing Workers

Hunters and Trappers Forest and Conservation Workers Logging Workers

I-29

Construction, Extraction and maintenance occupations (47) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers Boilermakers Brickmasons, Blockmasons, and Stonemasons Carpenters Carpet, Floor, and Tile Installers and Finishers Cement Masons, Concrete Finishers, and Terrazzo Workers Construction Laborers Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators Pile-Driver Operators Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators Miscellaneous Construction Equipment Operators Drywall Installers, Ceiling Tile Installers, and Tapers Electricians Glaziers Insulation Workers Painters, Construction and Maintenance Paperhangers Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters Plasterers and Stucco Masons Reinforcing Iron and Rebar Workers Roofers Sheet Metal Workers Structural iron and steel workers Iron and Steel Workers Helpers, Construction Trades Construction and Building Inspectors Elevator Installers and Repairers Fence Erectors Hazardous Materials Highway Maintenance Workers Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners Miscellaneous Construction and Related Workers Derrick, rotary drill, and service unit operators, oil, gas, and mining Derrick, Rotary Drill, and Service Unit Operators, and Roustabouts, Oil, Gas, and Mining

Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters Mining Machine Operators Roof Bolters, Mining Roustabouts, Oil and Gas Helpers -- Extraction Workers Miscellaneous Extraction Workers, Including Roof Bolters and Helpers Other extraction workers

I-30

Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers (49) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers Radio and Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers Avionics Technicians Electric Motor, Power Tool, and Related Repairers Electrical and Electronics Installers and Repairers, Transportation Equipment Electrical and electronics repairers, industrial and utility Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Industrial, Utility, and Transportation Equipment

Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers, Motor Vehicles Electronic Home Entertainment Equipment Installers and Repairers Security and Fire Alarm Systems Installers Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians Automotive Body and Related Repairers Automotive Glass Installers and Repairers Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists Heavy Vehicle and Mobile Equipment Service Technicians and Mechanics Small Engine Mechanics Miscellaneous Vehicle and Mobile Equipment Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers Control and Valve Installers and Repairers Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers Home Appliance Repairers Industrial and Refractory Machinery Mechanics Maintenance and Repair Workers, General Maintenance Workers, Machinery Millwrights Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers Precision Instrument and Equipment Repairers Coin, Vending, and Amusement Machine Servicers and Repairers Commercial Divers Locksmiths and Safe Repairers Manufactured Building and Mobile Home Installers Riggers Signal and Track Switch Repairers Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers Other installation, maintenance, and repair workers Other Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers, Including Commercial Drivers and Signal and Track Switch Repairers

I-31

Production Occupations (51) First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Production and Operating Workers Aircraft Structure, Surfaces, Rigging, and Systems Assemblers Electrical, Electronics, and Electromechanical Assemblers Engine and Other Machine Assemblers Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators Bakers Butchers and Other Meat, Poultry, and Fish Processing Workers Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders Food Batchmakers Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders Computer Control Programmers and Operators Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Forging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Drilling and Boring Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Lathe and Turning Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Milling and Planing Machine Setter, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Machinists Metal Furnace and Kiln Operators and Tenders Model Makers and Patternmakers, Metal and Plastic Molders and Molding Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Tool and Die Makers Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Workers Heat Treating Equipment Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Lay-Out Workers, Metal and Plastic Plating and Coating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners Metalworkers and plastic workers, all other Other Metal Workers and Plastic Workers, Including Milling, Planning, and Machine Tool Operators

Bookbinders and Bindery Workers Job Printers Prepress Technicians and Workers Printing Machine Operators Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials Sewing Machine Operators Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders

I-32

Tailors, Dressmakers, and Sewers Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders Textile Cutting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Textile Knitting and Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Textile Winding, Twisting, and Drawing Out Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers Fabric and Apparel Patternmakers Upholsterers Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers, all other Miscellaneous Textile, Apparel, and Furnishings Workers, Except Upholsterers

Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters Furniture Finishers Model Makers and Patternmakers, Wood Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing Woodworkers, all other Miscellaneous Woodworkers, Including Model Makers and Patternmakers

Power Plant Operators, Distributors, and Dispatchers Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators Water and Liquid Waste Treatment Plant and System Operators Miscellaneous Plant and System Operators Chemical Processing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Crushing, Grinding, Polishing, Mixing, and Blending Workers Cutting Workers Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers Medical, Dental, and Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians Packaging and Filing Machine Operators and Tenders Painting Workers Photographic Process Workers and Processing Machine Operators Semiconductor Processors Cementing and Gluing Machine Operators and Tenders Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders Cooling and Freezing Equipment Operators and Tenders Etchers and Engravers Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Tire Builders Helpers--Production Workers Production workers, all other Other Production Workers, Including Semiconductor Processors and Cooling and Freezing Equipment Operators

I-33

Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (53) Supervisors, Transportation and Material Moving Workers Aircraft Pilots and Flight Engineers Air Traffic Controllers and Airfield Operations Specialists Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians Bus Drivers Driver/Sales Workers and Truck Drivers Taxi Drivers and Chauffeurs Motor vehicle operators, all other Miscellaneous Motor Vehicle Operators, Including Ambulance Drivers and Attendants

Locomotive Engineers and Operators Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters Subway, Streetcar, and Other Rail Transportation Workers Sailors and Marine Oilers Ship and Boat Captains and Operators Ship Engineers Bridge and Lock Tenders Parking Lot Attendants Service Station Attendants Transportation Inspectors Other transportation workers Miscellaneous Transportation Workers, Including Bridge and Lock Tenders and Traffic Technicians Conveyor Operators and Tenders Crane and Tower Operators Dredge, Excavating, and Loading Machine Operators Hoist and Winch Operators Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand Machine Feeders and Offbearers Packers and Packagers, Hand Pumping Station Operators Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors Shuttle Car Operators Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders Material moving workers, all other Miscellaneous Material Moving Workers; Including Conveyor Operators and Tenders; Shuttle Car Operators; and Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders

Part II. Evidence from Transitions between Private Sector and Alaska State Government Employment

By Matthew Berman

All ISER publications are solely the work of the individual authors. This report and its findings should be attributed to the authors, not to ISER, the University of Alaska Anchorage, or the research sponsors. For more information about this section of the report, please contact Matthew Berman, professor of economics.

E-mail: [email protected] • Phone: 907-786-5426

mailto:[email protected]

II-1

Introduction Every year since 2001, about 800 workers transitioned from year-round employment in the private sector in Alaska to year-round employment in Alaska state government (Figure 1). About half that number moved each year from year-round Alaska state government jobs to year-round private sector jobs in Alaska each year (Figure 2). About 50 percent more women than men moved from private sector to state jobs, while 50 percent more men moved to private sector jobs from state government jobs. The number of job transitions by gender has been relatively stable over time. Figure 1.

Figure 2

II-2

These job transitions offer an opportunity to examine directly whether private sector workers obtain higher pay when moving to jobs in Alaska state government, and vice versa. Individual job transitions represent an especially good opportunity to examine pay differences because they control completely for individual differences, including those that might be difficult or impossible to observe—such as personality, appearance, and reputation. Methods and Data Because relatively few people in a given occupation moved across sectors in any given year, we examine transition wages over a relatively long period: 2000 through 2014. Since we want to exclude seasonal jobs, and therefore need a full year on each side of the transition to determine whether both the previous job and the current job involve year-round employment, the analysis examines job transitions that took place between 2001 and 2013. We estimated annual wages by multiplying earnings for the last full quarter before the transition by four, comparing it to four times earnings for the first full quarter after the transition. Estimated annual salaries before and after the transition were adjusted for inflation to constant 2013 dollars, with the Anchorage Consumer Price Index. The salary data for this analysis came from employment records maintained by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workplace Development (ADOLWD). The employment records provided the occupation for the worker’s jobs before and after the transition. Occupations represent the “major groups” of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics Standard Occupation Classification (SOC) system (http://www.bls.gov/soc/major_groups.htm). We anticipated that there may be differences in labor market conditions by gender as well as by occupation. Analysts with ADOLWD's Research and Analysis Section with access to confidential individual records were able to link employment records with Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) applications by the worker’s social security number. The PFD applications provided the worker’s gender, age, and place of residence. The record linkage to PFD applications meant that only Alaska residents were included in the analysis. State employment records do not include federal civilian employees or active-duty military service men and women. We also ignored local government jobs. Consequently, the analysis focuses on transitions between Alaska state government and private sector employment, and vice versa. ADOLWD analysts tabulated the individual records and performed various statistical analyses with the confidential data under the general direction of ISER staff. The first analysis compares estimated inflation-adjusted annual wages before and after the job transition across sectors. Since a given job transition might be associated with a promotion to a position requiring more experience and expecting greater responsibility, we analyze transitions from state to private employment separately from those from private to state employment. We summarized the estimated annual inflation-adjusted salaries by gender and by occupation before and after the transition, and performed t tests for the significance of the paired salary differences. The t test estimates the probability that the average difference in salary could be due to random variation. The second analysis is similar to the first, but examines the estimated total annual compensation, including benefits before and after the transition. Benefits were estimated as a fixed percentage of salary, using national averages for public sector and private

II-3

sector workers in each occupation, based on the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ 2014 National Compensation Survey. Although exact benefits percentages could be derived for Alaska state government workers, Alaska-specific figures are not available for private sector employees. Consequently, we determined that it would be best to use the national averages for private and public sector workers in each occupation. Results: Estimated Average Annual Wages Over the past 15 years, workers leaving private sector jobs for jobs in Alaska state government, without changing occupations, on average found jobs that paid lower salaries than the private sector jobs they left behind. Overall, wages were 7.3 percent higher in the private sector jobs than in the state jobs. Wage differentials for women were less than for men. On average, private sector wages were about six percent higher for women and nine percent higher for men (Figure 3). Over the same 14-year period, workers leaving Alaska state government jobs to take private sector jobs in the same occupation saw large salary gains on average. Wages were almost 20 percent higher in the private sector jobs taken than in the state jobs left behind, with the differentials for men about two percent higher than those for women. Figure 3.

Average Private Over State Wage Differentials for Workers Moving Between Alaska State Government and

Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation

5.9%

9.3%7.3%

18.6%20.9%

19.9%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

Female Male All WorkersPer

cent

age

wag

e di

ffere

ntia

l, pr

ivat

e ov

er s

tate

Private to state transitions State to private transitions

Workers taking state jobs in most—but not all—occupations saw wage losses. Wage differentials for workers varied by occupation, in some cases substantially. Table 1 shows that the largest wage accrued to workers in business operations/financial specialists, management, and legal professions. Men in construction trades also took large wage losses on average. Workers taking state jobs in computer and office and administrative support occupations lost pay as well, but in lesser amounts. Women in health-care support and life sciences positions, and men in engineering and maintenance/repair positions, also took jobs with lower wages than their previous private sector jobs. On the other hand, women in community and social service positions and food preparation and serving jobs and male transportation workers saw significant wage

II-4

gains from taking state jobs. Wage differentials for transitions in other occupations were not systematically positive or negative and could not be distinguished statistically from zero change. The last column of the table shows the probability that the change was due to chance, given the variation in wage changes among individual job transitions, with bold font highlighting changes that are less than 10 percent likely if the differences were random.

II-5

Table 1. Average Annual Wages in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Private Sector to Year-Round Alaska State Government Jobs in the Same

Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count

Average annual wage, private

Average annual wage, state

Average annual wage

change

Probability difference

due to chance

Female All Occupations 2,389 $41,795 $39,321 ($2,473) 0.0% 11 Management 71 78,089 66,772 (11,317) 0.1% 13 Business and Financial Operations 62 59,460 53,805 (5,656) 8.4% 15 Computer and Mathematical 16 54,239 51,293 (2,945) 46.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 26 61,139 58,707 (2,432) 69.5% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 52 55,782 48,598 (7,184) 1.6% 21 Community and Social Services 157 41,663 45,281 3,618 0.1% 23 Legal 70 75,794 65,620 (10,174) 0.5% 25 Education, Training, and Library 33 44,419 49,442 5,024 19.7% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 20 32,045 38,682 6,638 20.8% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 197 63,833 62,994 (839) 64.5% 31 Healthcare Support 104 38,268 35,212 (3,056) 7.6% 33 Protective Service 14 41,588 44,579 2,991 41.6% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 24 24,219 28,842 4,623 5.7% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 15 25,802 26,200 398 86.9% 39 Personal Care and Service 5 31,474 29,167 (2,307) 88.1% 41 Sales and Related 6 30,627 33,869 3,242 52.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 1,501 34,940 32,189 (2,751) 0.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 32,731 35,733 3,002 82.0%

Male All Occupations 1,199 $56,649 $51,363 ($5,286) 0.0% 11 Management 46 85,731 76,283 (9,448) 8.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 25 72,041 54,505 (17,536) 3.8% 15 Computer and Mathematical 104 56,492 52,202 (4,290) 1.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 85 74,583 67,145 (7,438) 8.4% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 42 59,568 54,202 (5,366) 17.7% 21 Community and Social 50 43,649 43,327 (322) 89.1% 23 Legal 49 94,796 73,696 (21,100) 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 19 47,238 53,184 5,946 39.0% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 15 47,560 48,364 804 81.8% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 34 78,661 81,096 2,434 79.4% 31 Healthcare Support 19 31,814 39,004 7,191 12.3% 33 Protective Service 84 45,321 47,547 2,226 34.1% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 24 39,291 36,997 (2,294) 49.3% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 26 28,542 30,959 2,417 18.1% 39 Personal Care and Service 7 44,557 41,835 (2,723) 69.4% 43 Office and Administrative Support 195 35,491 33,142 (2,349) 3.2% 47 Construction Trades 160 73,382 56,294 (17,088) 0.0% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 150 57,191 50,274 (6,917) 0.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 58 44,045 53,900 9,854 0.6%

Total All Occupations 3,588 $46,759 $43,345 ($3,413) 0.0% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-6

Table 2 further refines the results by including only those workers who took jobs in the same occupation without moving their residence to another community. About 12 percent of the workers making transitions from private to state government employment moved in association with the change of jobs. The requirement that the worker not move insures that the state position actually taken corresponds geographically to the private sector labor market measured by the wage in the previous private job. Limiting the comparison to jobs in the same community produces very similar results. If anything, the wage losses are slightly larger and the wage gains in the few occupations with gains are slightly smaller when physical moves are excluded.

II-7


Occupation and Same Place, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 2,117 $41,843 $39,154 ($2,688) 0.0% 11 Management 65 79,573 66,856 (12,717) 0.1% 13 Business and Financial Operations 59 59,258 53,367 (5,891) 8.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 11 54,867 52,303 (2,564) 64.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 23 58,586 59,183 596 92.4% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 42 58,771 49,919 (8,852) 1.1% 21 Community and Social Services 138 41,293 44,540 3,246 0.4% 23 Legal 59 76,011 65,824 (10,187) 1.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 25 45,004 47,191 2,187 63.3% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 18 30,641 38,201 7,560 18.8% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 174 63,847 62,570 (1,277) 51.7% 31 Healthcare Support 88 38,047 35,537 (2,510) 18.9% 33 Protective Service 12 42,992 45,354 2,362 57.6% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 21 24,745 28,821 4,076 12.4% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 14 26,115 26,718 603 81.7% 39 Personal Care and Service 5 31,474 29,167 (2,307) 88.1% 41 Sales and Related 5 30,254 31,666 1,412 80.4% 43 Office and Administrative Support 1,345 35,017 32,123 (2,894) 0.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 4 29,533 40,273 10,740 42.5%

Male All Occupations 1,054 $57,536 $51,667 ($5,870) 0.0% 11 Management 43 86,386 76,336 (10,050) 8.1% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 25 72,041 54,505 (17,536) 3.8% 15 Computer and Mathematical 86 56,709 51,636 (5,073) 0.6% 17 Architecture and Engineering 78 75,490 68,590 (6,900) 13.5% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 34 64,141 56,086 (8,055) 7.7% 21 Community and Social 42 46,041 43,477 (2,564) 27.9% 23 Legal 45 94,533 73,841 (20,693) 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 18 48,101 49,620 1,519 77.7% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 11 43,240 46,853 3,613 33.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 31 76,566 81,533 4,967 61.5% 31 Healthcare Support 15 30,147 41,285 11,138 3.6% 33 Protective Service 62 47,233 48,321 1,089 70.2% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 22 38,374 37,075 (1,300) 71.5% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 24 28,890 31,426 2,535 19.6% 39 Personal Care and Service 6 42,562 40,974 (1,587) 84.6% 43 Office and Administrative Support 174 36,062 32,935 (3,127) 0.8% 47 Construction Trades 145 71,669 55,933 (15,735) 0.0% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 140 57,516 49,717 (7,799) 0.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 49 46,348 54,724 8,376 3.1%

Total All Occupations 3,171 $47,059 $43,313 ($3,746) 0.0% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-8

Tables 3, 4, and 5 show the same comparisons as Table 2 but consider only job transitions for residents of Anchorage, Fairbanks, and Juneau, respectively. The results for Anchorage (Table 3) roughly parallel those of the state as a whole. However, for Anchorage residents, women taking protective service and arts/entertainment/media positions earned more in the state jobs than in their previous private sector jobs. On the other hand, Anchorage men in food preparation and serving jobs took large pay cuts taking state jobs. Because there are fewer state employees in Fairbanks and a narrower private sector economic base in Juneau, there were far fewer sector job transitions in these communities to compare. In general, the wage differentials overall were somewhat smaller, with the same occupations showing positive and negative differentials generally as in the statewide results.

II-9


Occupation in Anchorage, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 1,011 $43,336 $40,260 ($3,076) 0.0% 11 Management 40 85,976 71,502 (14,474) 0.6% 13 Business and Financial Operations 33 60,340 59,188 (1,152) 70.2% 15 Computer and Mathematical 7 48,533 51,191 2,659 73.8% 17 Architecture and Engineering 18 59,320 57,063 (2,257) 77.0% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 23 64,655 55,520 (9,134) 6.2% 21 Community and Social Services 56 41,150 41,965 815 57.0% 23 Legal 47 79,019 64,455 (14,563) 0.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 11 49,299 51,890 2,592 69.6% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 9 31,457 42,328 10,871 2.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 83 62,496 64,384 1,888 42.7% 31 Healthcare Support 37 36,417 37,898 1,481 46.8% 33 Protective Service 7 34,769 42,518 7,748 7.8% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 8 23,186 28,639 5,453 21.6% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 5 34,008 31,347 (2,661) 34.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 616 34,387 31,005 (3,382) 0.0%

Male All Occupations 492 $58,530 $52,612 ($5,918) 0.0% 11 Management 24 87,465 71,515 (15,950) 4.7% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 15 76,481 55,426 (21,055) 11.2% 15 Computer and Mathematical 50 54,276 48,787 (5,489) 0.4% 17 Architecture and Engineering 41 81,393 69,082 (12,311) 8.3% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 16 83,129 61,108 (22,020) 0.6% 21 Community and Social 15 50,866 43,432 (7,434) 10.3% 23 Legal 34 101,345 74,747 (26,599) 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 31,468 43,521 12,052 26.1% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 5 42,705 44,766 2,061 78.0% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 22 73,673 86,984 13,311 26.7% 31 Healthcare Support 9 29,048 46,246 17,199 0.1% 33 Protective Service 30 44,964 47,853 2,889 50.8% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 9 48,532 36,701 (11,831) 0.5% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 13 31,500 34,910 3,410 28.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 88 35,919 32,609 (3,310) 2.5% 47 Construction Trades 35 68,872 59,921 (8,950) 18.9% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 53 53,919 48,168 (5,751) 1.8% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 21 38,457 52,018 13,562 0.5%

Total All Occupations 1,503 $48,310 $44,303 ($4,006) 0.0%

aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-10


Occupation in Fairbanks, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 348 $38,727 $37,875 ($852) 34.3% 11 Management 11 65,324 56,700 (8,625) 15.6% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 7 55,824 43,413 (12,411) 24.2% 21 Community and Social Services 29 38,772 47,488 8,715 0.6% 23 Legal 4 51,411 80,921 29,510 9.1% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 23 63,969 54,379 (9,590) 13.3% 31 Healthcare Support 9 31,537 31,768 231 97.4% 33 Protective Service 4 51,480 50,892 (588) 94.7% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 4 28,815 34,056 5,241 42.5% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 24,410 22,046 (2,365) 60.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 234 34,793 33,657 (1,136) 18.6%

Male All Occupations 170 $58,272 $53,727 ($4,544) 2.4% 11 Management 7 93,009 91,886 (1,123) 95.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 15 65,237 55,139 (10,098) 12.5% 17 Architecture and Engineering 19 68,653 67,875 (778) 91.1% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 9 50,629 53,047 2,418 64.9% 21 Community and Social 6 37,856 42,364 4,507 28.1% 23 Legal 4 74,828 70,473 (4,355) 61.4% 33 Protective Service 7 49,635 59,763 10,129 18.2% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 23,629 27,561 3,932 24.7% 43 Office and Administrative Support 25 32,145 36,950 4,805 13.8% 47 Construction Trades 31 78,347 57,440 (20,907) 0.2% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 25 54,587 50,758 (3,829) 43.7% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 52,555 44,072 (8,483) 59.5%

Total All Occupations 518 $45,141 $43,078 ($2,064) 2.1%


II-11


Occupation in Juneau, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 296 $40,136 $37,215 ($2,921) 0.3% 11 Management 8 69,165 62,205 (6,960) 32.1% 13 Business and Financial Operations 19 58,743 47,861 (10,883) 14.9% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 6 46,425 40,885 (5,540) 48.2% 21 Community and Social Services 12 38,584 42,896 4,313 31.8% 23 Legal 6 72,979 63,407 (9,572) 16.3% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 7 57,816 57,473 (343) 97.0% 31 Healthcare Support 18 54,591 37,814 (16,777) 0.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 211 35,049 33,392 (1,656) 7.9%

Male All Occupations 135 $52,492 $46,976 ($5,516) 0.3% 11 Management 9 80,942 70,449 (10,493) 41.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 8 67,379 52,355 (15,025) 19.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 14 51,743 57,054 5,311 17.9% 17 Architecture and Engineering 9 86,154 61,950 (24,205) 0.4% 21 Community and Social 12 43,368 41,758 (1,610) 74.9% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 6 43,686 48,592 4,906 31.5% 33 Protective Service 6 52,581 42,375 (10,206) 25.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 38 36,074 31,787 (4,287) 8.5% 47 Construction Trades 8 69,534 52,660 (16,874) 25.7% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 8 68,653 51,641 (17,012) 8.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 48,982 52,732 3,750 61.8%

Total All Occupations 431 $44,006 $40,272 ($3,733) 0.0%


II-12

Tables 6 through 10 show the analogous set of results for wages of workers making transitions from jobs in Alaska state government to jobs in the private sector. On average, workers transitioning from state jobs to private sector jobs experienced significant wage gains in most occupations. However, there were some exceptions. Women’s earnings in food preparation and serving in the private sector were substantially less—about 40 percent lower— than in their previous state food preparation jobs. However, only 13 workers in 15 years made this transition, so it is not clear that this figure represents the labor market overall. For men, protective service and transportation workers made substantially less in the private sector. The overall pattern of results (Table 6) changes little when job transitions associated with moves between communities are excluded (Table 7).

II-13

Table 6. Average Annual Wages in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Alaska State Government to Year-Round Private Sector Jobs in the Same

Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 1,053 $43,532 $51,636 $8,104 0.0% 11 Management 51 70,504 82,804 12,300 0.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 42 56,472 69,464 12,988 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 12 55,132 61,764 6,632 50.8% 17 Architecture and Engineering 13 55,948 76,896 20,948 4.5% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 43 50,412 73,320 22,908 0.0% 21 Community and Social 38 48,460 46,836 (1,624) 55.9% 23 Legal 92 55,224 89,124 33,900 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 30 43,908 48,236 4,332 39.9% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 44,832 52,712 7,880 2.1% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 100 58,736 64,776 6,040 7.8% 31 Healthcare Support 60 32,764 32,760 (4) 99.9% 33 Protective Service 8 43,644 36,340 (7,304) 67.2% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 13 39,468 21,080 (18,388) 0.9% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 5 31,520 25,332 (6,188) 45.6% 41 Sales 5 31,904 38,488 6,584 28.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 531 35,060 39,672 4,612 0.0%

Male All Occupations 649 $63,084 $76,280 $13,196 0.0% 11 Management 48 80,476 99,320 18,844 0.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 17 65,828 72,056 6,228 44.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 60 56,760 80,352 23,592 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 62 74,880 95,056 20,180 0.0% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 29 64,004 77,460 13,452 4.5% 21 Community and Social 13 52,772 55,396 2,628 59.7% 23 Legal 87 60,012 92,972 32,960 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 63,000 49,580 (13,420) 43.9% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 39,944 43,888 3,944 19.7% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 27 93,648 104,720 11,072 29.7% 31 Healthcare Support 9 45,800 44,280 (1,520) 79.9% 33 Protective Service 52 71,488 55,216 (16,272) 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 5 34,076 44,316 10,244 60.3% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 9 33,552 28,932 (4,624) 54.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 52 36,932 46,072 9,140 0.4% 47 Construction Trades 67 65,836 84,484 18,648 0.3% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 48 62,644 78,184 15,540 0.0% 51 Production 21 55,588 58,536 2,948 37.5% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 27 64,624 54,288 (10,336) 8.4%

Total All Occupations 1,707 $50,980 $61,100 $10,120 0.0%


II-14


Occupation and Same Place, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 917 $43,285 $51,186 $7,901 0.0% 11 Management 46 70,502 83,964 13,462 0.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 39 56,795 69,337 12,542 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 11 56,148 67,287 11,139 25.9% 17 Architecture and Engineering 13 55,948 76,896 20,948 4.5% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 37 50,336 71,804 21,469 0.0% 21 Community and Social 30 45,984 47,467 1,483 61.0% 23 Legal 59 57,551 94,899 37,347 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 26 40,143 44,688 4,545 40.8% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 44,830 52,711 7,880 2.1% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 88 58,681 65,178 6,497 6.1% 31 Healthcare Support 50 32,483 32,496 13 99.6% 33 Protective Service 7 48,828 38,507 (10,321) 60.4% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 12 40,009 21,523 (18,486) 1.5% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 5 31,519 25,331 (6,189) 45.6% 41 Sales 4 29,702 32,026 2,325 57.4% 43 Office and Administrative Support 480 35,170 39,852 4,681 0.0%

Male All Occupations 529 $64,466 $77,454 $12,988 0.0% 11 Management 42 81,661 100,678 19,017 0.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 15 65,817 70,615 4,798 59.6% 15 Computer and Mathematical 47 57,507 80,373 22,866 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 55 76,260 94,691 18,432 0.0% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 23 67,748 81,556 13,808 8.8% 21 Community and Social 11 48,590 52,508 3,918 46.1% 23 Legal 52 67,003 102,020 35,017 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 6 37,018 41,221 4,204 77.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 23 97,939 112,482 14,543 22.7% 31 Healthcare Support 6 47,087 44,394 (2,692) 41.8% 33 Protective Service 36 73,576 55,068 (18,508) 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 5 34,074 44,317 10,243 60.3% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 8 34,036 28,261 (5,776) 50.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 46 37,503 46,287 8,784 0.8% 47 Construction Trades 61 66,709 86,006 19,297 0.5% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 41 63,980 79,000 15,020 0.1% 51 Production 20 54,553 56,436 1,883 56.6% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 25 64,193 57,075 (7,117) 21.5%

Total All Occupations 1446 $51,034 $60,796 $9,762 0.0%


II-15

The wage gains after moves from state employment to the private sector become even more consistent when considering only transitions for residents of communities with the largest labor markets: Anchorage (Table 8), Fairbanks (Table 9), and Juneau (Table 10). Male residents of Anchorage in protective service occupations and female residents of Juneau in management jobs earned significantly less in the private sector, but all other transitions were associated with either a significant wage gain or a change that was not statistically distinguishable from no change. The largest gains were found in Anchorage, the community with the largest and most robust private sector labor market. On average, Anchorage residents gained $13,000 from the move to a private sector job, a wage gain of 25 percent.

II-16


Occupation in Anchorage, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 468 $45,771 $56,971 $11,200 0.0% 11 Management 34 70,317 89,007 18,690 0.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 25 56,664 71,363 14,699 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 5 60,413 73,568 13,155 6.1% 17 Architecture and Engineering 7 59,745 67,058 7,313 58.1% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 18 56,704 81,662 24,958 1.9% 21 Community and Social 17 46,118 47,811 1,692 63.5% 23 Legal 50 57,276 98,683 41,406 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 42,995 38,124 (4,871) 62.7% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 46 63,035 67,877 4,841 35.5% 31 Healthcare Support 23 37,483 35,164 (2,319) 60.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 227 34,314 40,672 6,358 0.0%

Male All Occupations 255 $66,160 $83,345 $17,185 0.0% 11 Management 26 76,584 99,046 22,462 0.3% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 11 64,937 76,818 11,880 7.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 21 56,740 78,041 21,300 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 33 78,468 94,773 16,304 1.9% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 13 58,832 83,186 24,354 2.7% 21 Community and Social 4 51,042 52,626 1,584 87.7% 23 Legal 37 67,497 109,252 41,754 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 5 37,747 48,574 10,828 50.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 14 102,616 144,044 41,428 0.2% 33 Protective Service 16 75,037 58,997 (16,040) 2.9% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 4 28,416 26,785 (1,632) 86.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 18 40,396 48,799 8,402 13.3% 47 Construction Trades 11 65,874 72,862 6,989 36.4% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 15 65,295 83,620 18,325 0.1% 51 Production 11 55,123 51,959 (3,164) 12.7% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 12 60,745 57,878 (2,867) 44.1%



II-17


Occupation in Fairbanks, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 142 $41,353 $46,308 $4,955 1.5% 11 Management 4 71,482 99,492 28,011 25.3% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 4 58,578 68,662 10,084 10.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 5 54,395 92,863 38,468 6.2% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 8 42,265 70,159 27,895 0.5% 21 Community and Social 5 39,675 44,227 4,552 32.0% 23 Legal 4 70,111 79,144 9,033 56.8% 25 Education, Training, and Library 11 33,604 51,958 18,354 1.1% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 7 61,146 56,847 (4,299) 70.6% 31 Healthcare Support 9 27,541 24,926 (2,615) 62.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 69 36,111 37,196 1,085 65.6%

Male All Occupations 76 $69,275 $78,152 $8,877 8.7% 11 Management 7 101,934 121,705 19,770 2.4% 15 Computer and Mathematical 10 68,934 82,157 13,223 11.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 5 73,829 96,834 23,005 14.4% 23 Legal 5 65,228 53,682 (11,546) 30.3% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 4 109,549 72,370 (37,179) 42.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 6 29,765 29,260 (505) 94.4% 47 Construction Trades 17 69,809 89,843 20,035 28.2% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 7 65,408 81,093 15,686 32.2%



II-18


Occupation in Juneau, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 116 $42,064 $43,814 $1,750 34.7% 11 Management 6 76,044 53,423 (22,621) 2.2% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 10 56,408 64,543 8,135 32.5% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 5 48,531 74,258 25,727 1.8% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 5 60,045 54,464 (5,581) 54.8% 31 Healthcare Support 5 30,181 37,807 7,626 44.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 75 36,548 38,353 1,805 35.1%

Male All Occupations 60 $55,377 $67,827 $12,450 0.9% 11 Management 7 76,179 77,279 1,100 86.7% 15 Computer and Mathematical 7 55,729 95,184 39,455 0.3% 17 Architecture and Engineering 8 75,410 93,795 18,386 22.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 12 33,659 45,396 11,736 8.4% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 6 49,280 51,383 2,102 86.2%

Total All Occupations 176 $46,603 $52,000 $5,398 0.8% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-19

Results: Estimated Average Annual Total Compensation Using the national average multipliers for the value of employee benefits, we compared changes in total annual compensation in the private sector to annual compensation in state employment of workers moving from state jobs to private sector jobs and those moving from private to state jobs. On average over the past 15 years, total compensation of workers leaving private sector jobs for jobs in Alaska state government in the same occupation rose by an average of two percent after the transition. Men experienced a two percent loss in the value of wages and benefits from transition to state jobs, but women saw compensation gains of 3.5 percent. On the other hand, both men and women leaving Alaska state government jobs to take private sector jobs in the same occupation experienced large gains on average in the value of wages plus benefits. Total compensation was 9 percent higher in the private sector jobs taken than in the state jobs left behind. Differentials for men were again larger than for women. Private over state compensation differentials were 11 percent for men and 6 percent for women leaving state jobs for private sector jobs (Figure 4). Figure 4.

Average Private Over State Compensation Differentials for Workers Moving Between Alaska State Government

and Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation

-3.5%

1.9%

-1.3%

6.4%

10.8%

8.6%

-5.0%

0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

Female Male All Workers

Per

cent

age

wag

e pl

us b

enef

its d

iffer

entia

l, pr

ivat

e ov

er s

tate

Private to state transitions State to private transitions

When we considered the compensation differentials separately by occupation, the results, shown in Table 11, present a decidedly mixed picture. Women and men both received substantially less compensation in management, legal, science, and business and financial operations jobs, although variation among individuals meant that the change was not statistically significant for women in business and financial jobs and for men in science occupations. However, protective service, health-care support, food service, building and grounds maintenance, office, and male transportation workers earned higher salary and benefits in state jobs than in their previous private sector jobs. Workers in community service, and education-related occupations, also earned somewhat more in wages plus benefits after taking state government jobs, but the differences were statistically significant only for women in community service occupations.

II-20

Table 11. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Private Sector to Year-Round Alaska State Government Jobs

in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 2,451 $60,276 $62,376 $2,100 0.0% 11 Management 68 119,080 101,224 (17,856) 0.1% 13 Business and Financial Operations 61 83,840 76,764 (7,076) 13.4% 15 Computer and Mathematical 16 77,560 75,460 (2,104) 71.6% 17 Architecture and Engineering 29 89,808 86,936 (2,872) 73.7% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 55 80,292 71,496 (8,796) 2.9% 21 Community and Social Services 173 60,780 67,116 6,336 0.0% 23 Legal 72 110,280 97,588 (12,688) 1.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 32 62,892 71,912 9,020 12.2% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 21 45,976 57,000 11,024 12.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 204 91,168 92,544 1,376 59.5% 31 Healthcare Support 107 50,612 59,764 9,152 0.0% 33 Protective Service 14 54,896 75,388 20,492 0.1% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 23 33,560 49,940 16,380 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 14 34,168 47,704 13,536 0.1% 41 Sales and Related 4 45,224 53,568 8,348 45.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 1,546 50,492 53,292 2,796 0.0%

Male All Occupations 1,228 $80,864 $79,316 ($1,552) 19.4% 11 Management 47 128,572 113,716 (14,856) 6.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 27 102,876 80,132 (22,740) 4.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 106 81,048 77,108 (3,936) 9.3% 17 Architecture and Engineering 89 105,512 98,060 (7,452) 21.6% 19 Life, Physical and science 40 84,796 80,704 (4,092) 47.3% 21 Community and Social 50 62,200 63,584 1,388 68.2% 23 Legal 51 134,700 108,224 (26,476) 0.1% 25 Education, Training, and Library 19 67,552 78,548 10,996 27.9% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 16 69,272 72,248 2,976 52.4% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 35 113,632 117,848 4,220 75.4% 31 Healthcare Support 22 44,428 65,752 21,324 0.2% 33 Protective Service 89 58,972 80,824 21,848 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 24 51,864 63,060 11,196 2.7% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 28 37,272 52,892 15,620 0.0% 39 Personal Care and Service 6 56,180 69,440 13,256 28.7% 43 Office and Administrative Support 202 50,988 54,480 3,492 2.9% 47 Construction Trades 166 105,972 87,160 (18,812) 0.0% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 159 80,292 77,196 (3,096) 24.3% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 50 62,708 86,748 24,040 0.0%

Total All Occupations 3,685 $67,140 $68,004 $864 11.4%


II-21

In general, the results by occupation showed compensation gains for workers moving from private to state jobs in most lower-wage occupations and losses in compensation for workers taking state jobs in higher-wage occupations. Limiting the comparisons to workers remaining in the same community when changing sectors (Table 12) makes little difference in the results, but slightly reduces the net public sector advantage. Overall, the average compensation gain from moving to state jobs was 1.4 percent. Another way to look at local labor markets is to consider transitions where both jobs are in the same community, although the workers might have moved or be working remotely. Table 13 shows the same results as Table 12, but controlling for place of work rather than place of residence. Although the magnitude of the average wage changes were similar and the pattern of occupational differences were similar, there were some differences from the place of residence table in the magnitude of wage changes. In particular, wage gains from moving to state jobs in health-care support and office occupations were lower in the same place of work than controlling for place of residence. Men working in private sector transportation jobs who took state jobs located in the same community experienced much smaller gains than men taking state jobs who did not move to a different community, apparently due to lower earnings in the private sector for workers holding transportation jobs away from their place of residence.

II-22

Table 12. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Private Sector to Year-Round Alaska State Government Jobs in the Same Occupation and Same Place of Residence, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired

Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 2,117 $60,064 $62,413 $2,349 0.0% 11 Management 65 114,585 99,615 (14,969) 0.4% 13 Business and Financial Operations 59 85,332 79,516 (5,815) 23.2% 15 Computer and Mathematical 11 78,460 77,409 (1,051) 89.5% 17 Architecture and Engineering 23 83,779 87,591 3,812 67.4% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 42 84,043 73,880 (10,162) 3.8% 21 Community and Social Services 138 59,050 65,919 6,869 0.0% 23 Legal 59 108,696 97,419 (11,276) 4.8% 25 Education, Training, and Library 25 64,355 69,842 5,487 40.8% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 18 43,817 56,538 12,721 12.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 174 91,301 92,603 1,302 64.6% 31 Healthcare Support 88 50,222 60,769 10,546 0.0% 33 Protective Service 12 56,749 77,555 20,806 0.4% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 21 32,663 49,283 16,621 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 14 34,471 45,688 11,216 1.0% 39 Personal Care and Service 5 41,546 49,876 8,330 73.1% 41 Sales and Related 5 42,355 52,881 10,526 24.6% 43 Office and Administrative Support 1,345 50,775 53,646 2,871 0.0% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 4 42,232 62,826 20,593 33.4%

Male All Occupations 1,054 $81,908 $80,088 $(1,819) 15.6% 11 Management 43 124,396 113,741 (10,656) 19.5% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 25 103,739 81,212 (22,527) 6.2% 15 Computer and Mathematical 86 81,094 76,421 (4,672) 7.2% 17 Architecture and Engineering 78 107,951 101,513 (6,438) 32.9% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 34 91,721 83,007 (8,714) 17.1% 21 Community and Social 42 65,838 64,346 (1,492) 65.9% 23 Legal 45 135,183 109,285 (25,898) 0.1% 25 Education, Training, and Library 18 68,784 73,438 4,654 55.2% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 11 61,834 69,343 7,509 17.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 31 109,489 120,669 11,180 44.7% 31 Healthcare Support 15 39,794 70,597 30,803 0.1% 33 Protective Service 62 62,347 82,629 20,282 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 22 50,654 63,398 12,744 2.1% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 24 38,135 53,738 15,603 0.0% 39 Personal Care and Service 6 56,181 70,066 13,885 26.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 174 52,290 55,001 2,711 12.4% 47 Construction Trades 145 102,486 87,256 (15,230) 0.1% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 140 82,249 77,559 (4,690) 9.4% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 49 66,277 85,370 19,092 0.1%

Total All Occupations 3,177 $67,314 $68,258 $945 10.7% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-23


in the Same Occupation and Same Place of Work, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 2,113 $59,892 $62,040 $2,152 0.0% 11 Management 58 121,844 102,072 (19,772) 0.1% 13 Business and Financial Operations 51 79,664 79,228 (440) 90.7% 15 Computer and Mathematical 12 79,608 74,448 (5,160) 16.8% 17 Architecture and Engineering 22 95,064 85,060 (10,004) 30.3% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 40 84,500 74,052 (10,448) 3.5% 21 Community and Social Services 146 61,228 66,864 5,636 0.1% 23 Legal 60 111,992 99,280 (12,716) 2.4% 25 Education, Training, and Library 27 60,152 64,080 3,928 52.7% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 17 45,956 56,304 10,348 19.4% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 161 93,484 91,872 (1,612) 56.9% 31 Healthcare Support 89 53,588 62,052 8,464 0.2% 33 Protective Service 11 58,784 78,728 19,944 0.9% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 23 33,560 49,940 16,380 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 12 34,116 48,864 14,744 0.1% 41 Sales and Related 4 45,224 53,568 8,348 45.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 1,372 50,116 53,408 3,292 0.0%

Male All Occupations 937 $79,480 $77,824 ($1,656) 21.5% 11 Management 34 122,144 112,688 (9,456) 18.6% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 27 102,876 80,132 (22,740) 4.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 88 80,804 77,688 (3,116) 23.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 69 107,704 98,476 (9,228) 17.9% 19 Life, Physical and science 28 89,116 81,596 (7,520) 29.3% 21 Community and Social 41 63,912 62,636 (1,276) 70.6% 23 Legal 43 131,236 105,216 (26,016) 0.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 16 67,068 70,388 3,320 69.9% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 12 67,076 70,312 3,240 60.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 30 114,556 122,372 7,816 59.2% 31 Healthcare Support 18 45,444 70,076 24,632 0.1% 33 Protective Service 49 59,776 80,020 20,244 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 20 51,056 62,568 11,512 3.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 25 37,376 54,108 16,732 0.0% 39 Personal Care and Service 6 56,180 69,440 13,256 28.7% 43 Office and Administrative Support 179 50,152 54,332 4,180 0.9% 47 Construction Trades 105 101,664 84,620 (17,044) 0.3% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 116 82,812 76,380 (6,432) 3.1% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 30 51,888 84,756 32,868 0.0%



II-24

The mixed pattern of wage differentials persisted when we considered the communities with the largest number of state employees. Women and men living in Anchorage earned significantly less in state management and legal positions compared with their previous private sector jobs (Table 14), but significantly more in health-care support, protective service, and building and grounds maintenance jobs. Male transportation workers earned more in state government, but computer workers and scientists earned less. Female food preparation, office, and arts and entertainment workers earned more in state jobs. Declines in compensation for workers changing from private to state legal jobs located in Anchorage (Table 15) were substantially greater than declines for legal workers living in Anchorage but not necessarily working there (Table 14). Men working in Anchorage private sector transportation jobs who took state jobs also experienced much smaller compensation gains than Anchorage resident men taking state jobs who did not move.

II-25


in the Same Occupation, Anchorage Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 1,011 $62,220 $63,746 $1,526 10.0% 11 Management 40 123,805 106,538 (17,267) 2.2% 13 Business and Financial Operations 33 86,890 88,190 1,301 76.7% 15 Computer and Mathematical 7 69,401 75,763 6,362 58.2% 17 Architecture and Engineering 18 84,828 84,454 (374) 97.3% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 23 92,456 82,170 (10,286) 13.4% 21 Community and Social Services 56 58,845 62,109 3,264 11.7% 23 Legal 47 112,997 95,394 (17,603) 0.7% 25 Education, Training, and Library 11 70,497 76,798 6,301 51.0% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 9 44,984 62,646 17,662 1.7% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 83 89,369 95,289 5,919 8.4% 31 Healthcare Support 37 48,070 64,806 16,736 0.0% 33 Protective Service 7 45,895 72,705 26,810 0.3% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 8 30,606 48,973 18,367 1.9% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 5 44,891 53,604 8,713 3.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 616 49,861 51,779 1,918 8.2%

Male All Occupations 492 $83,306 $81,264 $(2,042) 30.5% 11 Management 24 125,950 106,558 (19,393) 8.5% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 15 110,133 82,584 (27,548) 14.4% 15 Computer and Mathematical 50 77,615 72,205 (5,410) 4.8% 17 Architecture and Engineering 41 116,392 102,242 (14,150) 15.9% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 16 118,874 90,441 (28,434) 0.9% 21 Community and Social 15 72,738 64,279 (8,459) 18.8% 23 Legal 34 144,924 110,625 (34,299) 0.1% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 45,000 64,411 19,411 22.2% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 5 61,069 66,254 5,186 62.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 22 105,352 128,736 23,384 19.4% 31 Healthcare Support 9 38,343 79,081 40,739 0.0% 33 Protective Service 30 59,352 81,829 22,477 0.1% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 9 64,062 62,759 (1,303) 79.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 13 41,580 59,696 18,116 0.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 88 52,083 54,457 2,374 28.3% 47 Construction Trades 35 98,486 93,478 (5,009) 61.1% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 53 77,103 75,141 (1,962) 57.9% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 21 54,993 81,149 26,155 0.0%

Total All Occupations 1,503 $69,123 $69,481 $358 69.1% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-26


Located in Anchorage in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 1,100 $61,608 $63,212 $1,604 4.5% 11 Management 39 132,616 107,996 (24,624) 0.4% 13 Business and Financial Operations 29 84,616 84,092 (524) 90.5% 15 Computer and Mathematical 9 73,796 70,680 (3,116) 43.3% 17 Architecture and Engineering 17 85,240 82,344 (2,896) 77.0% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 28 90,240 78,496 (11,748) 5.6% 21 Community and Social Services 69 59,120 62,136 3,012 15.7% 23 Legal 48 117,488 97,752 (19,740) 0.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 13 70,416 75,156 4,736 55.3% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 8 42,432 62,076 19,644 1.3% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 93 90,860 95,044 4,184 20.6% 31 Healthcare Support 45 49,800 65,228 15,428 0.0% 33 Protective Service 7 53,544 74,780 21,236 4.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 8 28,684 48,216 19,532 1.1% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 40,752 51,588 10,836 1.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 675 48,384 51,532 3,148 0.0%

Male All Occupations 521 $81,512 $79,572 ($1,940) 30.7% 11 Management 21 118,900 107,064 (11,836) 13.9% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 19 105,336 81,028 (24,308) 10.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 55 78,360 74,052 (4,312) 10.1% 17 Architecture and Engineering 35 123,292 103,896 (19,396) 11.3% 19 Life, Physical and science 16 112,196 87,580 (24,612) 1.9% 21 Community and Social 16 68,288 62,352 (5,940) 32.5% 23 Legal 34 138,284 105,952 (32,332) 0.2% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 45,000 64,016 19,016 23.1% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 6 71,680 69,348 (2,332) 84.2% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 27 110,132 126,712 16,580 28.0% 31 Healthcare Support 15 40,028 67,804 27,776 0.2% 33 Protective Service 29 56,500 77,860 21,360 0.2% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 7 62,092 62,328 232 97.1% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 15 40,308 58,824 18,516 0.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 96 51,808 53,648 1,840 36.0% 47 Construction Trades 36 95,660 85,052 (10,608) 29.4% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 65 79,632 78,164 (1,468) 66.4% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 18 50,988 83,260 32,272 0.0%



II-27

In Fairbanks (Table 16), male construction workers lost ground when they took state jobs, but female office workers gained compensation. Comparing compensation changes for place of work to change by place of residence, it appears that compensation gains for women changing from private to state jobs located in Fairbanks (Table 17) gained more compared to Fairbanks resident women changing sectors in the same occupations, while male state to private wage differentials were generally lower for Fairbanks jobs than for jobs held by Fairbanks residents. In Juneau labor markets, male residents of Juneau taking state engineering jobs earned less than they had earned from private sector employers, but men taking computer jobs and women taking office jobs earned more from the state (Table 18). Because most people living in Juneau worked there, there is little difference in the pattern of differentials between the results tabulated by place of work (Table 19) and results tabulated by place of residence (Table 18).

II-28


in the Same Occupation, Fairbanks Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count


Average annual

wage, state

Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 348 $55,624 $60,972 $5,348 0.0% 11 Management 11 94,067 84,482 (9,584) 26.7% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 7 79,828 64,252 (15,577) 30.1% 21 Community and Social 29 55,445 70,282 14,837 0.2% 23 Legal 4 73,517 119,763 46,245 7.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 23 91,475 80,481 (10,995) 22.6% 31 Healthcare Support 9 41,628 54,323 12,694 24.7% 33 Protective Service 4 67,954 87,025 19,071 17.8% 35 Food Preparation and Serving Related 4 38,036 58,235 20,200 11.2% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 32,222 37,698 5,476 42.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 234 50,450 56,208 5,758 0.0%

Male All Occupations 170 $83,024 $83,192 $168 95.4% 11 Management 7 133,933 136,911 2,977 90.9% 15 Computer and Mathematical 15 93,289 81,605 (11,684) 21.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 19 98,174 100,456 2,282 82.1% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 9 72,400 78,509 6,110 42.6% 21 Community and Social 6 54,135 62,698 8,563 17.1% 23 Legal 4 107,004 104,300 (2,704) 82.6% 33 Protective Service 7 65,518 102,195 36,678 0.8% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 31,190 47,129 15,940 0.8% 43 Office and Administrative Support 25 46,610 61,706 15,096 0.5% 47 Construction Trades 31 112,036 89,606 (22,430) 1.7% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 25 78,059 79,182 1,123 87.4% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 75,154 68,753 (6,401) 78.9%


II-29


in Fairbanks in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count


Average annual

wage, state

Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 345 $57,356 $61,204 $3,848 0.8% 11 Management 8 101,332 85,612 (15,720) 16.0% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 6 86,276 61,864 (24,412) 11.2% 21 Community and Social Services 30 60,536 69,620 9,084 1.8% 23 Legal 5 78,124 115,648 37,524 8.5% 25 Education, Training, and Library 4 49,564 43,016 (6,552) 86.5% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 5 38,996 41,096 2,100 76.5% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 22 92,364 80,412 (11,952) 21.7% 31 Healthcare Support 8 39,172 50,420 11,248 36.3% 33 Protective Service 4 67,952 85,636 17,684 22.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 235 52,292 56,284 3,992 0.9%

Male All Occupations 150 $78,192 $80,780 $2,588 38.2% 11 Management 6 124,668 137,796 13,128 54.4% 15 Computer and Mathematical 15 97,660 84,612 (13,048) 17.7% 17 Architecture and Engineering 19 84,176 97,200 13,028 11.0% 19 Life, Physical and science 9 60,488 74,564 14,076 7.0% 21 Community and Social 7 56,888 63,144 6,256 26.0% 23 Legal 4 107,004 102,724 (4,280) 71.5% 33 Protective Service 8 72,328 98,736 26,408 1.8% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 7 32,744 48,196 15,452 0.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 23 42,644 59,648 17,004 0.1% 47 Construction Trades 21 108,376 84,920 (23,456) 8.2% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 20 81,904 76,128 (5,776) 44.0%



II-30


in the Same Occupation, Juneau Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 296 $57,565 $60,236 $2,671 5.9% 11 Management 8 99,598 92,685 (6,913) 49.0% 13 Business and Financial Operations 19 84,591 71,312 (13,278) 22.0% 19 Life, Physical, and Social Science 6 66,388 60,510 (5,878) 60.3% 21 Community and Social Services 12 55,175 63,487 8,312 19.2% 23 Legal 6 104,360 93,843 (10,517) 26.0% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 7 82,676 85,060 2,383 85.7% 31 Healthcare Support 18 72,060 64,661 (7,398) 25.6% 43 Office and Administrative Support 211 50,820 55,765 4,944 0.1%

Male All Occupations 135 $74,997 $72,665 $(2,332) 37.5% 11 Management 9 116,557 104,969 (11,588) 52.8% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 8 97,026 78,008 (19,018) 24.7% 15 Computer and Mathematical 14 73,992 84,439 10,447 7.4% 17 Architecture and Engineering 9 123,201 91,686 (31,515) 0.6% 21 Community and Social 12 62,016 61,802 (215) 97.7% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 6 62,472 71,916 9,445 19.5% 33 Protective Service 6 69,406 72,461 3,054 77.5% 43 Office and Administrative Support 38 52,307 53,085 778 82.5% 47 Construction Trades 8 99,434 82,150 (17,284) 40.5% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 8 98,174 80,560 (17,614) 17.5% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 70,044 82,262 12,218 30.8%


II-31


in Juneau in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 314 $57,084 $59,732 $2,648 4.9% 11 Management 8 99,596 92,108 (7,488) 45.5% 13 Business and Financial Operations 16 79,436 73,772 (5,664) 48.8% 21 Community and Social Services 14 54,812 65,272 10,460 2.8% 23 Legal 5 101,488 93,148 (8,344) 45.7% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 7 79,128 82,324 3,200 80.9% 31 Healthcare Support 20 72,960 59,680 (13,280) 2.7% 43 Office and Administrative Support 231 50,104 55,136 5,032 0.0%

Male All Occupations 141 $72,300 $72,744 $444 85.9% 11 Management 7 129,712 108,040 (21,672) 32.7% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 8 97,024 78,008 (19,016) 24.7% 15 Computer and Mathematical 16 70,984 84,416 13,432 1.8% 17 Architecture and Engineering 13 104,684 88,376 (16,308) 7.6% 21 Community and Social 12 62,016 61,380 (636) 93.0% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 6 62,472 71,280 8,808 23.3% 33 Protective Service 5 55,800 69,224 13,428 16.6% 43 Office and Administrative Support 42 48,696 54,204 5,508 5.5% 47 Construction Trades 8 103,792 83,912 (19,880) 34.8% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 6 93,056 77,024 (16,036) 36.4% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 5 74,032 90,156 16,124 25.0%


II-32

The mixed pattern of compensation differentials by occupation continued when we looked at transitions from state jobs to private sector jobs (Table 20). With state to private transitions, however, the balance tilts more toward higher private sector pay. The results show significant gains in total compensation for both women and men who moved from state to private jobs in management, engineering, science, and legal occupations. Private sector jobs offered less compensation in health-care support and building and grounds maintenance occupations. Women earned more in private business operations and financial jobs and less in food service jobs. Men earned more in private sector computer, construction, transportation, and installation and maintenance jobs. Male health-care practitioners earned less in the private sector. Compensation differentials by occupation are not consistently different between men and women. Nevertheless, a higher share of men are concentrated in management, engineering, computer, and legal occupations, where the private sector pay is considerably higher than in state government, leading to larger overall compensation differentials for men.

II-33

Table 20. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Alaska State Government to Year-Round Private Sector Jobs

in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 1,106 $68,824 $73,252 $4,428 0.0% 11 Management 53 106,080 119,420 13,340 0.3% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 43 84,404 98,944 14,540 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 12 81,596 86,940 5,344 54.3% 17 Architecture and Engineering 14 81,172 107,260 26,088 2.5% 19 Life, Physical and science 45 75,184 102,752 27,568 0.0% 21 Community and Social 38 72,792 66,948 (5,844) 9.1% 23 Legal 93 82,008 126,600 44,592 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 33 65,448 68,792 3,344 60.7% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 65,920 74,316 8,396 29.0% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 109 85,404 91,380 5,976 10.3% 31 Healthcare Support 61 57,856 44,224 (13,632) 0.0% 33 Protective Service 7 73,480 46,300 (27,180) 19.1% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 14 69,060 30,276 (38,784) 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 6 47,680 37,944 (9,736) 23.1% 41 Sales 5 53,580 53,660 80 99.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 563 59,092 56,932 (2,160) 1.9%

Male All Occupations 682 $96,832 $107,280 $10,448 0.0% 11 Management 48 123,692 144,268 20,576 0.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 18 97,964 105,196 7,232 24.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 64 81,928 111,552 29,624 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 73 109,424 128,936 19,512 0.0% 19 Life, Physical and science 28 95,476 111,856 16,384 4.6% 21 Community and Social 13 77,832 78,784 952 89.7% 23 Legal 89 88,020 130,948 42,932 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 93,240 70,296 (22,944) 45.6% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 59,120 62,760 3,640 82.8% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 28 137,808 147,292 9,484 60.6% 31 Healthcare Support 9 80,920 57,764 (23,156) 1.4% 33 Protective Service 54 121,800 72,628 (49,172) 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 6 58,960 54,780 (4,184) 72.8% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 9 57,376 37,912 (19,464) 4.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 52 61,556 65,724 4,168 42.8% 47 Construction Trades 76 101,004 117,860 16,856 0.4% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 50 96,868 111,216 14,348 0.0% 51 Production 21 86,720 82,440 (4,276) 48.2% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 30 97,404 73,588 (23,816) 0.0%

Total All Occupations 1,793 $79,492 $86,324 $6,832 0.0% aOccupations with fewer than four transitions are included in the totals but not shown separately, to avoid disclosing confidential information.

II-34

The patterns of occupational differences noted in Table 20 persisted when we limited the analysis to transitions where workers remained in the same community when they changed jobs (Table 21), and transitions where workers took new jobs in the same community (Table 22). Private sector compensation was substantially higher in management, engineering, science, and legal occupations for both women and men. Private sector jobs offered less compensation in building and grounds maintenance occupations. Women earned more in private business operations and financial jobs and less in food service jobs. Men earned more in private sector computer, construction, and installation and maintenance jobs, and less in transportation jobs. The main difference between the tabulations where the place of residence did not change and those where the place of work stayed the same is that the negative private sector compensation for female office and administrative support workers is larger and statistically significant by place of work.

II-35

Table 21. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Year-Round Alaska State Government to Year-Round Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation and Same Place of Residence, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired

Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 917 $68,330 $73,398 $5,068 0.0% 11 Management 46 105,048 120,909 15,861 0.3% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 39 84,624 99,846 15,221 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 11 83,099 96,220 13,121 18.3% 17 Architecture and Engineering 13 82,803 109,961 27,158 2.9% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 37 74,497 102,680 28,183 0.0% 21 Community and Social 30 68,056 67,878 (178) 96.1% 23 Legal 59 85,176 135,705 50,529 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 26 59,411 63,903 4,492 51.6% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 66,349 75,376 9,027 24.2% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 88 86,848 93,204 6,356 12.3% 31 Healthcare Support 50 55,546 42,895 (12,651) 0.1% 33 Protective Service 7 83,496 50,829 (32,667) 7.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 12 68,415 28,411 (40,004) 0.1% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 5 53,898 33,436 (20,462) 0.2% 41 Sales 4 49,602 44,837 (4,765) 61.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 480 58,735 57,785 (950) 33.9%

Male All Occupations 529 $99,042 $110,365 $11,323 0.0% 11 Management 42 121,675 144,977 23,301 0.3% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 15 98,067 101,686 3,618 62.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 47 85,111 114,934 29,823 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 55 112,864 135,409 22,544 0.0% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 23 100,267 116,625 16,358 7.1% 21 Community and Social 11 71,913 75,086 3,174 64.7% 23 Legal 52 99,164 145,888 46,724 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 6 54,786 58,946 4,160 74.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 23 144,950 160,850 15,899 47.7% 31 Healthcare Support 6 80,518 58,600 (21,918) 2.7% 33 Protective Service 36 125,815 72,690 (53,125) 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 5 58,267 58,498 231 98.8% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 8 58,202 37,304 (20,898) 5.4% 43 Office and Administrative Support 46 62,630 67,116 4,486 44.2% 47 Construction Trades 61 104,066 122,989 18,923 0.8% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 41 99,809 112,971 13,162 0.3% 51 Production 20 85,103 80,704 (4,399) 47.5% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 25 100,141 81,618 (18,523) 0.8%



II-36


in the Same Occupation and Same Place of Work, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 926 $68,540 $72,584 $4,044 0.0% 11 Management 42 $104,512 $117,488 $12,976 1.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 42 84,736 98,972 14,236 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 8 88,916 90,096 1,184 90.2% 17 Architecture and Engineering 12 79,776 100,056 20,280 11.7% 19 Life, Physical and science 34 75,448 98,592 23,144 0.1% 21 Community and Social 30 69,540 67,288 (2,248) 46.4% 23 Legal 78 82,684 130,716 48,032 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 28 60,840 67,616 6,776 34.8% 27 Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media 4 65,920 74,316 8,396 29.0% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 89 83,040 92,320 9,280 1.4% 31 Healthcare Support 51 59,744 45,380 (14,360) 0.0% 33 Protective Service 4 82,248 44,868 (37,380) 28.8% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 12 72,948 29,392 (43,556) 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 4 55,912 28,228 (27,684) 0.1% 41 Sales 5 53,580 53,660 80 99.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 479 59,228 55,776 (3,448) 0.1%

Male All Occupations 491 $96,828 $108,720 $11,892 0.0% 11 Management 41 129,164 146,908 17,748 1.9% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 15 101,176 105,016 3,840 57.9% 15 Computer and Mathematical 47 82,312 105,924 23,612 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 55 112,532 129,824 17,292 0.1% 19 Life, Physical and science 17 102,248 116,504 14,256 25.7% 21 Community and Social 11 71,592 74,572 2,980 66.8% 23 Legal 71 88,480 133,652 45,172 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 7 82,064 65,972 (16,092) 62.2% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 21 150,628 155,536 4,908 83.8% 31 Healthcare Support 4 85,712 65,028 (20,684) 11.3% 33 Protective Service 24 118,652 69,940 (48,712) 0.0% 35 Food Preparation and Serving 5 54,348 48,676 (5,672) 67.8% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 8 58,204 36,992 (21,208) 5.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 41 64,564 68,572 4,008 51.2% 47 Construction Trades 38 98,180 122,576 24,396 0.0% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 37 94,064 109,624 15,560 0.1% 51 Production 19 86,604 78,140 (8,464) 18.6% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 25 94,796 75,212 (19,584) 0.7%



II-37

For residents of Anchorage who moved from state government to private sector jobs in the same occupation (Table 23), men and women both earned significantly more wages plus benefits in management, business operations/finance, computer, science, and legal service positions. Women earned less in private sector health-care support positions than in the state jobs they gave up. Men also earned more in private engineering and installation and maintenance jobs, but less in protective service work. Overall, moving from state to private sector jobs in the state's largest labor market resulted in substantial compensation gains for both men and women. Private sector jobs paid men on average 18 percent more than the state jobs left behind. Women earned 14 percent more in the private sector. The overall higher private sector compensation and occupational differences noted for Anchorage residents changed relatively little when looking at transitions in jobs located in Anchorage (Table 24) instead of jobs held by Anchorage residents. A notable difference, however, is that there were many fewer women who moved from state to private computer jobs located in Anchorage than female Anchorage residents who moved from state to private computer jobs in general. The small number of transitions in Anchorage workplaces meant that the positive private to state compensation differential was not statistically significant.

II-38


in the Same Occupation, Anchorage Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 468 $71,495 $81,754 $10,259 0.0% 11 Management 34 104,772 128,171 23,398 0.1% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 25 84,429 102,763 18,333 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 5 89,412 105,203 15,791 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 7 88,423 95,893 7,470 70.2% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 18 83,921 116,777 32,855 1.0% 21 Community and Social 17 68,255 68,369 114 97.4% 23 Legal 50 84,769 141,116 56,347 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 8 63,633 54,518 (9,116) 36.9% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 46 93,292 97,063 3,771 54.5% 31 Healthcare Support 23 64,096 46,416 (17,680) 0.4% 43 Office and Administrative Support 227 57,304 58,974 1,670 25.8%

Male All Occupations 255 $100,836 $118,875 $18,039 0.0% 11 Management 26 114,111 142,626 28,516 0.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 11 96,757 110,618 13,861 9.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 21 83,976 111,598 27,622 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 33 116,133 135,525 19,392 0.1% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 13 87,071 118,955 31,884 0.1% 21 Community and Social 4 75,542 75,255 (287) 94.8% 23 Legal 37 99,896 156,230 56,334 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 5 55,865 69,461 13,596 41.4% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 14 151,872 205,983 54,111 13.5% 33 Protective Service 16 128,313 77,877 (50,437) 0.0% 37 Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance 4 48,592 35,356 (13,236) 19.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 18 67,461 70,758 3,296 79.5% 47 Construction Trades 11 102,763 104,193 1,430 82.9% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 15 101,860 119,576 17,716 3.0% 51 Production 11 85,991 74,301 (11,691) 15.1% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 12 94,762 82,766 (11,996) 29.1%



II-39

Table 24. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Anchorage Year-Round Alaska State Government to Anchorage Year-Round Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired

Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 521 $70,421 $79,972 $9,551 0.0% 11 Management 33 104,612 126,597 21,985 0.0% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 27 84,131 102,168 18,037 0.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 6 81,564 96,375 14,811 13.9% 17 Architecture and Engineering 7 85,513 94,776 9,264 65.0% 19 Life, Physical and science 22 80,477 100,605 20,129 5.5% 21 Community and Social 18 69,962 65,040 (4,922) 14.7% 23 Legal 63 82,945 135,296 52,350 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 10 63,157 62,691 (465) 96.5% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 55 84,639 98,820 14,180 0.5% 31 Healthcare Support 29 63,993 44,819 (19,173) 0.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 243 57,406 56,635 (771) 59.9%

Male All Occupations 300 $99,131 $117,777 $18,646 0.0% 11 Management 28 126,049 147,102 21,053 2.1% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 12 98,443 111,932 13,490 6.8% 15 Computer and Mathematical 23 79,129 103,691 24,563 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 43 112,991 129,949 16,959 0.4% 19 Life, Physical and science 10 88,652 120,836 32,184 0.5% 21 Community and Social 4 74,666 74,636 (29) 99.6% 23 Legal 58 87,572 142,790 55,218 0.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 6 54,786 58,143 3,357 79.4% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 14 153,357 190,205 36,849 29.6% 33 Protective Service 11 132,679 67,398 (65,282) 0.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 16 68,039 74,065 6,025 66.4% 47 Construction Trades 15 101,229 111,718 10,489 7.2% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 23 97,267 116,060 18,793 0.4% 51 Production 11 86,962 73,132 (13,830) 9.7% 53 Transportation and Material Moving 19 96,945 85,619 (11,326) 15.4%



II-40

Gender differences were also apparent in Fairbanks and Juneau. Table 25 shows that Fairbanks resident women gained compensation from taking private sector positions in management, engineering, science, and education occupations, but lost ground when taking private jobs in health-care support occupations. Fairbanks men earned more wages plus benefits in computer and installation and maintenance occupations. Viewing transitions for jobs located in Fairbanks (Table 26), the higher private sector compensation for men in computer occupations is no longer statistically significant. However, the positive differential for men working in Fairbanks construction jobs is large and significant. Other occupational patterns are generally the same, except that there were too few management transitions for women to report a differential by place of work. Women living in Juneau gained compensation from taking private jobs in management and science occupations, but lost when moving from state to private office jobs (Table 27). Male residents of Juneau, on the other hand, earned significantly more wages and benefits by moving from state to private jobs in office occupations, as well as by taking private sector computer and engineering positions. The patterns were broadly similar for transitions from state to private jobs located in Juneau (Table 28). But there were too few science transitions for women to report a differential by place of work. Considering all occupations as a whole, the gender differences in Juneau were particularly striking. Women experienced on average a loss in compensation of 10 percent when moving from state to private sector jobs in Alaska's capital city. Men, on the other hand, experienced on average a compensation gain of 10 percent.

II-41


in the Same Occupation, Fairbanks Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 142 $65,775 $66,304 $529 82.4% 11 Management 4 106,508 143,269 36,761 5.4% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 4 87,282 98,873 11,592 15.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 5 80,505 132,794 52,289 2.1% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 8 62,552 100,328 37,776 0.0% 21 Community and Social 5 58,718 63,244 4,526 69.6% 23 Legal 4 103,765 113,177 9,412 58.0% 25 Education, Training, and Library 11 49,734 74,300 24,566 3.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 7 90,496 81,291 (9,205) 60.0% 31 Healthcare Support 9 47,095 32,902 (14,193) 4.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 69 60,305 53,934 (6,370) 2.5%

Male All Occupations 76 $105,461 $111,761 $6,300 30.9% 11 Management 7 151,882 175,255 23,372 37.5% 15 Computer and Mathematical 10 102,023 117,485 15,463 2.4% 17 Architecture and Engineering 5 109,267 138,473 29,205 27.1% 23 Legal 5 96,538 76,765 (19,772) 15.7% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 4 162,133 103,489 (58,644) 35.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 6 49,707 42,427 (7,280) 54.5% 47 Construction Trades 17 108,902 128,476 19,574 19.5% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 7 102,036 115,964 13,927 6.1%



II-42

Table 26. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Fairbanks Year-Round Alaska State Government to Fairbanks Year-Round

Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count

Average annual

wage, state


Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 136 $65,818 $64,796 $(1,022) 66.8% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 5 90,460 95,768 5,307 42.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 4 73,716 112,210 38,494 10.4% 19 Life, Physical and science 6 62,174 102,197 40,023 0.4% 21 Community and Social 5 58,718 63,244 4,526 69.6% 23 Legal 7 89,537 108,796 19,259 11.4% 25 Education, Training, and Library 10 50,524 78,272 27,748 3.6% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 8 83,262 78,143 (5,119) 75.9% 31 Healthcare Support 8 46,263 31,566 (14,697) 7.0% 43 Office and Administrative Support 66 61,124 52,992 (8,132) 0.4%

Male All Occupations 63 $106,979 $111,870 $4,891 44.8% 11 Management 7 151,882 173,932 22,050 40.1% 15 Computer and Mathematical 10 100,803 106,247 5,444 47.5% 17 Architecture and Engineering 4 116,239 122,320 6,081 84.9% 23 Legal 5 96,538 76,765 (19,772) 15.7% 33 Protective Service 4 99,575 70,455 (29,120) 47.3% 43 Office and Administrative Support 4 52,617 59,051 6,434 65.3% 47 Construction Trades 11 100,391 138,096 37,705 0.2% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 4 106,931 142,389 35,457 0.8%

Total All Occupations 199 $78,849 $79,699 $850 77.1%


II-43


in the Same Occupation, Juneau Residents, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code

Occupations

Count



Average annual wage

change

Probability

due to chance

Female All Occupations 116 $67,264 $62,983 $(4,281) 7.7% 11 Management 6 113,305 76,929 (36,377) 4.6% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 10 84,049 92,942 8,893 36.8% 19 Life, Physical and Social Science 5 71,826 106,189 34,363 1.4% 29 Healthcare Practitioners and Technical 5 88,867 77,884 (10,983) 40.3% 31 Healthcare Support 5 51,610 49,905 (1,705) 87.1% 43 Office and Administrative Support 75 61,036 55,612 (5,424) 1.2%

Male All Occupations 60 $84,923 $96,859 $11,936 0.4% 11 Management 7 113,507 111,282 (2,225) 85.0% 15 Computer and Mathematical 7 82,479 136,113 53,635 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 8 111,606 134,127 22,521 5.9% 43 Office and Administrative Support 12 56,211 65,824 9,613 8.7% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 6 76,877 73,478 (3,400) 62.7%



II-44

Table 28. Average Annual Wages plus Benefits in Constant 2013 Dollars for Workers Moving from Juneau Year-Round Alaska State Government to Juneau Year-Round

Private Sector Jobs in the Same Occupation, 2001-2014, with Test for Paired Differencesa

Occupa-tion Code Occupations Count

Average annual

wage, state


Average annual wage

change


due to chance

Female All Occupations 116 $66,561 $60,188 $(6,373) 0.8% 11 Management 5 110,125 66,571 (43,555) 5.6% 13 Business Operations/Financial Specialists 10 83,502 91,942 8,440 39.8% 31 Healthcare Support 4 48,453 50,250 1,797 89.2% 43 Office and Administrative Support 81 61,715 55,171 (6,545) 0.2%

Male All Occupations 60 $83,589 $92,805 $9,217 6.2% 11 Management 5 118,860 120,231 1,371 93.2% 15 Computer and Mathematical 8 76,600 120,867 44,267 0.0% 17 Architecture and Engineering 8 108,219 132,898 24,680 5.7% 43 Office and Administrative Support 13 58,049 64,949 6,900 22.8% 49 Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers 7 77,984 70,812 (7,172) 27.5%

Total All Occupations 176 $72,366 $71,308 $(1,058) 65.0%


II-45

Summary of Evidence from Private Sector-State Employment Transitions More often than not, a job transition from one sector to the other was associated with an increase in earnings. As noted above, however, men moving from private to state jobs did not see any significant earnings gain, and women lost considerable earnings when moving from state to private jobs in Juneau. On average, compensation differentials from transitions in one direction were about 12 percent higher across the board than the same differential for transitions in the other direction. Averaging the results from transitions since 2000 in both directions, the results showed that on average, private sector wage scales were 14 percent higher than state wage scales for the occupations most prevalent among state employees. Employee benefits offered in government jobs are typically greater than those offered by private sector employers. However, after accounting for the difference in benefits, we estimate that private sector compensation was on average still 4 percent higher than compensation in state jobs. The figures cited above are averages for all state employees. Underlying these averages, we found significant differences by gender as well as by occupation. Private over state differentials were 2-3 percent higher for men than for women on average when considering wages alone, and 4-5 percent higher when estimated benefits were included. We therefore estimate that private sector wage levels were about 12 percent higher for women and 15 percent higher for men than public sector wage levels. Including benefits, we estimate that total compensation was about 1.5 percent higher in the private sector for women, and about 6 percent higher for men. The fact that private sector compensation generally exceeded compensation in similar state jobs does not necessarily mean that private sector jobs are more attractive overall. The fact that there were many more transitions from private to state employment than the reverse suggests that there are likely other benefits from state jobs that offer a more attractive working environment but do not show up in compensation levels. For example, job security is likely higher in state employment, and other working conditions associated with the represented work force may differ, as far fewer private sector jobs are governed by collective bargaining agreements. The persistently greater private over state compensation differentials for men than for women suggest that these non-compensation employee benefits of state employment may be particularly important to women. Although private sector compensation was on average somewhat higher than compensation in state government positions, we noted important differences among occupations. Positive private sector pay differentials were the most prevalent and largest in management, business and finance, computer, engineering, science, and legal positions. Many more men than women are employed in these professions, tending to reinforce the higher private sector compensation differentials for men. Compensation offered by the State of Alaska for health-care support and food service jobs—occupations with more women than men—was more often higher than in the private sector. The state also offered a compensation advantage for women, but not men, in office occupations. On the other hand, private employers generally paid less than the state for positions in protective service, building and grounds maintenance, and transportation occupations, where most of the workers are men. Many of the occupations with higher state compensation were relatively low paying occupations, while those occupations with the largest private sector advantage were among the highest paid.

II-46

Results for state-to-private and private-to-state transitions that did not involve a geographic move uncovered relatively few important geographic differentials. In general, however, private over state pay differentials were higher in Anchorage—where the private sector labor market is the largest and most robust—than in other Alaska communities. The differences by gender showed up most strongly in Juneau, where women fared better in state positions than in private sector positions, while men earned more in the private sector.

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