Educational Attainment of Workers, March 1969 and 1970
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DOCUMENT RESUME AC 010 533 ED 054 397- Deutermann, William AUTHOR of Workers, March1969 and TITLE Educational Attainment Statistics (VOL) a hington,-D.C. INSTITUTION Bureau of Labor PUB DATE 70 47p.; Special Labor ForceReport NOTE Oct 1970 (withadditional JOURNAL CIT Monthly Labdr Review; material) MF-$0.65 HC-$3.29 EDRS PRICE *Labor Force; *Negro _DESCRIPTORS *Academic Achievement; Education; *OccupationalSurveys; *SexDilferences; Tables (Data) ABSTRACT part of tables This artic).e,comprised tor the most primarily on informationfrom-supplementary and charts, is based of the labor questions in the March1969 and March 197_0 surveys Bureau.of LaborStatistics by the Bureau of 'force, conducted for the The findings of the Census, through itsCurrent Population Survey. that the gap ineducational attainmentbetween men surveys indicate white.and and women workershas closed, and thatthe gap between narrowing. These changesand.the reasons therefor, black workers is (DB) and the likely effectsin coming years arediscussed. U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, EDUCATION & WELFARE OFFICE OF EDUCATION Educational , THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRO- DUCED EXACTLY AS, RECEIvED FROM Attainment of Workers, THE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIG INATING IT' POINTS OF VIEW OR WIN- March1969,1970 IONS STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDU- Special Labor CATION POSIT! N OR FOLICY SCOPE OP INTEREST NOTICE Force Report-125 The ERIC Facility has *taloned this document for prat:Mind u. S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR to: Bureau of Lalscr Statistics fit our Judgement, this document 1970 Is moo of Interest to the clew ini; houses noted to the right, index- ing should reflect Duff' Wean! points Of view. Educational Special Labor Force Reportindicates that the gap in educationalattainment attainment between men and women workers has closed, and that the .gapbetween of workers, March white and black workers is narrowing WILLIAM DEUTER MANN 1969 and 1970 Irr 1970, for the first time, theeducational level of entered the labor forco between March 1968 and men in the lethor forceequaled that of working March 1970. The overall improvement in educa- wornena median of 12.4 yearsof schooling for tional attainment, however, was at leastpartially each group. This was in decided contrastto .1940 attributable to ,the net loss of about 1million (the first year for which figures areavailable) workers with less than 8 years of schooling, in paSt when the median for wornen workers wnsalmost years, workers with solittle formal educatien who In 1969 2N years higher than that for men.While levels left the work force were mainly older men. group4, and 1970, however, many pi these'Workers were of education have risen steadily for both ad- the much more rapid rise for men has nowclosed under 35 years of age. Indeed, there was a net, workers the gap. dition to the labor force of about 100,000 Also in 1970, only a little more thanhalf a year age 65 years and over whohad 8 years or legs of separated the median educational attainmentof education. The reasons for these older,workers white workers frt.rn that of Negroes (aridmembes rejoining of remaining in the labor forceinclude along changes in allowable incomes for socialsecurity of other minority races). More progress expansion this line is expected us the Negro educationallevel recipients and the continuing ecopomic felt through the first three quarters of 1969. continues .to advance. number of A major influence in these .and other changes A ilarge party of the increase in, the reported here is the influx into the laborforce wortiers. with some college educatien tookplace while betw6n 1969 and 1970. This period saw anaddi- 'of yonng workers with More education, least 1 year of attrition=by 'death or retirementremoves many tion of 1.4 million workers with at of the older, less educated workers. Thelabor col ege. Of these, 300,000 werecollege graduates, force increased by 3.9 million workersbetween co ared with an increase of 100,000 graduates frorn%1968 to 1969.1-The greater increase maybe March 1968. and March 1970. This increase re- children of sulted froM a net increase of 2.2 millionworkers accounted for gy the "baby bciom" with 1 year of college or more 'and another 2.7 1947 who are now graduatingfrom,college. million who were high school graduates, and a net loss of 1 million workers who had less than 8 years The education of working women of formal schooling. This article is based primarily on information In March 1969, women continued tolead mew. from supplementary questions in the March 1969 in educational attainment, but by asmall margin. in the andMarch 1970 surveys of the labor force con- The median school years for all women ducted for the Bureau of Labor Statisticsby the. labor force in 1969 was 12.4 yeari,compared with Bureau of the Census through its CurrentPopu-. 12.3 years for men. In 1970; thiseducational gap, lation Survey.' The sections:that follow describe which has been steadily decreasingsince the end and .analyze changes occurring:in these 2 years, of the Second World War,disappeared as both some reasons for thesechangeS, and the likely groups achieved amedian of 12.4 years. effects in coming years. Gains among young adultsreflect both the Substantial numbers of more educated workers ,grea-et3cavailability of educational opportunity end the tuccess of effertsaimed at influencing them to Stay in sehool longer.In 1970,130 percent William Deutermann is an economist in theDivision working women 18 to 34 years 'old,and 74 of Labor Force Studies, Bureau of LaborStatistics.. 9 Reprinted from the October 1970 Monthly Labor Review U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR with supplementary tables, Bureau pf Labor Statistles 'Renrint 2696 MONTHLY LABOR REVIEW, OCTOBER 1070 10 high school diploma sidered adequate for men entering theblue-collar percent of working men, had a led to an or better. This age grouphas shown continuing labor force. Technological evolution-hag attainment since1910, increased demand for more educated workers, growth in educational attitudes When the corresponding proportionsfor women and increasing affluence and changing and men were 51 and 36 percent,respectively. helped make additional education both desirable\ Younger men and women, inpayticular, are ahd attainable. These factors contributed tothe achieving higher levels of educationpriorto rapid rise in the educational attainnient ofworking entering the labor' force. In the 20- to24-year age inen relative to working women. labor force group, 87 percentof working women ahd 78 per- Of the 3.9 million net increkse in the cent of working menhave at least 12 years of between 1968 and 1970, 57- percept were women, force, 73 of whom 1.8 million were married. Thiscontinues education. Of those not in the labor female pahicipation in the percent of the women and 91percent of the men a trend of increased graduates, am' many of them, labor force that characterized the economic ex- are high school theie has been especially men, are enrolled in college. pansion of the sixties. Historically, attainment a strong relationshipbetween women's educe- In 1940, the median educatiohal seek for woinen workers 18 to 64 yearsold was MO Lionel attainment and their propensity to 8.6 years. Limited job work. This has been true of fdl age andmarital years, that for men only with less opportunities for..lets educated women-andthe 'groups. Participation rates for women prevalent .vaiw that women's place wasin the than a high achool education ha*remained fairly home-helped tp keep less educated women out cdnstant; while' the ratei 'for thosewith 1.2 years median education or more of educationhave consistently increased. of the labor force. By 1952, the educational Of working women had riseh to 12.0 years.It has This propensity resulted in a rising in 1967 level in the female labor force, as 'women ,con- advanced very slowly since, to 12.4 years attainment fin through 1970. Id the same period, themedian tinned to kad men in educational educational attainment of working men age18 the populaeion .fts a whole. Nevertheless, median education for thefemale to 34 has risen much moresharply-to 10.6 years the late 1930's labor force, has remained eemparativelystable in 1952, and 12.4 years in 1970. In In the and early 1940's, 8 years of education was con- since 1952:when it reaehed 12.0 years. yea-r4 old 'and over, by sex and race,selected Years, 1952-70 Table 1.Educational attainment of the civilian labor fate,18 Female Both se Mete leers of schoolcomet tad sodyee White I Negro sn4 Total While NOVO 1114 Total White Negroand Total I other races other races ether races . Percent of civilian labor force completinespecinad years ofschool , . 22.3 Elementary-8years or leas9 18.4 32. 4 13. ' 12.4 17. 5 16.2 28.0 19. 8 13.2 25. 3 Merch 1970 31. 2 20.9 19.3' 35,1 14, 9 March 1969 18.6 11.1 24.9 44.7 20. 2 l& 0 .35.3 ' 24.6 22.6 40, 8 . 26.9 21. 7 47. 1 March 1964 "". 33.2 30.4 58.1 24. 9 30. 5 27.7 53.8 31. 0 26. 5 62.3 March1959 ' 34. 9 66,5 41.2 38. 7 69. 5 October 1952. 37. 9 7 .- 52.9 Nigh schoot-4ears or mare- 47.3_ 62.7 64.9 43.0 . 69.4 71.3 6 . 67. 5 67. 9 . 70.6 49.0 Much 197 66,0 44,0 61. 0 53.3 40.1 6 56.2 30 9 61, 0 64. 2 39-7 55. 2 L153. 9 34, 5 53.7 59. 8 29. 9 -25, 0 46.6 . 49.4 21.7 55. 9 Mareh 1959 49.8 52.6 15.1 50.