P.M. BRIEFING : Americans’ Median Household Income Inches Up 1.3% in ’89
Americans’ median household income rose 1.3% in 1989, after adjusting for the rise in consumer prices, the Census Bureau reported today. The increase followed two years in which income had been unchanged.
In a report based on a survey of 58,000 U.S. households in March, the bureau also reported that the nation’s poverty rate last year was 12.8%, about the same as in 1988. That means 31.5 million Americans were living in poverty in 1989.
The poverty rate has declined since 1983 but remains higher than it was in 1978, the recent low point, the report said.
The median income for all households was $28,910.
Black household income was up 5% to $18,080, but Latino and white median incomes were unchanged.
The median earnings of all women working full time increased 1.8% to $18,780, while the earnings of men decreased by the same percentage to $27,430.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
