Private manufacturing companies in Wisconsin pay less than their Midwest counterparts, according to the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages.
In the fourth quarter of 2012, Wisconsin ranked 23rd of the 50 states in average weekly wage, at $1,017 per week. That figure was 4.3 percent higher than Wisconsin’s average weekly wage in the fourth quarter of 2011.
The 9,442 reporting companies employed more than 454,000 people in Wisconsin private manufacturing industry.
Nearby states Illinois ($1,284), Minnesota ($1,158), Iowa ($1,090) and Michigan ($1,278) paid employees a higher average weekly wage than Wisconsin.
Some critics have suggested Wisconsin’s skills gap, the lack of qualified workers entering the state’s manufacturing industry, may be caused by low wages.
Hawaii paid the lowest average weekly wage at $796 and Washington, D.C. was highest at $1,982.
The full report is available here.
