Industry earnings are incomes received by people who are directly involved with producing goods and services. Earnings, referred to also as "labor and proprietors income", include (1) wage and salary disbursements, (2) other labor income such as employer contributions to private retirement and medical insurance programs, and (3) the net incomes of proprietors (i.e., the owners of unincorporated enterprises).

In contrast to the more frequently cited employment data, earnings data more accurately reflect qualitative differences in labor's contributions toward the production of goods and services, namely the productivity differences reflected in variations in earnings per job. Earnings data, therefore, are better for comparing and tracking long-term trends and identifying short-run shifts in the level and composition of economic activity within and among states.

Just like the employment data compiled by BEA, earnings data are reported on a place-of-work, or more accurately on a place-where-earned, basis.

Note: the BEA earnings data presented and discussed here in the context of comparing and assessing the economic growth and performance of state and regional economies are entirely separate and apart from--and should not be confused with--corporate earnings, which are compiled from the balance sheets of individual private corporations.

Figure 1 depicts Kentucky's annual total industry earnings over 1959-2022 in current and constant (2012) dollars. Constant dollar measurements remove the effects of inflation. They allow for comparison of changes in the real purchasing power of Kentucky over time.

When measured in current dollars, Kentucky's total industry earnings increased 3,947.95%, from $3,977M in 1959 to $160,967M in 2022. When measured in constant 2012 dollars to adjust for inflation, it advanced 432.96%, from $24,583M in 1959 to $131,015M in 2022.

Figure 2 shows Kentucky's real total industry earnings growth in a broader context by offering direct comparisons across time with the United States. The growth indices shown here express each region's real total industry earnings in 1958 as a base figure of 100, and the real total industry earningss in later years as a percentage of the 1958 base figure. This method allows for more direct comparison of differences in real total industry earnings growth between regions that may differ vastly in size.

Kentucky's overall real total industry earnings growth was 453.21% over 1958-2022 trailed the United States' increase of 541.19%.

Another interesting and insightful way of contrasting the total industry earnings growth of Kentucky is to trace its individual percentage contributions to the United States' total total industry earnings over time, as shown in Figure 3. A rising share means a region's total industry earnings grew faster, or declined less, than the United States' total industry earnings, while a declining share shows it grew more slowly.

In 1958, Kentucky's total industry earnings totaled 1.21% of the United States' total industry earnings, while in 2022 it totaled 1.04% thereby yielding a -0.17% share-shift.

Figure 4 shows the short-run pattern of Kentucky's real total industry earnings growth by tracking the year-to-year percent change over 1959-2022. The average annual percent change for the entire 64-year period is also traced on this chart to provide a benchmark for gauging periods of relative high--and relative low--growth against the backdrop of the long-term average.

On average, Kentucky's real total industry earnings grew at an annual rate of 2.75% over 1959-2022. The state posted its highest growth in 1984 (9.44%) and posted its lowest growth in 1980 (-5.96%). In 2022, Kentucky's real total industry earnings grew by 2.83%

Over the past six decades some states have experienced extreme swings in growth, and often such swings have tended to coincide with the decades themselves. Figure 5 again illustrates the annual percent change in Kentucky's real total industry earnings since 1959, but this time they are displayed with average growth rates for the decade of the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, 2010s, and 2020-2022.

During the 1960s, Kentucky's annual real total industry earnings growth rate averaged 4.92%. It averaged 4.06% in the 1970s, 1.28% throughout the 1980s, 3.27% during the 1990s, 1.28% throughout the 2000s, 1.70% in the 2010s, 2.34% thus far this decade (2020-2022).

Figure 6 compares the decade average growth rates for Kentucky noted in the previous graph with the corresponding decade averages for the nation.

Relative to nationwide real total industry earnings growth trends, Kentucky outpaced the nation throughout the 1960s (4.92% vs. 4.72%), recorded above the nation during the 1970s (4.06% vs. 3.13%), trailed the nation in the 1980s (1.28% vs. 2.62%), posted below the nation during the 1990s (3.27% vs. 3.43%), fell under the nation over the 2000s (1.28% vs. 1.47%), fell below the nation throughout the 2010s (1.70% vs. 2.53%), and outgained the nation over 2020-2022 (2.34% vs. 1.97%).