Median annual income
Includes income from all sources – including income support.
- The Samoan adult population had a median annual income of $15,600 in the year to March 2001 – $800 above the median annual income of the Pacific adult population. The median annual income for the New Zealand adult population, at $18,500, was approximately a fifth higher than that of Samoan adults, as shown in figure 8.1.
- The median annual income of Samoan adults who were in employment in the week preceding the 2001 Census was $23,500 – equivalent to 85 percent of the median annual income of employed New Zealand adults ($27,700).
- The real median annual income (adjusted for inflation to 2001 dollars) of Samoan people increased by 23 percent from $12,700 in 1991 to $15,600 in 2001. Over the same period, the real median annual income of the Pacific population and the New Zealand population increased by 16 percent and 11 percent respectively.
- New Zealand-born Samoans had a higher median annual income ($17,200) than Samoans born overseas ($14,800) in 2001, reflecting their higher levels of qualifications.
- In 2001, the median annual income of Samoan women was equivalent to 75 percent of that of Samoan men ($13,700 compared with $18,300). The gap between the sexes narrows for those in employment – with the median annual income of employed Samoan women equating to 87 percent of that of employed men ($21,800 compared with $25,000).
- Figure 8.2 shows that Samoan women are proportionately more likely to be in income bands under $20,001, while Samoan men are more likely to be in bands of $20,001 and over.
Income sources
- Wages and salaries were received by 59 percent of Samoan adults in the year to March 2001. The equivalent proportions among the Pacific and New Zealand populations were 58 percent and 57 percent respectively, as figure 8.3 shows.
- Income from self-employment or a self-owned business was received by 4 percent of Samoan adults – the same proportion as the Pacific population in 2001. By comparison, 17 percent of the New Zealand population received income from this source.
- Three percent of Samoans received income from interest, dividends, rent or investments in 2001 – a similar level to the Pacific population. Just over a quarter (26 percent) of the New Zealand population received income from these sources in 2001.
- early one in three Samoan people (32 percent) received some form of income support at some stage during the 12 months prior to the 2001 Census. 'Income support' refers to monetary support from the government, excluding ACC payments and New Zealand Superannuation.
- New Zealand-born and overseas-born Samoans were equally as likely to have received income support in 2001 (31 percent and 32 percent respectively). The comparable figures for the Pacific and New Zealand populations were 33 percent and 19 percent respectively.
- Samoan women (36 percent) were more likely to have received income support than Samoan men (26 percent) in 2001.
