Yesterday, I threw out a quick link to a Pew study that found that more women out-earn their husbands than did in the past.

This study is getting a lot of press. CNN and NBC mentioned it this morning.

Yesterday, Ragtime bought up some important methodological questions. I have some other concerns about this study.

First of all, 22 percent of women make more than their husbands. That's not really all that big of a percentage. Really, the question should be why aren't more women making more than their husbands. 

Secondly, I want to know why women are making more than their husbands. Is it because women are taking higher paying jobs than they did in the past? Are they getting access to higher management positions that would have been barred to them in the past? If so, that's great.

Or is it because blue collar, male dominated jobs have gotten nailed in the past thirty years.

My brother-in-law is a skilled worker. He has an associates degree and specializes in using CAD. He works for a company that makes parts for cars. His wife is an administrative assistant at a hospital. A few years ago, he made more money. Now, she makes more money. Her salary hasn't gone up tremendously. His salary has shrunk. His company took a tremendous hit, because it is so tied to the economic fortunes of Detroit. He only works four days per week now, instead of six days like a few years ago. The whole factory shut down for two weeks over Christmas — no paychecks at all. 

So, I'm not entirely sure if this chart is good news or not.