Sources, Methodology and Corrections
The Work State explains US work, pay and hiring through public evidence and practical comparisons. This page describes what the evidence can support, how examples are used and where the limits are.
Who publishes this site
Editorial responsibility: The Work State Editorial, a collective editorial signature.
The publisher is The Work State. Editorial correspondence and responsibility for published material are handled through contact@theworkstate.com and the corrections form. Mailing address: 1216 Broadway, Floor 2, New York, NY 10001, United States.
Sector desk names organize topics. They are collective publication labels, not individual people, professional licenses or evidence of six separate expert teams. No clinician, attorney, financial adviser or other licensed reviewer should be inferred from a desk name.
Sources are not all the same kind of evidence
- Public statistics: we identify the agency, reference period and occupational code where applicable. A national median describes a population; it is not an individual offer.
- Rules and credentials: a statute, regulator or credentialing body’s published requirements are the reference. Jurisdiction, effective date and program type can change the answer.
- Research: a study is described within its population and design. A correlation or one employer’s trial is not a universal causal result.
- Examples and interpretation: our comparisons, worksheets and questions are analytical aids. Fictional scenarios are labelled and do not represent an observed employer or household.
How to read the occupational tables
Wage figures in the current reviewed articles generally use May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Employment projections cover 2025-2035. The two programs have different employment bases: the wage survey covers wage-and-salary employment, while the projections include self-employment where applicable. Do not treat a difference between those counts as missing jobs.
The 10th percentile is not a starting salary, the 90th is not a maximum and the distance between them is not a guaranteed career progression. Wage differences can reflect geography, duties, hours, employer and other factors. A broad occupational code may be only a comparison for a specialized commercial title.
Openings include replacement needs as well as growth. They are annual averages in a projection, not a live vacancy count. Occupational growth is not automatically growth caused by AI, a particular industry or one technology.
Original reference data: BLS Table 1.2 and May 2025 national OEWS data.
Calculations should be reproducible
An hourly annualization must state paid hours and weeks. Salary and contractor revenue are kept separate; withholding is not final tax liability. A calculator shows only its stated model. It does not determine benefit eligibility, prepare a tax return or incorporate every rule that applies to an individual.
We use published figures for context and show our own arithmetic where a comparison depends on it. Projections and illustrative scenarios are not promises about a job, pay rise, credential outcome or investment return.
The former vacancy board
The site previously published job listings. That board is retired. Old vacancy URLs do not accept applications or establish that an employer is hiring. During the October 19, 2026 review, employer examples that could not be supported by verifiable original records were removed from editorial comparisons. The reviewed articles do not treat the old board as a current salary survey.
A future employer sample would need a stated collection period, selection criteria, original references and enough information to check the roles and compensation. A small convenience sample would still not represent the national market.
AI assistance and limitations
AI tools assist research, drafting, editing and computational checks. The source links, assumptions and revision notes are supplied so readers can examine the basis of an article. Automated assistance is not a professional credential or a guarantee of correctness. The site does not claim independent licensed review unless a specific reviewer and scope are identified.
Corrections and revision record
October 19, 2026, site-wide consistency review: aligned the manifesto, topic desks and legal-information pages with the current evidence standards and the retired vacancy board. Replaced unsupported employer diagnoses with document checks and questions. Rechecked the occupational tables and worked arithmetic; refined source links and navigation labels.
October 19, 2026, further review: revised 24 guides to remove unsupported causal explanations, career-stage readings of wage percentiles and unverifiable employer examples. Corrected internship offer-versus-conversion language and local paraprofessional-assessment claims. Added explicitly fictional calculations and comparison worksheets; national tables were rebuilt from the original BLS data.
When a material claim changes, the article’s revision note states the change. The original publication date is retained and the modification date reflects the actual revision. Send a URL, the disputed statement and a supporting source through Report a correction.
- October 19, 2026: corrected the solar and wind growth-ranking statement; corrected the benefits-cliff arithmetic; removed an unsupported SHRM interview-usage attribution; removed unverified vacancy examples and unsupported salary-trend claims; clarified percentile, research and classification limits.
- October 19, 2026: revised privacy information to describe contact and correction submissions, and replaced irrelevant vacancy redirects with clear retired-listing responses.
October 19, 2026: corrected the SIE exam fee and MQP explanation, corrected the Dismissed by Degrees attribution and clarified the announced ANCC renewal-handbook transition.
Funding and independence
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