Roger Pinkstaff

Roger Pinkstaff(opens in new window), who graduated with a BA in Economics in 1995, is economist and branch chief at the Bureau of Labor Statistics(opens in new window) in San Francisco.  Roger has worked with data since he was in high school when he worked as an appraiser assistant for Harold Larsen Appraisal Services collecting and entering primary data for residential appraisals. 

 Roger enrolled at Chico State in 1991 and after getting his economics degree in 1995, he worked as an economic assistant collecting primary data for the US Army Corps of Engineers(opens in new window).  He moved on from the Corps to BLS in 1996, and he has been there since.

 The position at BLS required an economics degree, and Roger uses the tools of economics that he studied at Chico State every day in his job.  He is in charge of the employees who collect and analyze employment and price data throughout the western region.  According to BLS(opens in new window), “an economist’s typical duties may include: 

• planning and conducting surveys to collect economic data
• analyzing and interpreting data
• preparing reports on economic trends and activities
• briefing the news media, industry, labor, and Federal and State governments about economic trends
• assisting in the development and application of computer software
• reviewing specialized methods, tools, and analysis, and techniques for quantifying, measuring, and understanding economic relationships
• writing and editing articles, reports, and other communications published by the BLS”

(Last Updated 2/5/16)