Twice a year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics compiles occupational employment and wage estimates by surveying employers nationwide. Current data was released May 1, 2009.
| Occupation |
Total employment |
Mean hourly wage |
Mean annual wage |
| All Occupations |
40,310 |
$18.74 |
$38,980 |
| Office and administrative support occupations |
6,110 |
$14.16 |
$29,460 |
| Construction and extraction occupations |
4,390 |
$21.24 |
$44,170 |
| Sales and related occupations |
4,150 |
$15.29 |
$31,800 |
| Food preparation and serving related occupations |
3,280 |
$8.99 |
$18,700 |
| Transportation and material moving occupations |
3,250 |
$15.87 |
$33,000 |
| Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations |
2,800 |
$19.24 |
$40,020 |
| Production occupations |
2,240 |
$17.31 |
$36,000 |
| Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations |
2,020 |
$32.75 |
$68,130 |
| Management occupations |
1,730 |
$37.95 |
$78,940 |
| Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations |
1,530 |
$11.04 |
$22,970 |
| Retail salespersons |
1,530 |
$11.23 |
$23,350 |
| Healthcare support occupations |
1,220 |
$12.60 |
$26,200 |
| Business and financial operations occupations |
1,040 |
$29.03 |
$60,380 |
| Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks |
980 |
$15.28 |
$31,780 |
| Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive |
960 |
$12.71 |
$26,430 |
| Architecture and engineering occupations |
910 |
$37.15 |
$77,280 |
| Personal care and service occupations |
900 |
$11.64 |
$24,210 |
| General and operations managers |
850 |
$42.53 |
$88,470 |
| Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners |
830 |
$9.75 |
$20,270 |
| Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer |
820 |
$20.80 |
$43,270 |
| Registered nurses |
800 |
$26.69 |
$55,510 |
| Protective service occupations |
750 |
$18.07 |
$37,590 |
| Waiters and waitresses |
740 |
$7.62 |
$15,850 |
| Cashiers |
680 |
$9.25 |
$19,240 |
| Truck drivers, light or delivery services |
660 |
$14.28 |
$29,710 |
| Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food |
650 |
$8.18 |
$17,020 |
| Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers |
640 |
$19.41 |
$40,370 |
| Nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants |
610 |
$12.24 |
$25,460 |
| Stock clerks and order fillers |
610 |
$12.06 |
$25,080 |
| Maintenance and repair workers, general |
510 |
$15.44 |
$32,120 |
| Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations |
490 |
$14.59 |
$30,350 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of retail sales workers |
480 |
$16.80 |
$34,950 |
| Community and social services occupations |
450 |
$17.62 |
$36,650 |
| Life, physical, and social science occupations |
450 |
$25.44 |
$52,910 |
| Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products |
410 |
$21.76 |
$45,250 |
| Extraction workers, all other |
390 |
$24.55 |
$51,070 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of office and administrative support workers |
380 |
$19.16 |
$39,850 |
| Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand |
380 |
$12.30 |
$25,590 |
| Derrick operators, oil and gas |
360 |
$24.34 |
$50,630 |
| Office clerks, general |
360 |
$11.83 |
$24,600 |
| Bus and truck mechanics and diesel engine specialists |
340 |
$18.68 |
$38,840 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of construction trades and extraction workers |
340 |
$31.92 |
$66,380 |
| Food preparation workers |
340 |
$9.04 |
$18,810 |
| Carpenters |
330 |
$16.07 |
$33,430 |
| Maids and housekeeping cleaners |
330 |
$9.93 |
$20,650 |
| Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products |
320 |
$30.68 |
$63,820 |
| Computer and mathematical occupations |
310 |
$26.05 |
$54,190 |
| Construction laborers |
310 |
$13.80 |
$28,710 |
| Cooks, restaurant |
310 |
$10.64 |
$22,120 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of food preparation and serving workers |
310 |
$12.45 |
$25,900 |
| Automotive service technicians and mechanics |
300 |
$15.71 |
$32,680 |
| Service unit operators, oil, gas, and mining |
290 |
$21.87 |
$45,500 |
| Legal occupations |
270 |
$31.87 |
$66,290 |
| Petroleum engineers |
270 |
$53.35 |
$110,970 |
| Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks |
270 |
$13.98 |
$29,080 |
| Helpers--extraction workers |
260 |
$21.68 |
$45,090 |
| Roustabouts, oil and gas |
260 |
$16.32 |
$33,940 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of mechanics, installers, and repairers |
250 |
$25.24 |
$52,500 |
| Cleaners of vehicles and equipment |
240 |
$9.50 |
$19,760 |
| Executive secretaries and administrative assistants |
220 |
$17.86 |
$37,140 |
| Landscaping and groundskeeping workers |
220 |
$13.30 |
$27,660 |
| Receptionists and information clerks |
220 |
$10.94 |
$22,760 |
| Rotary drill operators, oil and gas |
220 |
$30.60 |
$63,640 |
| Dishwashers |
210 |
$8.03 |
$16,710 |
| Industrial machinery mechanics |
210 |
$22.73 |
$47,280 |
| Accountants and auditors |
190 |
$31.57 |
$65,660 |
| Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators |
190 |
$18.05 |
$37,540 |
| Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters |
180 |
$22.17 |
$46,110 |
| Tellers |
180 |
$11.09 |
$23,060 |
| Child care workers |
170 |
$9.47 |
$19,710 |
| Security guards |
170 |
$11.92 |
$24,800 |
| Billing and posting clerks and machine operators |
160 |
$12.68 |
$26,380 |
| Customer service representatives |
160 |
$13.94 |
$29,000 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of production and operating workers |
160 |
$24.54 |
$51,030 |
| Helpers--production workers |
160 |
$11.87 |
$24,690 |
| Police and sheriff's patrol officers |
160 |
$24.94 |
$51,870 |
| Bartenders |
150 |
$7.85 |
$16,320 |
| Business operations specialists, all other |
150 |
$31.52 |
$65,570 |
| Driver/sales workers |
150 |
$10.79 |
$22,440 |
| Medical secretaries |
150 |
$13.83 |
$28,770 |
| Environmental engineers |
140 |
Not available |
Not available |
| First-line supervisors/managers of transportation and material-moving machine and vehicle operators |
140 |
$22.88 |
$47,590 |
| Machinists |
140 |
$18.76 |
$39,010 |
| Child, family, and school social workers |
130 |
$18.10 |
$37,660 |
| Cooks, institution and cafeteria |
130 |
$11.70 |
$24,340 |
| Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks |
130 |
$9.46 |
$19,680 |
| Managers, all other |
130 |
$29.96 |
$62,320 |
| Brickmasons and blockmasons |
120 |
$20.76 |
$43,170 |
| Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers |
120 |
$7.44 |
$15,480 |
| Hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop |
120 |
$7.74 |
$16,100 |
| Packers and packagers, hand |
110 |
$8.29 |
$17,240 |
| Grinding, lapping, polishing, and buffing machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic |
100 |
$17.99 |
$37,420 |
| Heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers |
100 |
$17.57 |
$36,550 |
| Laundry and dry-cleaning workers |
100 |
$9.56 |
$19,870 |
| Medical assistants |
100 |
$13.00 |
$27,040 |
| Order clerks |
100 |
$12.86 |
$26,750 |
| Paralegals and legal assistants |
100 |
$16.51 |
$34,340 |
| Cost estimators |
90 |
$25.39 |
$52,810 |
| Dental assistants |
90 |
$15.19 |
$31,600 |
| Geoscientists, except hydrologists and geographers |
90 |
$29.92 |
$62,240 |
| Lawyers |
90 |
$59.69 |
$124,150 |
| Library technicians |
90 |
$12.88 |
$26,790 |
| Loan officers |
90 |
$35.63 |
$74,110 |
| Medical and health services managers |
90 |
$38.68 |
$80,450 |
| Pharmacists |
90 |
$46.52 |
$96,760 |
| Bill and account collectors |
80 |
$15.97 |
$33,210 |
| Cement masons and concrete finishers |
80 |
$16.02 |
$33,320 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of personal service workers |
80 |
$15.20 |
$31,610 |
| Insurance claims and policy processing clerks |
80 |
$13.54 |
$28,150 |
| Insurance sales agents |
80 |
$24.20 |
$50,340 |
| Pharmacy technicians |
80 |
$14.59 |
$30,340 |
| Postal service mail carriers |
80 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Preschool teachers, except special education |
80 |
$11.55 |
$24,020 |
| Social and human service assistants |
80 |
$11.36 |
$23,630 |
| Switchboard operators, including answering service |
80 |
$10.17 |
$21,150 |
| Tire repairers and changers |
80 |
$12.09 |
$25,140 |
| Advertising sales agents |
70 |
$28.35 |
$58,960 |
| Civil engineers |
70 |
$33.97 |
$70,650 |
| Cooks, fast food |
70 |
$8.34 |
$17,340 |
| Dental hygienists |
70 |
$27.11 |
$56,390 |
| Environmental scientists and specialists, including health |
70 |
$26.10 |
$54,300 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of non-retail sales workers |
70 |
$23.88 |
$49,660 |
| Helpers--installation, maintenance, and repair workers |
70 |
$12.19 |
$25,350 |
| Physician assistants |
70 |
$43.70 |
$90,890 |
| Property, real estate, and community association managers |
70 |
$23.64 |
$49,170 |
| Recreation workers |
70 |
$13.08 |
$27,210 |
| Computer specialists, all other |
60 |
$31.74 |
$66,020 |
| Computer systems analysts |
60 |
$27.28 |
$56,740 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of housekeeping and janitorial workers |
60 |
$15.36 |
$31,950 |
| Food service managers |
60 |
$18.33 |
$38,120 |
| Industrial truck and tractor operators |
60 |
$14.63 |
$30,430 |
| Inspectors, testers, sorters, samplers, and weighers |
60 |
$16.15 |
$33,590 |
| Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses |
60 |
$20.78 |
$43,230 |
| Medical records and health information technicians |
60 |
$14.11 |
$29,350 |
| Medical transcriptionists |
60 |
$15.20 |
$31,620 |
| Network and computer systems administrators |
60 |
$22.66 |
$47,130 |
| Painters, construction and maintenance |
60 |
$16.33 |
$33,960 |
| Postal service mail sorters, processors, and processing machine operators |
60 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Public relations specialists |
60 |
$19.01 |
$39,540 |
| Purchasing agents, except wholesale, retail, and farm products |
60 |
$23.04 |
$47,930 |
| Radiologic technologists and technicians |
60 |
$23.85 |
$49,600 |
| Tax preparers |
60 |
$14.71 |
$30,590 |
| Amusement and recreation attendants |
50 |
$10.25 |
$21,330 |
| Compliance officers, except agriculture, construction, health and safety, and transportation |
50 |
$21.29 |
$44,290 |
| Court, municipal, and license clerks |
50 |
$12.79 |
$26,610 |
| Electrical power-line installers and repairers |
50 |
$26.68 |
$55,500 |
| Eligibility interviewers, government programs |
50 |
$19.44 |
$40,430 |
| Engine and other machine assemblers |
50 |
$18.98 |
$39,490 |
| Financial managers |
50 |
$38.21 |
$79,470 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of helpers, laborers, and material movers, hand |
50 |
$16.15 |
$33,600 |
| Graphic designers |
50 |
$13.72 |
$28,540 |
| Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists |
50 |
$12.67 |
$26,350 |
| Legal secretaries |
50 |
$14.11 |
$29,340 |
| Loan interviewers and clerks |
50 |
$12.87 |
$26,770 |
| Mechanical engineers |
50 |
$31.69 |
$65,920 |
| Payroll and timekeeping clerks |
50 |
$14.36 |
$29,870 |
| Personal financial advisors |
50 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Real estate sales agents |
50 |
$16.88 |
$35,110 |
| Roofers |
50 |
$15.37 |
$31,970 |
| Sales managers |
50 |
$34.87 |
$72,530 |
| Sheet metal workers |
50 |
$21.87 |
$45,500 |
| Surgeons |
50 |
More than $70 |
More than $145,600 |
| Appraisers and assessors of real estate |
40 |
$23.25 |
$48,360 |
| Butchers and meat cutters |
40 |
$13.18 |
$27,410 |
| Coaches and scouts |
40 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Community and social service specialists, all other |
40 |
$15.35 |
$31,930 |
| Computer support specialists |
40 |
$19.03 |
$39,570 |
| Educational, vocational, and school counselors |
40 |
$23.92 |
$49,750 |
| Engineering managers |
40 |
$44.99 |
$93,580 |
| Engineering technicians, except drafters, all other |
40 |
$26.66 |
$55,440 |
| First-line supervisors/managers of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers |
40 |
$24.57 |
$51,110 |
| Helpers--carpenters |
40 |
$13.03 |
$27,100 |
| Human resources, training, and labor relations specialists, all other |
40 |
$28.11 |
$58,460 |
| Medical and public health social workers |
40 |
$18.83 |
$39,170 |
| Occupational health and safety specialists |
40 |
$26.70 |
$55,540 |
| Occupational therapists |
40 |
$30.45 |
$63,330 |
| Office and administrative support workers, all other |
40 |
$14.64 |
$30,450 |
| Photographers |
40 |
$17.11 |
$35,590 |
| Production, planning, and expediting clerks |
40 |
$22.02 |
$45,800 |
| Social and community service managers |
40 |
$22.11 |
$45,980 |
| Surgical technologists |
40 |
$17.16 |
$35,700 |
| Title examiners, abstractors, and searchers |
40 |
$25.94 |
$53,960 |
| Wholesale and retail buyers, except farm products |
40 |
$24.42 |
$50,800 |
| Administrative services managers |
30 |
$29.37 |
$61,080 |
| Assemblers and fabricators, all other |
30 |
$11.87 |
$24,690 |
| Automotive body and related repairers |
30 |
$16.28 |
$33,870 |
| Chefs and head cooks |
30 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators |
30 |
$24.53 |
$51,020 |
| Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic |
30 |
$15.03 |
$31,260 |
| Dispatchers, except police, fire, and ambulance |
30 |
$20.15 |
$41,920 |
| Grounds maintenance workers, all other |
30 |
$11.75 |
$24,440 |
| Librarians |
30 |
$25.60 |
$53,240 |
| Mental health and substance abuse social workers |
30 |
$18.19 |
$37,820 |
| Meter readers, utilities |
30 |
$18.26 |
$37,990 |
| Printing machine operators |
30 |
$14.17 |
$29,480 |
| Procurement clerks |
30 |
$16.89 |
$35,130 |
| Securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents |
30 |
Not available |
Not available |
| Septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners |
30 |
$19.28 |
$40,100 |
| Speech-language pathologists |
30 |
$25.61 |
$53,270 |
| Cartographers and photogrammetrists |
Not available |
$18.78 |
$39,070 |
| Counter and rental clerks |
Not available |
$7.78 |
$16,170 |
| Counter attendants, cafeteria, food concession, and coffee shop |
Not available |
$7.18 |
$14,930 |
| Couriers and messengers |
Not available |
$9.06 |
$18,850 |
| Crane and tower operators |
Not available |
$24.52 |
$51,010 |
| Electricians |
Not available |
$23.10 |
$48,040 |
| Excavating and loading machine and dragline operators |
Not available |
$15.13 |
$31,480 |
| Family and general practitioners |
Not available |
$95.03 |
$197,660 |
| Fitness trainers and aerobics instructors |
Not available |
$13.15 |
$27,350 |
| Geological and petroleum technicians |
Not available |
$24.96 |
$51,920 |
| Healthcare support workers, all other |
Not available |
$10.63 |
$22,120 |
| Lodging managers |
Not available |
$18.16 |
$37,760 |
| Medical and clinical laboratory technicians |
Not available |
$12.61 |
$26,230 |
| Mobile heavy equipment mechanics, except engines |
Not available |
$22.79 |
$47,400 |
| Motor vehicle operators, all other |
Not available |
$21.70 |
$45,140 |
| Network systems and data communications analysts |
Not available |
$19.79 |
$41,160 |
| Nonfarm animal caretakers |
Not available |
$9.20 |
$19,140 |
| Parts salespersons |
Not available |
$14.25 |
$29,640 |
| Plant and system operators, all other |
Not available |
$18.40 |
$38,280 |
| Sales representatives, services, all other |
Not available |
$20.63 |
$42,920 |
| Self-enrichment education teachers |
Not available |
$11.92 |
$24,800 |
| Telecommunications equipment installers and repairers, except line installers |
Not available |
$26.90 |
$55,950 |
