Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2012

43-3031 Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks

Compute, classify, and record numerical data to keep financial records complete. Perform any combination of routine calculating, posting, and verifying duties to obtain primary financial data for use in maintaining accounting records. May also check the accuracy of figures, calculations, and postings pertaining to business transactions recorded by other workers. Excludes "Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks" (43-3051).

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3) 		Mean hourly
wage		 Mean annual
wage (2) 		Wage RSE (3)
1,606,260 0.3 % $17.62 $36,640 0.1 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $10.39 $13.34 $16.91 $21.19 $26.11
Annual Wage (2) $21,610 $27,750 $35,170 $44,070 $54,310

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services 96,870 11.16 $17.37 $36,130
Management of Companies and Enterprises 72,910 3.64 $18.02 $37,470
Local Government (OES Designation) 70,550 1.29 $17.89 $37,200
Depository Credit Intermediation 46,660 2.70 $16.79 $34,930
Elementary and Secondary Schools 39,100 0.47 $17.99 $37,410

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services 96,870 11.16 $17.37 $36,130
Office Administrative Services 26,100 6.33 $18.26 $37,970
Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers 12,120 4.58 $17.71 $36,850
Petroleum and Petroleum Products Merchant Wholesalers 4,210 4.48 $16.65 $34,640
Land Subdivision 1,740 4.20 $19.60 $40,760

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service 460 0.07 $28.44 $59,150
Motion Picture and Video Industries 4,160 1.16 $22.52 $46,840
Rail Transportation 820 0.36 $21.98 $45,720
Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage 5,910 1.31 $21.81 $45,360
Metal Ore Mining 100 0.25 $21.63 $44,990

Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 169,850 11.87 0.96 $19.91 $41,420
Texas 123,110 11.64 0.94 $17.08 $35,530
New York 114,400 13.39 1.09 $19.39 $40,320
Florida 91,170 12.53 1.02 $16.09 $33,480
Pennsylvania 66,290 11.84 0.96 $17.46 $36,310




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Montana 10,980 25.39 2.06 $15.41 $32,040
South Dakota 9,330 23.40 1.90 $13.92 $28,960
North Dakota 8,450 20.96 1.70 $16.24 $33,790
Oklahoma 29,500 19.28 1.56 $14.62 $30,420
Vermont 5,300 18.01 1.46 $16.93 $35,210




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 4,080 6.25 0.51 $24.73 $51,440
Connecticut 20,200 12.46 1.01 $20.28 $42,190
Alaska 4,340 13.60 1.10 $20.26 $42,150
Massachusetts 38,940 12.16 0.99 $20.01 $41,630
California 169,850 11.87 0.96 $19.91 $41,420





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 62,800 12.18 0.99 $20.74 $43,130
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 49,960 12.91 1.05 $19.46 $40,470
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 32,650 8.97 0.73 $19.07 $39,660
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 29,190 11.05 0.90 $18.49 $38,470
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 28,300 12.51 1.01 $17.87 $37,170
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 25,960 12.38 1.00 $18.21 $37,880
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 22,370 9.54 0.77 $21.71 $45,150
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 22,090 12.12 0.98 $19.64 $40,840
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 21,220 12.12 0.98 $18.73 $38,960
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division 20,120 11.76 0.95 $21.05 $43,790