Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2016

43-5053 Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators

Prepare incoming and outgoing mail for distribution. Examine, sort, and route mail. Load, operate, and occasionally adjust and repair mail processing, sorting, and canceling machinery. Keep records of shipments, pouches, and sacks; and other duties related to mail handling within the postal service. Excludes "Postal Service Clerks" (43-5051) and "Postal Service Mail Carriers" (43-5052).

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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)
110,770	0.0 %	$23.90	$49,710	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$15.63	$18.39	$27.03	$27.31	$27.55
Annual Wage (2)	$32,510	$38,250	$56,220	$56,800	$57,300

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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)
Postal Service	110,760	17.51	$23.90	$49,710

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service	110,760	17.51	$23.90	$49,710

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service	110,760	17.51	$23.90	$49,710

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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	13,540	0.85	1.07	$23.83	$49,570
New York	9,540	1.05	1.33	$23.97	$49,860
Texas	6,880	0.59	0.74	$24.17	$50,280
Florida	6,140	0.75	0.95	$24.35	$50,650
Illinois	6,010	1.02	1.29	$23.98	$49,870

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)
Rhode Island	660	1.39	1.77	$23.78	$49,460
New Jersey	5,170	1.31	1.66	$24.51	$50,980
Maryland	2,890	1.10	1.39	$23.86	$49,640
New York	9,540	1.05	1.33	$23.97	$49,860
Missouri	2,890	1.05	1.33	$23.66	$49,210

Top paying States for this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Connecticut	1,170	0.70	0.89	$24.83	$51,650
Idaho	230	0.35	0.45	$24.73	$51,450
Delaware	440	0.99	1.26	$24.74	$51,450
Wisconsin	1,700	0.61	0.77	$24.52	$51,000
New Jersey	5,170	1.31	1.66	$24.51	$50,980

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-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division	9,500	1.44	1.83	$24.14	$50,200
Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL Metropolitan Division	5,160	1.42	1.80	$23.94	$49,790
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division	4,590	1.09	1.38	$23.72	$49,340
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division	2,610	1.05	1.33	$24.29	$50,530
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division	2,460	1.01	1.28	$24.87	$51,730
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,350	0.92	1.17	$24.46	$50,880
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	1,980	1.04	1.31	$23.69	$49,270
Nassau County-Suffolk County, NY Metropolitan Division	1,950	1.52	1.92	$24.37	$50,680
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division	1,880	2.11	2.68	$25.20	$52,420
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO	1,830	1.30	1.64	$23.60	$49,090

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

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, MA NECTA Division	270	3.40	4.31	$24.29	$50,520
Springfield, MA-CT	1,070	3.36	4.26	$24.22	$50,370
Charleston, WV	370	3.26	4.13	$21.74	$45,220
Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA	1,060	3.00	3.80	$23.27	$48,400
Manchester, NH	310	2.76	3.50	$24.32	$50,580
Trenton, NJ	620	2.76	3.49	$25.34	$52,710
Greensboro-High Point, NC	960	2.68	3.39	$23.91	$49,740
Fayetteville, NC	330	2.65	3.36	$22.11	$45,990
Nashua, NH-MA NECTA Division	310	2.41	3.05	$23.43	$48,740
Harrisburg-Carlisle, PA	740	2.33	2.95	$23.05	$47,950