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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

29-1126 Respiratory Therapists

Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care modalities, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Initiate and conduct therapeutic procedures; maintain patient records; and select, assemble, check, and operate equipment.


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

National estimates for this occupation:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
132,090 1.1 % $30.75 $63,950 0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $21.56 $25.39 $29.48 $35.65 $41.82
Annual Wage (2) $44,850 $52,820 $61,330 $74,160 $86,980


Industry profile for this occupation:

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)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 101,060 1.81 $30.83 $64,120
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 7,220 2.72 $31.37 $65,260
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 5,250 0.33 $29.90 $62,190
Offices of Physicians 3,040 0.11 $29.97 $62,330
Rental and Leasing Services (5322, 5323, and 5324 only) 2,490 0.72 $26.62 $55,370

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 7,220 2.72 $31.37 $65,260
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 101,060 1.81 $30.83 $64,120
Rental and Leasing Services (5322, 5323, and 5324 only) 2,490 0.72 $26.62 $55,370
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 5,250 0.33 $29.90 $62,190
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers 1,450 0.22 $29.91 $62,200

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Outpatient Care Centers 2,000 0.21 $39.45 $82,050
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 320 0.01 $36.49 $75,910
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 720 0.02 $33.40 $69,460
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 7,220 2.72 $31.37 $65,260
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 101,060 1.81 $30.83 $64,120


Geographic profile for this occupation:

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 16,650 0.96 1.06 $40.35 $83,920
Texas 11,730 0.94 1.05 $29.11 $60,560
Florida 8,080 0.92 1.02 $28.22 $58,700
Ohio 6,190 1.14 1.26 $27.93 $58,090
Pennsylvania 5,930 1.00 1.12 $27.69 $57,600




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)
West Virginia 1,130 1.61 1.79 $24.76 $51,510
Mississippi 1,530 1.36 1.51 $23.94 $49,790
Louisiana 2,470 1.28 1.43 $26.20 $54,490
Indiana 3,860 1.26 1.40 $27.66 $57,520
Kentucky 2,250 1.18 1.32 $24.11 $50,150




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 16,650 0.96 1.06 $40.35 $83,920
District of Columbia 320 0.44 0.49 $38.52 $80,130
Nevada 1,410 1.02 1.13 $37.38 $77,760
New York 5,860 0.62 0.68 $37.01 $76,990
Hawaii 350 0.55 0.61 $36.83 $76,610





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-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 6,650 0.69 0.77 $38.05 $79,150
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 6,640 1.06 1.18 $38.42 $79,910
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 3,460 0.95 1.05 $30.94 $64,350
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 3,110 0.67 0.74 $30.33 $63,100
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 3,060 1.06 1.18 $30.15 $62,720
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 3,000 0.98 1.09 $29.54 $61,450
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 2,350 0.89 0.99 $28.22 $58,700
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 2,340 0.85 0.95 $29.26 $60,850
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 2,220 1.05 1.16 $28.94 $60,190
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,990 0.81 0.90 $47.09 $97,950




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)
Victoria, TX 150 3.92 4.35 $29.38 $61,120
Rome, GA 110 2.94 3.27 $28.68 $59,640
Jonesboro, AR 160 2.83 3.15 $25.12 $52,250
Charleston, WV 230 2.10 2.34 $23.79 $49,480
Johnson City, TN 160 2.07 2.30 $22.56 $46,930
Muncie, IN 90 2.03 2.25 $27.44 $57,080
Macon, GA 200 2.02 2.25 $27.05 $56,260
Carbondale-Marion, IL 110 2.01 2.24 $25.77 $53,600
Saginaw, MI 170 1.96 2.18 $28.91 $60,120
Yuba City, CA 90 1.94 2.16 $43.02 $89,470




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Salinas, CA 90 0.48 0.54 $48.81 $101,520
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 930 0.92 1.02 $47.51 $98,810
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,990 0.81 0.90 $47.09 $97,950
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 690 0.61 0.68 $46.81 $97,370
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 210 1.51 1.68 $45.39 $94,420
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 110 0.58 0.65 $44.84 $93,260
Modesto, CA 190 1.04 1.16 $43.66 $90,810
Redding, CA 110 1.58 1.76 $43.04 $89,530
Yuba City, CA 90 1.94 2.16 $43.02 $89,470
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 200 0.64 0.71 $42.37 $88,120

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 340 0.86 0.95 $25.82 $53,700
Northeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 320 1.38 1.53 $23.29 $48,450
North Northeastern Ohio non-metropolitan area (non-contiguous) 300 0.90 1.00 $26.10 $54,300
South Georgia nonmetropolitan area 280 1.48 1.65 $24.19 $50,320
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 260 1.00 1.11 $26.60 $55,330

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

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 190 1.88 2.09 $20.34 $42,310
Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 130 1.71 1.90 $25.80 $53,660
Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 120 1.66 1.84 $25.78 $53,630
Southwest Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 120 1.65 1.84 $24.34 $50,640
South Georgia nonmetropolitan area 280 1.48 1.65 $24.19 $50,320

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 90 0.92 1.03 $40.88 $85,020
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area 100 0.91 1.01 $39.35 $81,840
Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area 40 0.71 0.79 $34.42 $71,600
Central New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 60 0.65 0.73 $34.06 $70,850
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 70 0.55 0.61 $33.96 $70,650


About May 2019 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2019 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: July 6, 2020