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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

43-5041 Meter Readers, Utilities

Read meter and record consumption of electricity, gas, water, or steam.


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)
30,450 3.8 % $22.23 $46,250 1.1 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $12.41 $15.25 $20.33 $27.77 $34.82
Annual Wage (2) $25,810 $31,720 $42,280 $57,760 $72,420


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)
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 11,950 0.22 $20.79 $43,250
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution 6,850 1.78 $26.42 $54,960
Other Support Services 5,290 1.61 $18.03 $37,500
Natural Gas Distribution 2,890 2.64 $27.89 $58,020
Water, Sewage and Other Systems 2,020 3.79 $20.48 $42,610

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Water, Sewage and Other Systems 2,020 3.79 $20.48 $42,610
Natural Gas Distribution 2,890 2.64 $27.89 $58,020
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution 6,850 1.78 $26.42 $54,960
Other Support Services 5,290 1.61 $18.03 $37,500
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas 80 0.25 $23.88 $49,670

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Natural Gas Distribution 2,890 2.64 $27.89 $58,020
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution 6,850 1.78 $26.42 $54,960
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas 80 0.25 $23.88 $49,670
Management of Companies and Enterprises 220 0.01 $22.75 $47,310
Utility System Construction 220 0.04 $21.56 $44,840


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)
Texas 2,490 0.20 0.97 $16.88 $35,110
Ohio 2,070 0.38 1.83 $20.94 $43,550
California 1,600 0.09 0.44 $29.80 $61,980
Florida 1,580 0.18 0.87 $19.59 $40,750
Georgia 1,520 0.34 1.64 $19.28 $40,090




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 630 0.89 4.31 $18.70 $38,900
Louisiana 1,140 0.60 2.87 $14.18 $29,480
Kentucky 950 0.50 2.42 $18.51 $38,500
Missouri 1,230 0.44 2.11 $18.64 $38,760
Indiana 1,310 0.43 2.05 $22.55 $46,910




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Massachusetts 560 0.16 0.75 $31.66 $65,850
Idaho 110 0.15 0.73 $31.27 $65,050
Alaska 50 0.15 0.74 $30.98 $64,440
Connecticut 120 0.07 0.35 $30.11 $62,630
California 1,600 0.09 0.44 $29.80 $61,980





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-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 1,670 0.17 0.83 (8) (8)
St. Louis, MO-IL 860 0.63 3.02 $19.87 $41,340
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 780 0.17 0.81 $28.65 $59,600
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 660 0.18 0.87 $16.38 $34,080
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 620 0.29 1.41 $25.23 $52,470
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 540 0.18 0.86 $16.40 $34,110
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 520 0.08 0.40 $30.08 $62,560
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 490 0.18 0.85 $21.95 $45,660
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 470 0.16 0.78 $27.88 $57,990
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 420 0.15 0.72 $32.68 $67,980




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)
Parkersburg-Vienna, WV 40 0.99 4.80 $15.63 $32,510
Morgantown, WV 60 0.94 4.52 $17.80 $37,020
Charleston, WV 100 0.89 4.30 $21.13 $43,960
Weirton-Steubenville, WV-OH 30 0.87 4.20 $18.30 $38,070
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX 130 0.83 4.01 $17.31 $36,000
Morristown, TN 30 0.67 3.23 $24.36 $50,660
Dover, DE 40 0.65 3.15 $24.33 $50,610
St. Louis, MO-IL 860 0.63 3.02 $19.87 $41,340
Niles-Benton Harbor, MI 40 0.58 2.79 $21.15 $43,990
Alexandria, LA 30 0.58 2.79 $13.33 $27,730




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)
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 110 0.04 0.21 $36.84 $76,620
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA (8) (8) (8) $35.07 $72,950
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 90 0.08 0.41 $34.87 $72,520
Boise City, ID 40 0.12 0.58 $33.64 $69,960
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 420 0.15 0.72 $32.68 $67,980
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 110 0.07 0.35 $31.56 $65,650
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 60 0.06 0.27 $30.59 $63,620
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 520 0.08 0.40 $30.08 $62,560
Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO (8) (8) (8) $29.15 $60,630
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ 90 0.24 1.14 $29.14 $60,600

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)
South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 160 0.91 4.41 $13.60 $28,290
Southeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 140 0.90 4.35 $15.28 $31,780
Southern Ohio non-metropolitan area 130 0.84 4.06 $16.64 $34,600
Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 120 1.67 8.05 $15.35 $31,930
North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 120 0.43 2.05 $16.58 $34,490

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)
Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 120 1.67 8.05 $15.35 $31,930
Northeast Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 100 1.52 7.31 $13.08 $27,200
Northeast South Carolina nonmetropolitan area 100 1.06 5.11 $16.85 $35,040
Southern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 80 1.04 5.04 $21.89 $45,520
Central Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 80 1.01 4.85 $12.20 $25,370

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)
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) $31.56 $65,650
Western Washington nonmetropolitan area 50 0.39 1.87 $29.47 $61,300
Southern Pennsylvania nonmetropolitan area 50 0.24 1.18 $29.35 $61,050
South Central Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 40 0.20 0.96 $29.14 $60,610
Eastern Utah nonmetropolitan area 40 0.51 2.46 $26.10 $54,290


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.

(8) Estimate not released.

(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