Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2020
43-5031 Public Safety Telecommunicators
Operate telephone, radio, or other communication systems to receive and communicate requests for emergency assistance at 9-1-1 public safety answering points and emergency operations centers. Take information from the public and other sources regarding crimes, threats, disturbances, acts of terrorism, fires, medical emergencies, and other public safety matters. May coordinate and provide information to law enforcement and emergency response personnel. May access sensitive databases and other information sources as needed. May provide additional instructions to callers based on knowledge of and certification in law enforcement, fire, or emergency medical procedures.
National estimates for Public Safety Telecommunicators
Industry profile for Public Safety Telecommunicators
Geographic profile for Public Safety Telecommunicators
National estimates for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 93,290 |
1.0 % |
$ 22.02 |
$ 45,800 |
0.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 13.48 |
$ 16.65 |
$ 20.82 |
$ 26.14 |
$ 32.29 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 28,040 |
$ 34,630 |
$ 43,290 |
$ 54,370 |
$ 67,150 |
Industry profile for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Public Safety Telecommunicators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Public Safety Telecommunicators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
74,300 |
1.37 |
$ 22.08 |
$ 45,930 |
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services |
5,640 |
1.83 |
$ 19.77 |
$ 41,120 |
| State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
5,540 |
0.25 |
$ 24.92 |
$ 51,830 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools |
2,340 |
0.08 |
$ 21.11 |
$ 43,910 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
2,190 |
0.04 |
$ 19.97 |
$ 41,530 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Other Ambulatory Health Care Services |
5,640 |
1.83 |
$ 19.77 |
$ 41,120 |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
74,300 |
1.37 |
$ 22.08 |
$ 45,930 |
| State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
5,540 |
0.25 |
$ 24.92 |
$ 51,830 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools |
2,340 |
0.08 |
$ 21.11 |
$ 43,910 |
| Other Support Services |
220 |
0.07 |
$ 23.15 |
$ 48,150 |
Top paying industries for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
Geographic profile for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Public Safety Telecommunicators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Public Safety Telecommunicators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
7,710 |
0.64 |
0.95 |
$ 19.11 |
$ 39,740 |
| California |
7,130 |
0.43 |
0.65 |
$ 33.14 |
$ 68,930 |
| New York |
5,300 |
0.61 |
0.91 |
$ 24.48 |
$ 50,910 |
| Florida |
4,860 |
0.58 |
0.86 |
$ 21.39 |
$ 44,480 |
| Ohio |
4,450 |
0.87 |
1.29 |
$ 22.79 |
$ 47,400 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Alabama |
2,390 |
1.26 |
1.87 |
$ 16.15 |
$ 33,590 |
| Mississippi |
1,290 |
1.20 |
1.79 |
$ 13.70 |
$ 28,500 |
| New Jersey |
4,220 |
1.12 |
1.66 |
$ 23.43 |
$ 48,730 |
| New Hampshire |
650 |
1.05 |
1.57 |
$ 22.86 |
$ 47,550 |
| Vermont |
300 |
1.05 |
1.57 |
$ 22.69 |
$ 47,190 |
Top paying states for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
7,130 |
0.43 |
0.65 |
$ 33.14 |
$ 68,930 |
| Alaska |
280 |
0.93 |
1.39 |
$ 29.64 |
$ 61,640 |
| Washington |
1,510 |
0.47 |
0.70 |
$ 29.59 |
$ 61,550 |
| Oregon |
1,030 |
0.57 |
0.85 |
$ 27.90 |
$ 58,030 |
| Connecticut |
1,070 |
0.69 |
1.03 |
$ 27.61 |
$ 57,430 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| 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 |
6,220 |
0.70 |
1.05 |
$ 24.28 |
$ 50,500 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
2,390 |
0.55 |
0.82 |
$ 28.69 |
$ 59,670 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,930 |
0.54 |
0.80 |
$ 20.32 |
$ 42,270 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
1,800 |
0.69 |
1.03 |
$ 25.17 |
$ 52,350 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,720 |
0.30 |
0.44 |
$ 33.49 |
$ 69,660 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
1,670 |
0.63 |
0.95 |
$ 18.13 |
$ 37,710 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
1,610 |
0.60 |
0.89 |
$ 23.59 |
$ 49,080 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
1,450 |
0.58 |
0.86 |
$ 27.19 |
$ 56,550 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
1,430 |
0.68 |
1.01 |
$ 22.20 |
$ 46,180 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
1,410 |
0.48 |
0.71 |
$ 21.09 |
$ 43,870 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Hinesville, GA |
60 |
3.61 |
5.38 |
$ 14.55 |
$ 30,260 |
| Gadsden, AL |
70 |
2.10 |
3.13 |
$ 14.91 |
$ 31,010 |
| Ocean City, NJ |
70 |
2.09 |
3.12 |
$ 20.30 |
$ 42,220 |
| Jefferson City, MO |
140 |
1.93 |
2.87 |
(8) |
(8) |
| Anniston-Oxford-Jacksonville, AL |
80 |
1.90 |
2.84 |
$ 16.48 |
$ 34,280 |
| Fort Smith, AR-OK |
200 |
1.89 |
2.82 |
$ 12.53 |
$ 26,070 |
| Redding, CA |
110 |
1.78 |
2.65 |
$ 27.32 |
$ 56,820 |
| Kingston, NY |
100 |
1.78 |
2.65 |
$ 21.84 |
$ 45,420 |
| Decatur, AL |
90 |
1.75 |
2.61 |
$ 18.18 |
$ 37,810 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL |
130 |
1.73 |
2.58 |
$ 17.78 |
$ 36,980 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
270 |
0.25 |
0.37 |
$ 46.27 |
$ 96,230 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
820 |
0.35 |
0.53 |
$ 42.36 |
$ 88,100 |
| Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA |
70 |
0.36 |
0.53 |
$ 38.14 |
$ 79,340 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA |
60 |
0.67 |
1.00 |
$ 36.34 |
$ 75,580 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA |
120 |
0.40 |
0.60 |
$ 36.03 |
$ 74,930 |
| Stockton-Lodi, CA |
110 |
0.45 |
0.67 |
$ 35.32 |
$ 73,450 |
| Anchorage, AK |
110 |
0.70 |
1.04 |
$ 35.30 |
$ 73,420 |
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA |
190 |
1.42 |
2.12 |
$ 34.42 |
$ 71,600 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande, CA |
50 |
0.47 |
0.70 |
$ 33.62 |
$ 69,930 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,720 |
0.30 |
0.44 |
$ 33.49 |
$ 69,660 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Public Safety Telecommunicators:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Public Safety Telecommunicators:
About May 2020 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.
(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.
(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 OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2020 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2020 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2021
United States Department of Labor
