Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
43-0000 Office and Administrative Support Occupations (Major Group)
Office and Administrative Support Occupations comprises the following occupations:
First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers;
Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service;
Telephone Operators;
Communications Equipment Operators, All Other;
Bill and Account Collectors;
Billing and Posting Clerks;
Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks;
Gambling Cage Workers;
Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks;
Procurement Clerks;
Tellers;
Financial Clerks, All Other;
Brokerage Clerks;
Correspondence Clerks;
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks;
Credit Authorizers, Checkers, and Clerks;
Customer Service Representatives;
Eligibility Interviewers, Government Programs;
File Clerks;
Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks;
Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan;
Library Assistants, Clerical;
Loan Interviewers and Clerks;
New Accounts Clerks;
Order Clerks;
Human Resources Assistants, Except Payroll and Timekeeping;
Receptionists and Information Clerks;
Reservation and Transportation Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks;
Information and Record Clerks, All Other;
Cargo and Freight Agents;
Couriers and Messengers;
Public Safety Telecommunicators;
Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance;
Meter Readers, Utilities;
Postal Service Clerks;
Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators;
Postal Service Mail Carriers;
Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks;
Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks;
Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping;
Legal Secretaries and Administrative Assistants;
Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative Assistants;
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants;
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive;
Word Processors and Typists;
Data Entry Keyers;
Desktop Publishers;
Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks;
Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service;
Office Clerks, General;
Office Machine Operators, Except Computer;
Proofreaders and Copy Markers;
Statistical Assistants;
Office and Administrative Support Workers, All Other
National estimates for Office and Administrative Support Occupations
Industry profile for Office and Administrative Support Occupations
Geographic profile for Office and Administrative Support Occupations
National estimates for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 18,299,380 |
0.1 % |
$ 20.88 |
$ 43,430 |
0.1 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 13.47 |
$ 14.51 |
$ 18.29 |
$ 23.31 |
$ 30.01 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 28,010 |
$ 30,180 |
$ 38,050 |
$ 48,490 |
$ 62,420 |
Industry profile for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Office and Administrative Support Occupations are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Office and Administrative Support Occupations, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
950,960 |
17.70 |
$ 22.25 |
$ 46,280 |
| Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (5221 and 5223 only) |
898,800 |
44.92 |
$ 20.30 |
$ 42,220 |
| Offices of Physicians |
764,520 |
28.36 |
$ 19.09 |
$ 39,710 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
621,500 |
11.11 |
$ 20.59 |
$ 42,820 |
| Postal Service (federal government) |
551,220 |
87.53 |
$ 26.03 |
$ 54,130 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Postal Service (federal government) |
551,220 |
87.53 |
$ 26.03 |
$ 54,130 |
| Business Support Services |
507,870 |
61.52 |
$ 17.29 |
$ 35,960 |
| Freight Transportation Arrangement |
113,280 |
48.63 |
$ 23.30 |
$ 48,460 |
| Credit Intermediation and Related Activities (5221 and 5223 only) |
898,800 |
44.92 |
$ 20.30 |
$ 42,220 |
| Office Administrative Services |
186,980 |
38.46 |
$ 21.53 |
$ 44,780 |
Top paying industries for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Monetary Authorities-Central Bank |
3,080 |
14.72 |
$ 32.77 |
$ 68,150 |
| Natural Gas Distribution |
15,610 |
14.22 |
$ 32.23 |
$ 67,040 |
| Other Pipeline Transportation |
490 |
5.89 |
$ 31.50 |
$ 65,520 |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution |
50,960 |
13.54 |
$ 30.17 |
$ 62,750 |
| Support Activities for Water Transportation |
8,870 |
9.87 |
$ 29.88 |
$ 62,160 |
Geographic profile for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Office and Administrative Support Occupations are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Office and Administrative Support Occupations, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
1,923,910 |
116.39 |
0.90 |
$ 23.78 |
$ 49,460 |
| Texas |
1,686,960 |
137.98 |
1.06 |
$ 19.68 |
$ 40,930 |
| Florida |
1,247,660 |
144.98 |
1.12 |
$ 19.31 |
$ 40,170 |
| New York |
1,172,410 |
135.24 |
1.04 |
$ 24.32 |
$ 50,590 |
| Illinois |
749,700 |
133.43 |
1.03 |
$ 21.33 |
$ 44,370 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Arizona |
432,850 |
150.26 |
1.16 |
$ 20.11 |
$ 41,830 |
| Utah |
226,480 |
145.67 |
1.12 |
$ 19.28 |
$ 40,100 |
| Florida |
1,247,660 |
144.98 |
1.12 |
$ 19.31 |
$ 40,170 |
| New Jersey |
553,970 |
143.88 |
1.11 |
$ 22.49 |
$ 46,770 |
| Missouri |
389,580 |
142.80 |
1.10 |
$ 19.50 |
$ 40,560 |
Top paying states for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
61,660 |
93.14 |
0.72 |
$ 27.72 |
$ 57,660 |
| Massachusetts |
401,510 |
118.29 |
0.91 |
$ 24.53 |
$ 51,030 |
| New York |
1,172,410 |
135.24 |
1.04 |
$ 24.32 |
$ 50,590 |
| Washington |
395,470 |
123.35 |
0.95 |
$ 23.94 |
$ 49,800 |
| California |
1,923,910 |
116.39 |
0.90 |
$ 23.78 |
$ 49,460 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| 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 |
1,185,050 |
136.56 |
1.05 |
$ 24.86 |
$ 51,710 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
717,630 |
125.47 |
0.97 |
$ 23.46 |
$ 48,790 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
558,470 |
131.94 |
1.02 |
$ 22.05 |
$ 45,860 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
510,900 |
142.35 |
1.10 |
$ 20.83 |
$ 43,320 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
382,850 |
132.15 |
1.02 |
$ 20.32 |
$ 42,260 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
377,530 |
153.94 |
1.19 |
$ 19.88 |
$ 41,360 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
359,210 |
135.31 |
1.04 |
$ 22.19 |
$ 46,160 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
335,370 |
129.59 |
1.00 |
$ 20.33 |
$ 42,280 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
326,500 |
154.25 |
1.19 |
$ 20.55 |
$ 42,740 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
310,370 |
105.83 |
0.81 |
$ 24.37 |
$ 50,690 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Jefferson City, MO |
12,520 |
172.42 |
1.33 |
$ 18.27 |
$ 38,000 |
| Johnson City, TN |
13,270 |
170.56 |
1.31 |
$ 17.28 |
$ 35,940 |
| Carson City, NV |
4,890 |
164.28 |
1.26 |
$ 20.38 |
$ 42,380 |
| Laredo, TX |
15,640 |
160.97 |
1.24 |
$ 15.89 |
$ 33,050 |
| Salt Lake City, UT |
119,110 |
160.27 |
1.23 |
$ 20.07 |
$ 41,740 |
| Columbia, SC |
58,210 |
160.04 |
1.23 |
$ 18.78 |
$ 39,060 |
| San Angelo, TX |
7,350 |
159.11 |
1.22 |
$ 17.11 |
$ 35,580 |
| Macon, GA |
14,930 |
158.03 |
1.22 |
$ 18.30 |
$ 38,060 |
| Springfield, IL |
15,170 |
156.95 |
1.21 |
$ 20.48 |
$ 42,600 |
| Abilene, TX |
10,610 |
154.91 |
1.19 |
$ 17.20 |
$ 35,780 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
99,980 |
93.56 |
0.72 |
$ 28.22 |
$ 58,710 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
241,860 |
107.87 |
0.83 |
$ 27.68 |
$ 57,570 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
48,220 |
128.55 |
0.99 |
$ 25.40 |
$ 52,830 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
239,510 |
124.91 |
0.96 |
$ 25.32 |
$ 52,660 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
304,700 |
117.86 |
0.91 |
$ 25.14 |
$ 52,290 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
1,185,050 |
136.56 |
1.05 |
$ 24.86 |
$ 51,710 |
| Napa, CA |
7,280 |
105.57 |
0.81 |
$ 24.67 |
$ 51,320 |
| Ithaca, NY |
7,190 |
154.83 |
1.19 |
$ 24.39 |
$ 50,720 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
310,370 |
105.83 |
0.81 |
$ 24.37 |
$ 50,690 |
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA |
14,620 |
112.91 |
0.87 |
$ 24.13 |
$ 50,190 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Kansas nonmetropolitan area |
45,770 |
121.83 |
0.94 |
$ 17.41 |
$ 36,200 |
| North Northeastern Ohio nonmetropolitan area (noncontiguous) |
34,620 |
110.16 |
0.85 |
$ 18.42 |
$ 38,310 |
| North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area |
32,790 |
123.32 |
0.95 |
$ 17.65 |
$ 36,720 |
| Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area |
31,300 |
123.87 |
0.95 |
$ 18.95 |
$ 39,420 |
| Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area |
27,960 |
114.49 |
0.88 |
$ 17.79 |
$ 37,000 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Southeast Missouri nonmetropolitan area |
23,800 |
150.44 |
1.16 |
$ 16.52 |
$ 34,360 |
| Northern New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area |
4,820 |
142.40 |
1.10 |
$ 19.12 |
$ 39,770 |
| Central New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area |
12,340 |
138.68 |
1.07 |
$ 20.44 |
$ 42,520 |
| South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area |
22,250 |
136.10 |
1.05 |
$ 16.35 |
$ 34,000 |
| Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area |
8,840 |
134.64 |
1.04 |
$ 16.42 |
$ 34,150 |
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Office and Administrative Support Occupations:
| Nonmetropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Alaska nonmetropolitan area |
12,220 |
125.58 |
0.97 |
$ 23.82 |
$ 49,540 |
| Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area |
7,070 |
122.48 |
0.94 |
$ 23.67 |
$ 49,230 |
| Connecticut nonmetropolitan area |
4,200 |
133.18 |
1.03 |
$ 21.81 |
$ 45,370 |
| Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area |
13,300 |
113.94 |
0.88 |
$ 21.66 |
$ 45,050 |
| North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area |
11,600 |
118.50 |
0.91 |
$ 21.57 |
$ 44,870 |
About May 2021 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 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 OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
