• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

51-9198 Helpers--Production Workers

Help production workers by performing duties requiring less skill. Duties include supplying or holding materials or tools, and cleaning work area and equipment. Apprentice workers are classified in the appropriate production occupations (51-0000).

---

National estimates for Helpers--Production Workers
Industry profile for Helpers--Production Workers
Geographic profile for Helpers--Production Workers

National estimates for Helpers--Production Workers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Helpers--Production Workers:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
190,680	1.1 %	$ 17.18	$ 35,740	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Helpers--Production Workers:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 12.38	$ 14.54	$ 16.67	$ 18.93	$ 22.92
Annual Wage (2)	$ 25,740	$ 30,250	$ 34,670	$ 39,370	$ 47,680

---

Industry profile for Helpers--Production Workers:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Helpers--Production Workers are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Helpers--Production Workers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Helpers--Production Workers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Employment Services	28,170	0.72	$ 14.15	$ 29,430
Animal Slaughtering and Processing	18,760	3.60	$ 16.95	$ 35,250
Converted Paper Product Manufacturing	9,110	3.36	$ 18.34	$ 38,140
Printing and Related Support Activities	8,540	2.25	$ 15.98	$ 33,230
Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing (3323 and 3324 only)	8,510	1.75	$ 16.66	$ 34,660

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Helpers--Production Workers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Mills	3,330	3.82	$ 23.96	$ 49,840
Animal Slaughtering and Processing	18,760	3.60	$ 16.95	$ 35,250
Converted Paper Product Manufacturing	9,110	3.36	$ 18.34	$ 38,140
Coating, Engraving, Heat Treating, and Allied Activities	3,610	2.86	$ 17.09	$ 35,550
Sawmills and Wood Preservation	2,180	2.39	$ 16.36	$ 34,020

Top paying industries for Helpers--Production Workers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Tobacco Manufacturing	50	0.42	$ 29.68	$ 61,730
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing	450	0.17	$ 27.12	$ 56,410
Coal Mining	(8)	(8)	$ 24.52	$ 51,010
Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Mills	3,330	3.82	$ 23.96	$ 49,840
Rail Transportation	50	0.02	$ 23.72	$ 49,330

---

Geographic profile for Helpers--Production Workers:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Helpers--Production Workers are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Helpers--Production Workers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in Helpers--Production Workers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Texas	24,170	1.86	1.44	$ 16.25	$ 33,800
California	20,950	1.19	0.92	$ 18.68	$ 38,860
Alabama	10,120	5.05	3.92	$ 14.69	$ 30,560
North Carolina	9,500	2.04	1.59	$ 15.87	$ 33,000
Illinois	7,550	1.28	1.00	$ 18.35	$ 38,160

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Helpers--Production Workers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alabama	10,120	5.05	3.92	$ 14.69	$ 30,560
Arkansas	5,630	4.57	3.54	$ 16.24	$ 33,780
Mississippi	3,930	3.48	2.70	$ 14.71	$ 30,610
North Carolina	9,500	2.04	1.59	$ 15.87	$ 33,000
Iowa	2,910	1.91	1.48	$ 19.50	$ 40,560

Top paying states for Helpers--Production Workers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska	170	0.55	0.43	$ 21.97	$ 45,700
Massachusetts	1,740	0.49	0.38	$ 20.19	$ 41,990
Wyoming	270	1.01	0.78	$ 20.18	$ 41,970
Iowa	2,910	1.91	1.48	$ 19.50	$ 40,560
Washington	2,430	0.71	0.55	$ 19.34	$ 40,230

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Helpers--Production Workers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	7,580	1.24	0.96	$ 18.26	$ 37,970
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	6,590	2.16	1.67	$ 16.53	$ 34,370
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	6,500	1.71	1.33	$ 16.59	$ 34,500
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	5,100	1.16	0.90	$ 18.18	$ 37,820
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	4,870	0.53	0.41	$ 18.83	$ 39,170
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	2,750	1.46	1.13	$ 17.70	$ 36,810
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	2,480	1.33	1.03	$ 17.90	$ 37,240
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,470	0.91	0.70	$ 16.40	$ 34,120
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC	2,400	1.89	1.47	$ 16.79	$ 34,930
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	2,350	0.85	0.66	$ 18.26	$ 37,980

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Helpers--Production Workers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Pine Bluff, AR	470	16.21	12.57	(8)	(8)
Harrisonburg, VA	450	7.11	5.51	$ 16.82	$ 34,980
Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL	350	6.59	5.11	$ 12.83	$ 26,690
Elkhart-Goshen, IN	900	6.30	4.88	$ 21.09	$ 43,870
Gettysburg, PA	190	6.00	4.65	$ 18.06	$ 37,560
Florence, SC	510	5.93	4.60	$ 16.90	$ 35,140
Lebanon, PA	290	5.78	4.48	$ 16.72	$ 34,770
Tuscaloosa, AL	540	5.39	4.18	$ 15.54	$ 32,330
Morristown, TN	240	5.24	4.07	$ 14.85	$ 30,890
Joplin, MO	400	5.06	3.92	$ 17.79	$ 37,000