Workers in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $33.73 in May 2024, compared to the nationwide average of $32.66, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Victoria G. Lee noted that higher paying major occupational groups included management ($70.80) and legal ($69.79). Lower paying occupational groups included food preparation and serving related ($15.38) and personal care and service ($16.88). (See table A.)

Office and administrative support occupations accounted for 11.9 percent of Atlanta area employment, followed by transportation and material moving occupations (11.0 percent). Major occupational groups on the lower end of local employment included life, physical, and social science (0.7 percent); legal (1.1 percent); and community and social service (1.1 percent).

One occupational group—business and financial operations—was chosen to illustrate the diversity of data available for any of the 22 major occupational categories. Atlanta had 266,100 jobs in business and financial operations, accounting for 9.3 percent of local area employment, compared to the 6.7-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $45.05, compared to the national wage of $45.04.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the business and financial operations group included accountants and auditors (30,610) and management analysts (29,880). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were personal financial advisors ($74.75) and financial risk specialists ($57.97). At the lower end of the wage scale were tax preparers ($21.78) and meeting, convention, and event planners ($26.06). (Detailed data for the business and financial operations occupations are presented in table 1; for a complete listing of detailed occupations available go to https://data.bls.gov/oes/#/area/0012060.)

Location quotients allow us to explore the occupational make-up of a metropolitan area by comparing the composition of jobs in an area relative to the national average. (See table 1.) For example, a location quotient of 2.00 indicates that an occupation accounts for twice the share of employment in the area than it does nationally. In the Atlanta area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in some of the occupations within the business and financial operations group. For instance, insurance underwriters were employed at 2.41 times the national rate in Atlanta, and management analysts, at 1.79 times the U.S. average. Buyers and purchasing agents had a location quotient of 0.99 in Atlanta, indicating that this particular occupation’s local and national employment shares were similar.

The statistics in this release are from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, a cooperative effort between BLS and the State Workforce Agencies (SWAs). BLS funds the survey and provides the procedures and technical support. State Workforce Agencies collect most of the data: in this case, the Georgia Department of Labor.

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey is a semiannual survey measuring occupational employment and wage rates for wage and salary workers in nonfarm establishments in the United States. The OEWS data available from BLS include cross-industry occupational employment and wage estimates for the nation; over 530 areas, including states and the District of Columbia, metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), nonmetropolitan areas, and territories; national industry-specific estimates at the NAICS sector, 3-digit, most 4-digit, and selected 5- and 6-digit industry levels; and national estimates by ownership across all industries and for schools and hospitals. Full OEWS data tables are available online.

Additional information about the OEWS estimates and methodology is available in the national Technical Notes. The overall national response rate for the six panels, based on the 50 states and the District of Columbia, is 65.7 percent based on establishments and 65.9 percent based on weighted sampled employment. The sample in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area included 9,305 establishments with a response rate of 67 percent.

Metropolitan area definitions

The substate area data published in this release reflect the standards and definitions established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

The Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Barrow County, Bartow County, Butts County, Carroll County, Cherokee County, Clayton County, Cobb County, Coweta County, Dawson County, DeKalb County, Douglas County, Fayette County, Forsyth County, Fulton County, Gwinnett County, Haralson County, Heard County, Henry County, Jasper County, Lumpkin County, Meriwether County, Morgan County, Newton County, Paulding County, Pickens County, Pike County, Rockdale County, Spalding County, and Walton County.

For more information

Answers to frequently asked questions about the OEWS data, as well as general program documentation, are available on the OEWS website.

Information in this release will be made available to individuals with sensory impairments upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.