Workers in the Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area had an average (mean) hourly wage of $35.18 in May 2024, compared to the nationwide average of $32.66, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that higher paying major occupational groups included management ($66.74), healthcare practitioners and technical ($53.91), and computer and mathematical ($52.53). Lower paying occupations included food preparation and serving related ($20.75), building and grounds cleaning and maintenance ($21.69), and healthcare support ($23.36). (See table A.)

Occupational groups with the highest employment in the Olympia area included office and administrative support (12.4 percent), business and financial operations (11.1 percent), and food preparation and serving related (7.9 percent). Major occupational groups on the lower end of local employment included legal (1.2 percent); arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media (1.6 percent); and architecture and engineering (1.6 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. Olympia had 14,100 jobs in business and financial operations, accounting for 11.1 percent of local area employment, compared to the 6.7-percent share nationally. The average hourly wage for this occupational group locally was $41.15, compared to the national wage of $45.04.

Some of the larger detailed occupations within the business and financial operations group included management analysts (2,410), human resources specialists (1,350), and accountants and auditors (1,090). Among the higher paying jobs in this group were personal financial advisors ($64.25) and labor relations specialists ($54.34). At the lower end of the wage scale were meeting, convention, and event planners ($30.58) and financial and investment analysts ($34.04). (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/0036500.)

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 Olympia area, above-average concentrations of employment were found in many of the occupations within the business and financial operations group. For instance, budget analysts were employed at 6.86 times the national rate in Olympia, and claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators, at 3.38 times the U.S. average. Project management specialists had a location quotient of 1.08 in Olympia, 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 Washington Employment Security Department.

Technical Note

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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area included 1,435 establishments with a response rate of 65 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 Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area includes Thurston 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.

Table 1. Employment and wage data for business and financial operations occupations, Olympia metropolitan area, May 2024

Occupation (1)	Employment		Mean wages ($)
	Level (2)	Location quotient (3)	Hourly	Annual (4)
Business and financial operations occupations	14,100	1.65	41.15	85,600
Buyers and purchasing agents	620	1.55	37.94	78,910
Claims adjusters, examiners, and investigators	850	3.38	36.45	75,810
Compliance officers	970	2.96	42.17	87,720
Cost estimators	250	1.36	41.43	86,180
Human resources specialists	1,350	1.78	40.70	84,650
Labor relations specialists	150	2.78	54.34	113,020
Logisticians	50	0.28	41.41	86,130
Project management specialists	890	1.08	50.35	104,720
Management analysts	2,410	3.26	41.80	86,950
Meeting, convention, and event planners	120	1.05	30.58	63,610
Fundraisers	100	1.17	34.36	71,460
Compensation, benefits, and job analysis specialists	240	2.79	39.45	82,060
Training and development specialists	420	1.16	41.24	85,780
Market research analysts and marketing specialists	610	0.86	42.73	88,870
Business operations specialists, all other	1,580	1.70	38.72	80,530
Accountants and auditors	1,090	0.91	44.50	92,550
Property appraisers and assessors	40	0.81	39.29	81,730
Budget analysts	270	6.86	43.63	90,760
Financial and investment analysts	930	3.31	34.04	70,810
Personal financial advisors	150	0.69	64.25	133,630
Insurance underwriters	110	1.28	37.85	78,730
Financial examiners	140	2.62	48.14	100,120
Loan officers	240	0.99	45.65	94,950
Financial specialists, all other	70	0.70	46.30	96,310
Footnotes: (1) For a complete listing of all detailed occupations in the Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA Metropolitan Statistical Area, see https://data.bls.gov/oes/#/area/0036500. (2) Estimates for detailed occupations may not sum to the totals due to rounding, and because the totals may include occupations that are not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers. (3) 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. (4) 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 mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.