Chart Book, May 2010

Overview

Figure 1

Office and administrative support occupations made up more than one out of every six jobs in the United States.

• Office and administrative support was the largest occupational group in the United States, making up 17 percent of employment. Three of the 10 largest occupations were in this group: general office clerks; customer service representatives; and secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive. Sales and related occupations was the second largest occupational group, and included the two largest individual occupations, retail salespersons and cashiers.
• The smallest occupational groups each made up 3 percent or less of U.S. employment. Several of these groups consisted primarily of occupations requiring postsecondary education, such as architects, social workers, and scientists.
• Four of the six smallest occupational groups had annual mean wages above the U.S. all-occupations average of $44,410; all of the largest occupational groups, except the education, training, and library group, had below-average wages.

Figure 2

The average wage for the highest paying occupational group was nearly five times that of the lowest paying group.

• Annual mean wages by occupational group ranged from $21,240 for food preparation and serving related occupations to $105,440 for management occupations. Nearly every management occupation had an average wage above the U.S. all-occupations mean of $44,410, while nearly all food preparation and serving related occupations had an annual mean wage of less than $25,000.
• Although healthcare practitioners and technical occupations included some of the highest paying individual occupations, this group also included occupations with more moderate wages, such as dietetic technicians ($28,820).
• Among the low-paying occupational groups, transportation and material moving had the highest paying individual occupations, including air traffic controllers ($110,280). However, the largest occupation in this group— laborers and hand freight, stock, and material movers—had an average wage of $25,710.

Figure 3

The types of jobs found in the private sector were different from those found in the public sector.

• Occupational groups with below-average wages made up more than two-thirds of private sector employment, but less than one-third of public sector employment.
• Sales and related occupations was the second-largest occupational group in the private sector, but it was one of the smallest occupational groups in the public sector. The private sector also had higher employment shares of most other occupational groups that had below-average wages, including food preparation and serving related occupations and production occupations.
• Education, training, and library was the largest occupational group in the public sector, making up 30 percent of public sector employment, but less than 2 percent of private sector employment.

Figure 4

Ten occupations made up nearly a quarter of private sector employment.

• Retail salespersons and cashiers were the two largest private sector occupations, making up about 7 percent of private sector employment.
• Ninety-four percent of employment in the 10 occupations shown in figure 4 was in the private sector. Among the individual occupations shown, private sector employment ranged from 79 percent of general office clerks to nearly 100 percent of retail salespersons and waiters and waitresses.
• All of the 10 largest private sector occupations also were among the 10 largest occupations overall, except for stock clerks and order fillers and general and operations managers, which were the 11th and 12th largest occupations overall.
• Most of the largest private sector occupations were relatively low paying. Of the 10 largest private sector occupations, only general and operations managers and registered nurses had annual mean wages above the U.S. all-occupations average of $44,410.

Figure 5

Different types of teachers and teacher assistants made up 5 of the 10 largest public sector occupations.

• Teacher assistants and elementary, secondary, and middle school teachers, except special and career/technical education made up about 18 percent of public sector employment. These occupations were found primarily in local government, where they made up over one-quarter of total employment.
• Police and sheriff’s patrol officers, general office clerks, and janitors were among the largest occupations in both state and local government, and registered nurses was among the largest occupations at all levels of government.
• In addition to the occupations shown in the chart, the largest occupations in local government included firefighters and school or special client bus drivers. Correctional officers was the largest individual occupation in state government. Four occupations specific to the U.S. Postal Service made up about 21 percent of federal government employment; compliance officers and management analysts also were among the largest federal government occupations.

Figure 6

Four occupations made up over 60 percent of retail trade employment.

• Jobs in retail trade businesses accounted for nearly 12 percent of U.S. jobs, making it one of the largest industry sectors, along with healthcare and social assistance, educational services, manufacturing, and accommodation and food services.
• More than 60 percent of retail trade jobs were in just four occupations: retail salespersons, cashiers, stock clerks and order fillers, and first-line supervisors of retail sales workers.
• All of the 10 largest retail trade occupations had annual mean wages below the U.S. all-occupations average of $44,410. The high share of lower paying jobs in retail trade helped account for this sector’s relatively low overall average wage of $28,980.

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Last Modified Date: October 24, 2011