Occupational Employment and Wages Summary

For release 10:00 a.m. (ET) Tuesday, April 25, 2023                            USDL-23-0794

Technical information: (202) 691-6569  *  oewsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/oes 
Media contact:         (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                   OCCUPATIONAL EMPLOYMENT AND WAGES -- MAY 2022


Computer and mathematical occupations had employment of 5.0 million in May 2022,
representing 3.4 percent of total national employment, the U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics reported today. The largest computer and mathematical occupations were
software developers (1.5 million) and computer user support specialists (696,830). 
The annual mean wage across all computer and mathematical occupations was $108,130,
compared with the U.S. average wage of $61,900.

The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program provides employment
and wage estimates for about 830 occupations in the nation, states, and approximately
530 areas. National data are available by industry for approximately 410 industry
classifications and by ownership across all industries and for the educational 
services and hospitals industries. This news release features computer and mathematical,
construction and extraction, and business and financial operations occupations,
in addition to largest occupations, public sector occupations, and employment and
wages by typical entry-level educational requirement. National employment and wage
information for all occupations is shown in table 1.

 _____________________________________________________________________________________
|										      |
|      Changes to the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) Data	      |
|										      |
| The May 2022 OEWS estimates are the first to use the 2022 North American Industry   |
| Classification System (NAICS). In addition, changes were made to the OEWS wage      |
| processing methodology. See the box notes at the end of this news release for	      |
| more information.								      |
|_____________________________________________________________________________________|	


Computer and mathematical occupations

 --The largest computer and mathematical occupations were software developers (1.5
   million), computer user support specialists (696,830), and computer systems analysts
   (505,210). (See table 1.)

 --Twenty out of 21 computer and mathematical occupations had mean wages above the
   U.S. average of $61,900. The highest paying computer and mathematical occupations
   were computer and information research scientists ($155,880), database architects
   ($136,540), and software developers ($132,930). (See table 1.)

 --The lowest paying computer and mathematical occupations were computer user support
   specialists ($61,580) and computer network support specialists ($76,060). Computer
   user support specialists was the only computer and mathematical occupation that 
   did not have an above-average wage. (See table 1.)

 --More than one-quarter of computer and mathematical jobs (1.3 million) were in the
   computer systems design and related services industry. Industries with the largest
   employment of computer and mathematical occupations also included management of
   companies and enterprises (331,220); software publishers (286,760); and employment
   services (190,030), which includes temporary help services.

 --The metropolitan areas with the highest concentrations of computer and mathematical
   occupations were San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA (13.7 percent of area employment),
   and California-Lexington Park, MD (10.3 percent).

 --The highest paying states for computer and mathematical occupations were California
   ($143,670) and Washington ($129,870). The lowest paying states for this group included
   Mississippi ($75,840) and North Dakota ($76,900).

National industry-specific data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrci.htm.

State data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrcst.htm and metropolitan area
data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrcma.htm.

Construction and extraction occupations

 --Construction and extraction occupations had employment of 6.1 million and an annual
   mean wage of $58,400. (See table 1.)

 --The largest construction and extraction occupations were construction laborers (1.0
   million) and first-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers 
   (720,900). (See table 1.)

 --The highest paying construction and extraction occupations were elevator and escalator
   installers and repairers ($93,960) and first-line supervisors of construction trades
   and extraction workers ($77,650). (See table 1.)

 --The lowest paying occupations in this group included helpers of pipelayers, plumbers,
   pipefitters, and steamfitters ($37,590) and helpers of painters, paperhangers,
   plasterers, and stucco masons ($38,040). (See table 1.)

 --Construction and extraction occupations made up 9.1 percent of employment in Wyoming,
   compared with 4.1 percent nationally. States with the highest shares of construction
   and extraction occupations also included North Dakota (7.5 percent) and Montana (6.7 
   percent).

 --Construction laborers, the largest construction and extraction occupation, had an
   annual mean wage of $46,350 for all industries combined. (See table 1.) Within the
   construction sector, mean wages for construction laborers varied by industry from 
   $42,950 in residential building construction to $55,160 in highway, street, and
   bridge construction.

Business and financial operations occupations

 --Business and financial operations occupations had employment of 9.7 million,
   representing 6.5 percent of U.S. employment. The annual mean wage for business
   and financial operations occupations was $86,080. (See table 1.)

 --The largest business and financial operations occupations included accountants and
   auditors (1.4 million); business operations specialists, all other (1.1 million);
   and project management specialists (843,910). (See table 1.)

 --The highest paying business and financial operations occupations were personal
   financial advisors ($137,740); agents and business managers of artists, performers,
   and athletes ($120,100); and financial risk specialists ($116,140). (See table 1.)

 --The lowest paying business and financial operations occupations included credit 
   counselors ($51,650) and farm labor contractors ($54,630). (See table 1.)

 --Accountants and auditors had an annual mean wage of $86,740 nationally. (See table
   1.) The District of Columbia ($110,750) and New York ($110,320) had the highest
   average wages for this occupation. The lowest paying states for accountants and 
   auditors included Mississippi ($68,040) and Nevada ($68,980).

Largest occupations

 --The largest occupations overall were retail salespersons (3.6 million), home health
   and personal care aides (3.5 million), and general and operations managers (3.4
   million). (See table 1.) 

 --Eight of the 10 largest occupations had below-average wages, including retail
   salespersons ($34,730) and home health and personal care aides ($30,930). (See 
   table 1.) 

 --Of the 10 largest occupations, registered nurses ($89,010) and general and 
   operations managers ($122,860) were the only occupations with above-average wages.
   (See table 1.)

Public sector occupations

 --The public sector made up 14.5 percent of employment and had a different occupational
   mix from the private sector. 

 --Several of the largest public sector occupations were related to education. These
   occupations included elementary school teachers, except special education (public
   sector employment of 1.2 million); teaching assistants, except postsecondary (993,600);
   secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education (896,190);
   and middle school teachers, except special and career/technical education (541,590).

 --Outside of the educational instruction and library group, the occupations with the
   highest public sector employment were police and sheriff's patrol officers (649,400);
   registered nurses (514,990); and janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping
   cleaners (485,250).

Public/private sector ownership data are available at www.bls.gov/oes/current/oessrci.htm.

Typical entry-level education

 --Occupations typically requiring a high school diploma or the equivalent for entry
   made up 38.2 percent of employment and occupations typically requiring no formal
   educational credential for entry made up 21.9 percent of employment. These two 
   educational categories include many production and construction occupations, as 
   well as large occupations like retail salespersons and home health and personal 
   care aides.

 --Occupations typically requiring postsecondary education for entry made up nearly
   40 percent of employment. The largest postsecondary category, occupations typically
   requiring a bachelor's degree for entry, made up 24.5 percent of employment. This
   educational category includes registered nurses; teachers at the kindergarten through
   secondary levels; and many management, business and financial operations, computer,
   and engineering occupations.

 --The largest occupations typically requiring a postsecondary nondegree award for 
   entry were heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers (2.0 million), nursing assistants
   (1.3 million), and medical assistants (752,460). Occupations in this educational 
   category made up 6.1 percent of employment.

 --Average wages were generally higher for occupations requiring more education. Annual
   mean wages were $34,320 for occupations typically requiring no formal educational
   credential for entry, $49,140 for occupations typically requiring a high school 
   diploma or the equivalent, $63,510 for occupations typically requiring an associate's
   degree, and $99,650 for occupations typically requiring a bachelor's degree.

 --The highest paying occupations typically requiring a postsecondary nondegree award
   for entry included commercial pilots ($123,250); captains, mates, and pilots of water 
   vessels ($104,190); and ship engineers ($100,980).

The typical education level required to enter an occupation is based on education and
training categories from the BLS Employment Projections program. More information about
the system of education and training categories is available at 
www.bls.gov/emp/documentation/education/tech.htm. Typical entry-level educational
requirements assigned to each occupation in the May 2022 OEWS estimates are available
at www.bls.gov/oes/educ_list_2022.xlsx. Additional charts are available at 
www.bls.gov/oes/current/overview_2022.htm.


 _____________________________________________________________________________________
|										      |
|    Implementing the 2022 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)      |
|										      |
| The May 2022 estimates are the first OEWS estimates to be produced using the 2022   |
| NAICS, which replaces the 2017 NAICS used for the May 2017-May 2021 estimates.      |
| More information about the 2022 NAICS is available at www.bls.gov/bls/naics.htm.    |
|_____________________________________________________________________________________|


 _____________________________________________________________________________________
|										      |
|      Changes to the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics Methodology	      |
|										      |
| The May 2022 OEWS estimates use the model-based (MB3) estimation method implemented |
| with the May 2021 estimates release. Additional updates were made to the MB3 wage   |
| processing methodology for May 2022. For more information, see the May 2022 Survey  |
| Methods and Reliability Statement at www.bls.gov/oes/methods_22.pdf.		      |
|_____________________________________________________________________________________|