Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2003

51-6011 Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, fine linens, rugs, and carpets. Include spotters and dyers of these articles.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
217,820 1.5 % $8.64 $17,960 0.6 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $6.05 $6.98 $8.14 $9.84 $11.96
Annual Wage (2) $12,580 $14,510 $16,920 $20,480 $24,880

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Drycleaning and laundry services 103,060 $8.24 $17,130 1 43
Nursing care facilities 33,900 $8.36 $17,380 2 36
Traveler accommodation 30,680 $8.56 $17,800 3 32
General medical and surgical hospitals 15,450 $9.37 $19,500 4 16
Services to buildings and dwellings 10,460 $11.71 $24,350 5 4

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Federal government (OES designation) 380 $16.35 $34,010 20 1
Home furnishings stores 30 $13.52 $28,130 46 2
Clothing stores 30 $11.78 $24,500 44 3
Services to buildings and dwellings 10,460 $11.71 $24,350 5 4
State government (OES designation) 1,350 $11.14 $23,170 8 5

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Rhode Island 1,460 $8.70 $18,090 0.308% 531
Wyoming 690 $8.06 $16,760 0.286% 455
Hawaii 1,560 $11.07 $23,020 0.282% 444
South Dakota 970 $7.91 $16,450 0.274% 472
Louisiana 4,690 $7.09 $14,750 0.254% 670

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Colorado 4,210 $11.27 $23,450 0.199% 592
Hawaii 1,560 $11.07 $23,020 0.282% 444
Connecticut 2,970 $10.72 $22,300 0.181% 588
New York 12,440 $10.18 $21,180 0.151% 676
Minnesota 3,930 $10.11 $21,030 0.151% 642

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Springfield, IL MSA 520 $8.12 $16,900 0.475%
Naples, FL MSA 520 $8.39 $17,450 0.459%
Brockton, MA PMSA 450 $8.82 $18,350 0.452%
Terre Haute, IN MSA 260 $7.95 $16,540 0.406%
Modesto, CA MSA 630 $8.10 $16,850 0.402%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Nashua, NH PMSA 60 $13.11 $27,270 0.064%
Denver, CO PMSA 2,180 $12.93 $26,890 0.192%
New York, NY PMSA 5,650 $11.67 $24,270 0.142%
Waterbury, CT PMSA 320 $11.60 $24,120 0.381%
Lincoln, NE MSA 190 $11.47 $23,870 0.129%

About May 2003 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

To see profiles of other occupations, select from the major groups below:

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) 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.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

All Production Occupations

2003 May National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2003 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: May 7, 2004