Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2003

41-2031 Retail Salespersons

Sell merchandise, such as furniture, motor vehicles, appliances, or apparel in a retail establishment. Exclude "Cashiers" (41-2011).

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)
3,992,930 0.4 % $10.70 $22,260 0.2 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $6.25 $7.23 $8.70 $11.60 $17.24
Annual Wage (2) $12,990 $15,040 $18,090 $24,130 $35,860

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
Department stores 675,810 $8.97 $18,660 1 194
Clothing stores 572,230 $8.79 $18,280 2 202
Building material and supplies dealers 335,010 $11.92 $24,800 3 104
Other general merchandise stores 285,730 $8.52 $17,710 4 210
Automobile dealers 267,620 $20.92 $43,520 5 5

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Other electrical equipment and component mfg. 40 $25.74 $53,530 181 1
Metalworking machinery manufacturing (6) $23.95 $49,820 (6) 2
Support activities for mining 40 $23.83 $49,570 183 3
Magnetic media manufacturing and reproducing (6) $21.91 $45,580 (6) 4
Automobile dealers 267,620 $20.92 $43,520 5 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
New Hampshire 24,840 $11.39 $23,700 4.108% 494
Hawaii 22,020 $10.13 $21,070 3.982% 461
Delaware 15,830 $10.89 $22,650 3.929% 435
Montana 15,410 $9.50 $19,770 3.898% 490
Colorado 80,520 $11.53 $23,980 3.811% 575

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Washington 64,840 $12.68 $26,370 2.531% 591
Connecticut 50,100 $12.24 $25,450 3.054% 548
Alaska 8,120 $12.17 $25,310 2.778% 426
California 437,290 $11.77 $24,480 3.013% 618
Nevada 32,470 $11.65 $24,230 3.048% 510

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
Barnstable-Yarmouth, MA MSA 4,180 $10.83 $22,520 6.343%
Myrtle Beach, SC MSA 5,420 $9.71 $20,190 5.334%
Punta Gorda, FL MSA 2,150 $11.21 $23,320 5.296%
Dubuque, IA MSA 2,590 $9.08 $18,890 5.256%
Laredo, TX MSA 3,810 $8.20 $17,050 5.096%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Stamford-Norwalk, CT PMSA 7,140 $14.82 $30,830 3.566%
Tacoma, WA PMSA 6,620 $13.34 $27,750 2.818%
San Francisco, CA PMSA 29,730 $13.30 $27,670 3.047%
San Jose, CA PMSA 21,680 $13.01 $27,070 2.470%
Manchester, NH PMSA 3,660 $12.93 $26,900 3.455%

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.

(6) Estimates not released.

All Sales and Related 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