July 26, 2005 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Jobs in the green industry

The business of growing flowers, greenery, trees, and vegetables and of planting them in the landscape is commonly called the green industry. Earnings in wage-and-salary jobs in this industry varied widely in May 2004, from $20,420 for landscaping workers to $114,680 for chief executives.

Median annual earnings of wage-and-salary workers in green-industry jobs, May 2004
[Chart data—TXT]

Landscaping and groundskeeping workers had median annual earnings of $20,420 in May 2004. Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators made more, with median annual earnings of $25,590. The grounds maintenance workers with the highest pay were tree trimmers and pruners—their median annual earnings were $26,150.

The median annual earnings of first-line supervisors of landscaping, lawn service, and groundskeeping workers were $35,340 in May 2004. Landscape architects who worked for a wage or salary had median annual earnings of $53,120.

General and operations managers in the landscaping services industry had median annual earnings of $73,550 in May 2004 and chief executives had median annual earnings of $114,680.

These data are from the Occupational Employment Statistics program. For more information, see "Careers in the green industry" by Kevin M. McCarron, Occupational Outlook Quarterly, Spring 2005.

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