Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2011

21-1023 Mental Health and Substance Abuse Social Workers

Assess and treat individuals with mental, emotional, or substance abuse problems, including abuse of alcohol, tobacco, and/or other drugs. Activities may include individual and group therapy, crisis intervention, case management, client advocacy, prevention, and education.


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic 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)
115,390 1.4 % $20.50 $42,650 0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $12.27 $15.06 $18.86 $24.65 $31.54
Annual Wage (2) $25,520 $31,320 $39,230 $51,280 $65,600


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Outpatient Care Centers 23,050 3.77 $19.34 $40,220
Individual and Family Services 18,740 1.50 $18.94 $39,400
Residential Mental Retardation, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities 14,980 2.62 $17.53 $36,460
Local Government (OES Designation) 12,460 0.23 $22.83 $47,480
Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals 10,880 4.64 $23.54 $48,960

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals 10,880 4.64 $23.54 $48,960
Outpatient Care Centers 23,050 3.77 $19.34 $40,220
Residential Mental Retardation, Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities 14,980 2.62 $17.53 $36,460
Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services 2,860 1.99 $16.23 $33,760
Other Residential Care Facilities 2,660 1.67 $16.95 $35,260

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 200 0.09 $26.52 $55,170
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 6,030 0.12 $24.64 $51,250
Educational Support Services 40 0.03 $24.39 $50,740
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 430 0.02 $23.85 $49,610
Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals 10,880 4.64 $23.54 $48,960


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 10,280 0.73 0.81 $23.48 $48,840
New York 10,010 1.19 1.32 $24.60 $51,160
Pennsylvania 9,230 1.66 1.85 $19.85 $41,280
Ohio 6,350 1.28 1.42 $19.40 $40,360
Massachusetts 5,420 1.72 1.91 $20.66 $42,960




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Vermont 920 3.17 3.52 $17.48 $36,360
Maine 1,570 2.72 3.02 $20.57 $42,790
Alaska 580 1.86 2.06 $20.47 $42,580
Massachusetts 5,420 1.72 1.91 $20.66 $42,960
Rhode Island 760 1.69 1.88 $25.17 $52,350




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New Jersey 1,760 0.47 0.52 $28.48 $59,230
District of Columbia 380 0.59 0.65 $27.79 $57,810
Connecticut 2,570 1.60 1.78 $25.45 $52,940
Rhode Island 760 1.69 1.88 $25.17 $52,350
New York 10,010 1.19 1.32 $24.60 $51,160





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 5,860 1.16 1.29 $24.96 $51,910
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 3,180 0.83 0.92 $23.58 $49,040
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 2,790 1.54 1.71 $20.88 $43,420
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 2,400 0.67 0.75 $19.14 $39,820
Pittsburgh, PA 2,180 1.96 2.17 $20.86 $43,380
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ 1,790 1.05 1.17 $19.23 $40,000
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division 1,680 1.00 1.11 $21.21 $44,120
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 1,360 0.79 0.88 $23.84 $49,580
Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO 1,220 1.02 1.13 $17.40 $36,180
Kansas City, MO-KS 1,200 1.26 1.40 $14.60 $30,370




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Kankakee-Bradley, IL 850 21.01 23.36 $18.62 $38,740
Taunton-Norton-Raynham, MA NECTA Division 590 13.36 14.85 $20.58 $42,800
Bangor, ME 400 6.50 7.22 $19.45 $40,460
Pueblo, CO 260 4.77 5.31 $18.43 $38,340
Peabody, MA NECTA Division 430 4.30 4.79 $20.57 $42,780
Pocatello, ID 140 4.20 4.66 $13.81 $28,720
Danville, IL 110 4.06 4.51 $12.44 $25,880
Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford, VA 220 3.62 4.03 $16.20 $33,700
Monroe, MI 130 3.49 3.88 $21.68 $45,090
St. Joseph, MO-KS 160 3.12 3.47 $12.75 $26,520




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Danbury, CT (8) (8) (8) $31.23 $64,960
Trenton-Ewing, NJ 330 1.53 1.70 $30.31 $63,050
Newark-Union, NJ-PA Metropolitan Division 330 0.35 0.39 $30.08 $62,570
Macon, GA 80 0.85 0.94 $29.94 $62,270
Utica-Rome, NY 250 2.03 2.26 $29.63 $61,640
Edison-New Brunswick, NJ Metropolitan Division 330 0.34 0.38 $28.45 $59,170
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 1,070 0.46 0.52 $28.26 $58,790
Racine, WI 60 0.88 0.98 $28.16 $58,570
Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, CA Metropolitan Division 710 0.74 0.83 $28.13 $58,520
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT 390 0.94 1.05 $27.97 $58,170

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southern Ohio nonmetropolitan area 490 3.07 3.41 $15.00 $31,200
Far Western Pennsylvania nonmetropolitan area 480 2.97 3.30 $15.22 $31,660
Southeast Missouri nonmetropolitan area 450 2.85 3.16 (8) (8)
Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 440 4.32 4.80 $17.51 $36,420
Southwest Maine nonmetropolitan area 420 2.22 2.47 $21.47 $44,660

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 440 4.32 4.80 $17.51 $36,420
Northern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 270 3.71 4.12 $16.75 $34,830
Upper Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 400 3.59 4.00 $11.60 $24,130
Eastern Oregon nonmetropolitan area 200 3.57 3.97 $15.72 $32,690
Pee Dee South Carolina nonmetropolitan area 160 3.50 3.89 $11.94 $24,840

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
East Central New York nonmetropolitan area 60 1.76 1.96 $29.65 $61,680
Upper Eastern Shore nonmetropolitan area 50 0.76 0.84 $27.37 $56,920
Southwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area 70 0.60 0.66 $24.59 $51,150
South Arkansas nonmetropolitan area 80 0.64 0.71 $24.28 $50,500
Eastern Wisconsin nonmetropolitan area 150 0.96 1.07 $23.74 $49,380


About May 2011 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. 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.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2011 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2011 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped XLS files

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 27, 2012