Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2011

43-9061 Office Clerks, General

Perform duties too varied and diverse to be classified in any specific office clerical occupation, requiring knowledge of office systems and procedures. Clerical duties may be assigned in accordance with the office procedures of individual establishments and may include a combination of answering telephones, bookkeeping, typing or word processing, stenography, office machine operation, and filing.


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)
2,828,140 0.4 % $13.90 $28,920 0.2 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.53 $10.05 $13.07 $16.78 $20.86
Annual Wage (2) $17,740 $20,910 $27,190 $34,910 $43,390


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)
Local Government (OES Designation) 191,580 3.47 $15.37 $31,960
Employment Services 158,330 5.37 $12.92 $26,860
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 149,620 5.24 $14.27 $29,690
Elementary and Secondary Schools 113,420 1.35 $13.98 $29,080
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 92,440 1.78 $14.64 $30,450

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Real Estate Agents and Brokers 31,490 11.69 $13.00 $27,030
Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures 1,270 6.58 $13.64 $28,380
Office Administrative Services 25,870 6.40 $13.72 $28,530
Death Care Services 8,390 6.36 $12.05 $25,070
Grantmaking and Giving Services 7,590 5.97 $13.98 $29,070

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Postal Service 1,830 0.28 $25.56 $53,170
Natural Gas Distribution 2,830 2.61 $20.99 $43,670
Motor Vehicle Manufacturing 450 0.29 $20.46 $42,560
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing 1,430 1.30 $19.82 $41,220
Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing 1,670 1.05 $19.02 $39,570


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 318,100 22.66 1.03 $15.54 $32,320
Texas 264,430 25.66 1.16 $13.78 $28,670
New York 203,480 24.15 1.10 $14.05 $29,230
Pennsylvania 146,420 26.39 1.20 $14.15 $29,440
Florida 140,220 19.61 0.89 $12.67 $26,350




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)
West Virginia 31,500 44.98 2.04 $12.03 $25,020
Alaska 9,310 29.74 1.35 $16.88 $35,120
Michigan 110,380 28.83 1.31 $13.90 $28,910
Idaho 16,680 28.13 1.28 $13.15 $27,360
Virginia 96,140 27.06 1.23 $13.99 $29,090




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
District of Columbia 9,520 14.76 0.67 $18.04 $37,530
Alaska 9,310 29.74 1.35 $16.88 $35,120
Massachusetts 59,360 18.80 0.85 $16.25 $33,800
New Hampshire 12,860 21.19 0.96 $16.08 $33,440
Connecticut 26,950 16.75 0.76 $15.77 $32,800





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 129,040 25.49 1.16 $14.44 $30,030
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 91,620 23.97 1.09 $15.06 $31,320
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 85,470 23.85 1.08 $14.99 $31,170
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 65,810 25.79 1.17 $14.59 $30,340
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 52,210 25.53 1.16 $14.88 $30,940
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 50,540 22.69 1.03 $12.78 $26,580
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 50,040 21.66 0.98 $16.13 $33,550
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 45,970 25.33 1.15 $15.31 $31,840
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 36,470 21.31 0.97 $14.74 $30,670
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ 34,990 20.60 0.93 $14.89 $30,980




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)
State College, PA 3,960 59.48 2.70 $16.11 $33,510
Morgantown, WV 3,420 57.53 2.61 $12.04 $25,050
Charleston, WV 6,080 42.44 1.93 $12.68 $26,380
Monroe, MI 1,300 36.05 1.63 $13.76 $28,610
Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH 2,390 35.81 1.62 $11.73 $24,390
Wheeling, WV-OH 2,260 35.26 1.60 $11.66 $24,250
Brownsville-Harlingen, TX 4,320 34.69 1.57 $10.40 $21,630
College Station-Bryan, TX 3,140 34.20 1.55 $14.23 $29,590
Kalamazoo-Portage, MI 4,370 34.11 1.55 $13.43 $27,940
Sacramento--Arden-Arcade--Roseville, CA 27,420 34.06 1.54 $16.16 $33,610




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)
Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, CA Metropolitan Division 17,670 18.56 0.84 $18.04 $37,520
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 14,350 16.37 0.74 $17.82 $37,060
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA Metropolitan Division 17,040 17.76 0.81 $17.76 $36,940
Fairbanks, AK 1,120 31.85 1.44 $17.36 $36,120
Barnstable Town, MA 2,480 26.49 1.20 $17.30 $35,980
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division 31,000 18.50 0.84 $17.04 $35,440
Anchorage, AK 4,840 28.78 1.31 $17.00 $35,350
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA (8) (8) (8) $16.98 $35,310
Leominster-Fitchburg-Gardner, MA 1,020 21.78 0.99 $16.68 $34,700
Trenton-Ewing, NJ 4,710 21.75 0.99 $16.47 $34,260

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)
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 8,710 31.61 1.43 $12.73 $26,470
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 7,540 19.79 0.90 $11.54 $24,000
Eastern Texas nonmetropolitan area 7,310 26.39 1.20 $11.95 $24,860
Southern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 6,840 51.66 2.34 $11.73 $24,410
North Central West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 6,280 45.70 2.07 $11.40 $23,710

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)
New Shoreham Town, Rhode Island nonmetropolitan area 30 64.74 2.94 $12.20 $25,380
Southern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 6,840 51.66 2.34 $11.73 $24,410
North Central West Virginia nonmetropolitan area 6,280 45.70 2.07 $11.40 $23,710
East Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area 5,100 43.06 1.95 $11.11 $23,100
Northeast Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 2,850 39.48 1.79 $12.66 $26,330

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)
Southwestern New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 950 24.51 1.11 $18.05 $37,540
Railbelt / Southwest Alaska nonmetropolitan area 2,040 28.38 1.29 $17.11 $35,590
St. Mary's County, Maryland nonmetropolitan area 750 17.74 0.80 $16.80 $34,930
Western New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 1,040 17.09 0.78 $16.11 $33,510
Nantucket Island and Martha's Vineyard nonmetropolitan area 380 27.76 1.26 $15.94 $33,150


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