Author: Joshua DeLaTorre
The North Carolina Department of Commerce’s Labor & Economic Analysis Division (LEAD) is happy to note that the May 2022 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics data is available across multiple platforms such as our Demand Driven Data Delivery System (D4), the Occupational Wage Lookup Tool, NCWorks.gov, and the BLS Website. Below is a data visualization showing the distribution of occupational families by employment size and median wage:
- Office & Administrative Support Occupations (SOC 43-0000) have the greatest number of jobs at over 550,000 while Sales & Related Occupations (SOC 41-0000) have the second greatest number of jobs at 466,980.
- Farming, Fishing, & Forestry Occupations (SOC 45-0000) have the smallest number of jobs at 7,300. Legal Occupations (SOC 23-0000) have the second smallest number of jobs at 28,060.
- Management Occupations (SOC 11-0000) pay the highest median wages at over $104,000/year. Computer & Mathematical positions (SOC 15-0000) pay the second highest at $102,370/year.
- Food Preparation & Serving Occupations (SOC 35-0000) pay the lowest median wages at $26,100/year while Personal Care & Service Occupations (SOC 39-0000) pay the second lowest at $28,560/year.
- Occupations with higher pay often require higher education for entry than occupations offering less compensation. Typical educational requirements for occupations can be found here: https://www.bls.gov/emp/tables/education-and-training-by-occupation.htm.
- The annual median wage across all occupations in North Carolina is $41,810 while the annual mean wage (or average wage) in NC is $56,220.
Top 10 Occupations by Employment in NC for 2022
As shown in the table below, Cashiers top our list of detailed occupations with the most employment. The employment figures represent employment across North Carolina and across industries. These occupations belong to: Sales & Related; Transportation & Material Moving; Food Preparation & Serving; and Office & Administrative Support occupational families.
| SOC | Occupation | Employment (stateside) |
|---|---|---|
| 41-2011 | Cashiers | 127,220 |
| 53-7062 | Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 123,040 |
| 41-2031 | Retail Salespersons | 114,630 |
| 29-1141 | Registered Nurses | 104,300 |
| 53-7065 | Stockers and Order Fillers | 92,560 |
| 43-4051 | Customer Service Representatives | 89,500 |
| 11-1021 | General and Operations Managers | 89,160 |
| 35-2011 | Cooks, Fast Food | 87,610 |
| 43-9061 | Office Clerks, General | 71,810 |
| 35-3031 | Waiters and Waitresses | 69,440 |
Even within the state, wages for a given occupation can vary widely depending on region and industry, as seen in the tables below. The first table displays average wages for Registered Nurses across different regions in NC.
Comparison of Mean Wages for Registered Nurses by Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA):
| MSA | Hourly Wage | Annual Wage |
|---|---|---|
| Greensboro-High Point | $38.59 | $80,260 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia | $38.24 | $79,530 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill | $36.23 | $75,360 |
| Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton | $33.84 | $70,390 |
| New Bern | $32.80 | $68,210 |
Comparison of Wages for Registered Nurses by Industry:
As shown in this visual taken from LEAD’s Occupational Wage Lookup tool, the distribution of wages for Registered Nurses varies by industry. Wages for Registered Nurses working in Hospitals are higher than wages for Registered Nurses working in Ambulatory Health Care Services.
Be sure to check out LEAD’s LMI Tuesdays session on OEWS, which is dedicated to explaining the latest occupational information further. Visit the LMI Tuesdays page to explore other sessions covering a variety of Labor Market Information topics. If you require assistance or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at lead@commerce.nc.gov.