Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019
43-2011 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service
Operate telephone business systems equipment or switchboards to relay incoming, outgoing, and interoffice calls. May supply information to callers and record messages.
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) |
| 68,050 |
2.8 % |
$15.88 |
$33,030 |
1.0 % |
Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$10.51 |
$12.34 |
$14.72 |
$18.17 |
$23.06 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$21,870 |
$25,670 |
$30,610 |
$37,790 |
$47,970 |
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) |
| Business Support Services |
15,910 |
1.78 |
$14.59 |
$30,350 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals |
13,740 |
0.25 |
$15.76 |
$32,780 |
| Offices of Physicians |
5,170 |
0.20 |
$15.11 |
$31,430 |
| Traveler Accommodation |
4,770 |
0.23 |
$16.73 |
$34,800 |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) |
2,290 |
0.04 |
$19.91 |
$41,400 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:
Top paying industries for this occupation:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities |
30 |
(7) |
$20.88 |
$43,440 |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) |
2,290 |
0.04 |
$19.91 |
$41,400 |
| Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services |
180 |
0.02 |
$19.75 |
$41,080 |
| Civic and Social Organizations |
50 |
0.01 |
$19.71 |
$41,000 |
| Truck Transportation |
320 |
0.02 |
$19.04 |
$39,610 |
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 |
11,960 |
0.69 |
1.48 |
$19.72 |
$41,010 |
| Texas |
5,380 |
0.43 |
0.93 |
$13.44 |
$27,950 |
| Florida |
5,060 |
0.58 |
1.24 |
$13.93 |
$28,970 |
| New York |
3,100 |
0.33 |
0.70 |
$19.08 |
$39,680 |
| Ohio |
2,770 |
0.51 |
1.10 |
$13.97 |
$29,050 |
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) |
| Nevada |
1,550 |
1.11 |
2.40 |
$15.60 |
$32,450 |
| Louisiana |
1,860 |
0.97 |
2.09 |
$12.55 |
$26,110 |
| South Carolina |
1,550 |
0.73 |
1.58 |
$14.15 |
$29,430 |
| Hawaii |
440 |
0.70 |
1.51 |
$19.57 |
$40,700 |
| California |
11,960 |
0.69 |
1.48 |
$19.72 |
$41,010 |
Top paying States for this occupation:
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) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
5,030 |
0.81 |
1.74 |
$17.25 |
$35,870 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
3,350 |
0.35 |
0.75 |
$19.09 |
$39,710 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
1,950 |
0.74 |
1.59 |
$14.58 |
$30,320 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
1,850 |
0.40 |
0.85 |
$17.25 |
$35,870 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
1,840 |
0.67 |
1.45 |
$16.28 |
$33,870 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,660 |
0.45 |
0.98 |
$13.55 |
$28,190 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA |
1,350 |
0.90 |
1.95 |
$20.16 |
$41,930 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV |
1,340 |
1.31 |
2.84 |
$15.74 |
$32,740 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
1,110 |
0.36 |
0.79 |
$14.83 |
$30,850 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
1,080 |
0.38 |
0.81 |
$16.09 |
$33,460 |
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) |
| Monroe, LA |
120 |
1.53 |
3.30 |
$12.21 |
$25,400 |
| Vineland-Bridgeton, NJ |
90 |
1.52 |
3.28 |
$14.42 |
$30,000 |
| Dothan, AL |
80 |
1.45 |
3.13 |
$12.09 |
$25,140 |
| Redding, CA |
100 |
1.43 |
3.08 |
$15.50 |
$32,240 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV |
1,340 |
1.31 |
2.84 |
$15.74 |
$32,740 |
| Lawton, OK |
50 |
1.21 |
2.61 |
$9.86 |
$20,520 |
| Atlantic City-Hammonton, NJ |
160 |
1.21 |
2.62 |
$11.97 |
$24,890 |
| Charleston-North Charleston, SC |
430 |
1.19 |
2.58 |
$14.33 |
$29,810 |
| Gainesville, GA |
100 |
1.10 |
2.37 |
$16.44 |
$34,200 |
| Lansing-East Lansing, MI |
230 |
1.06 |
2.30 |
$14.51 |
$30,190 |
United States Department of Labor
