Missouri's Top Employing Occupations
Retail salespersons, office
clerks, cashiers, food service workers and registered nurses
represent the 5 largest occupations in Missouri based upon the
number employed. These five occupations employ 358,500 in the state.
The state's Top 30 employing
occupations account for nearly 1.1 million jobs (1,091,780) or 41
percent of all jobs in the state. Combined the Top 30 pay an average
hourly wage of $13.13 or $28,997 annually.i The pay ranges from $7.11
per hour for waiters and waitresses to $40.03 hourly for general and
operations managers.
The state average hourly wage for all jobs is $16.61 or $34,548 annually.ii
All occupations listed, except for Security Guards, were in the Top 30 in the last survey period. Licensed practical and licensed vocational nurses are the only occupation to fall off the list from the prior survey.
Missouri's Top Employing Occupations
| Occupation | Employment | Average Hourly Wages | Annual Average Wages | Ranking (Previous) |
| Retail Salespersons | 91,600 | $10.94 | $22,760 | 1 (1) |
| Office Clerks, General | 82,360 | $10.95 | $22,790 | 2 (2) |
| Cashiers | 74,640 | $7.93 | $16,490 | 3 (3) |
| Combined Food Preparation and Serving Workers, Including Fast Food | 56,270 | $7.21 | $15,010 | 4 (4) |
| Registered Nurses | 53,630 | $23.18 | $48,220 | 5 (5) |
| Waiters and Waitresses | 49,520 | $7.11 | $14,790 | 6 (6) |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 43,170 | $10.57 | $21,990 | 7 (9) |
| Customer Service Representatives | 41,760 | $13.79 | $28,680 | 8 (8) |
| Truck Drivers, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer | 41,430 | $17.66 | $36,730 | 9 (11) |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 41,370 | $9.23 | $19,200 | 10 (10) |
| Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Attendants | 39,420 | $9.23 | $19,190 | 11 (12) |
| Team Assemblers | 38,380 | $13.91 | $28,930 | 12 (14) |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | 34,240 | $13.29 | $27,650 | 13 (13) |
| General and Operations Managers | 33,170 | $40.03 | $83,270 | 14 (7) |
| Stock Clerks and Order Fillers | 29,540 | $10.16 | $21,130 | 15 (19) |
| Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education | 28,470 | -- | $36,240 | 16 (15) |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | 28,050 | $15.25 | $31,710 | 17 (20) |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | 27,370 | $25.17 | $52,350 | 18 (21) |
| Secretaries, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | 25,350 | $12.61 | $26,230 | 19 (18) |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Office and Administrative Support Workers | 24,720 | $19.53 | $40,630 | 20 (16) |
| Executive Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | 23,660 | $16.82 | $34,980 | 21 (23) |
| Carpenters | 23,540 | $20.16 | $41,930 | 22 (24) |
| Receptionists and Information Clerks | 21,750 | $10.35 | $21,520 | 23 (26) |
| Accountants and Auditors | 21,510 | $26.21 | $54,530 | 24 (27) |
| Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Vocational Education | 21,300 | -- | $38,310 | 25 (22) |
| Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | 20,530 | $7.77 | $16,160 | 26 (25) |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Retail Sales Workers | 19,770 | $18.24 | $37,930 | 27 (17) |
| Packers and Packagers, Hand | 18,510 | $9.04 | $18,810 | 28 (28) |
| Security Guards | 18,410 | $11.43 | $23,770 | 29 * |
| Truck Drivers, Light Or Delivery Services | 18,340 | $12.55 | $26,090 | 30 (30) |
*Occupation not on last report.
Missouri's Top 30 employing
occupations represent 14 of the 22 major occupational groups
according to the Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system. (See
detail) The major SOC group of Office and Administrative Support Occupations
account for eight of the Top 30, while the SOC groups of Sales and
Related Occupations and Transportation and Material Moving
Occupations each account for four of the Top 30 employing
occupations.
The eight major SOC groups not represented in the Top 30 occupations in Missouri are:
-
Computer and Mathematical Occupations
-
Architecture and Engineering Occupations
-
Life, Physical and Social Science Occupations
-
Community and Social Services Legal Occupations
-
Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports and Media Occupations
-
Personal Care and Service Occupations
-
Farming, Fishing and Forestry Occupations
The comparison
of Missouri's Top 30 occupations with those of surrounding states
shows favorable results for Show-Me state workers. In comparing the
average wages of Missouri's Top 30 with the average wages for those
occupations in the eight surrounding states combined, all but three
occupations had higher average wages in Missouri. The exceptions are
elementary school teachers, secondary school teachers, and nursing aides, orderlies and attendants.
| Occupation Title | MO Wage | IA Wage | IL Wage | KY Wage | TN Wage | AR Wage | OK Wage | KS Wage | NE Wage |
| Retail Salespersons | $10.94 | $10.16 | $10.84 | $9.92 | $10.73 | $9.32 | $9.93 | $10.54 | $10.22 |
| Office Clerks, General | $10.95 | $10.67 | $11.95 | $10.47 | $11.10 | $9.12 | $10.11 | $10.29 | $10.25 |
| Cashiers | $7.93 | $7.50 | $8.08 | $7.38 | $7.69 | $7.14 | $7.34 | $7.52 | $7.74 |
| Combined Food Preparation and Serving Workers, Including Fast Food | $7.21 | $6.93 | $7.26 | $6.71 | $6.84 | $6.30 | $6.71 | $7.02 | $7.03 |
| Registered Nurses | $23.18 | $20.85 | $23.93 | $23.10 | $23.30 | $22.07 | $21.75 | $22.11 | $22.92 |
| Waiters and Waitresses | $7.11 | $6.71 | $7.70 | $6.46 | $6.79 | $6.29 | $6.75 | $6.93 | $6.82 |
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | $10.57 | $10.58 | $10.24 | $10.59 | $10.24 | $9.34 | $9.36 | $10.17 | $10.12 |
| Customer Service Representatives | $13.79 | $12.38 | $14.61 | $12.32 | $12.79 | $12.77 | $12.12 | $12.88 | $12.49 |
| Truck Drivers, Heavy and Tractor-Trailer | $17.66 | $15.16 | $17.69 | $15.14 | $15.58 | $15.93 | $15.22 | $15.82 | $15.35 |
| Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | $9.23 | $9.58 | $10.32 | $8.68 | $8.86 | $7.98 | $8.26 | $9.23 | $9.29 |
| Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Attendants | $9.23 | $10.45 | $9.90 | $9.44 | $9.30 | $8.39 | $8.63 | $9.98 | $10.14 |
| Team Assemblers | $13.91 | $12.55 | $11.44 | $14.32 | $13.14 | $11.29 | $11.62 | $12.23 | $11.95 |
| Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks | $13.29 | $12.65 | $14.55 | $12.69 | $13.18 | $12.18 | $12.64 | $12.75 | $12.51 |
| General and Operations Managers | $40.03 | $39.03 | $40.76 | $33.86 | $36.21 | $39.18 | $34.43 | $38.96 | $38.84 |
| Stock Clerks and Order Fillers | $10.16 | $9.79 | $10.30 | $9.91 | $9.75 | $9.26 | $9.93 | $10.06 | $10.21 |
| Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education | $36,240 | $34,140 | $43,940 | $38,940 | $39,090 | $36,210 | $33,580 | $36,240 | $38,910 |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | $15.25 | $14.93 | $17.81 | $14.91 | $15.26 | $13.21 | $13.29 | $14.48 | $13.43 |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | $25.17 | $24.26 | $26.32 | $23.24 | $24.52 | $23.35 | $20.90 | $26.22 | $22.62 |
| Secretaries, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | $12.61 | $11.88 | $13.10 | $11.00 | $11.34 | $10.53 | $10.52 | $11.38 | $11.28 |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Office and Administrative Support Workers | $19.53 | $19.27 | $21.10 | $17.98 | $18.75 | $16.35 | $18.56 | $18.84 | $19.13 |
| Executive Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | $16.82 | $15.56 | $17.38 | $15.07 | $15.37 | $14.75 | $14.68 | $15.55 | $15.16 |
| Carpenters | $20.16 | $15.74 | $22.67 | $15.66 | $14.22 | $14.00 | $14.18 | $16.49 | $15.19 |
| Receptionists and Information Clerks | $10.35 | $10.01 | $11.04 | $9.74 | $10.24 | $9.16 | $9.42 | $10.05 | $10.20 |
| Accountants and Auditors | $26.21 | $24.52 | $28.87 | $23.89 | $23.08 | $22.33 | $21.82 | $26.00 | $25.45 |
| Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Vocational Education | $38,310 | $34,540 | $52,900 | $40,230 | $41,410 | $38,200 | $35,300 | $35,650 | $38,820 |
| Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | $7.77 | $8.15 | $8.87 | $7.88 | $7.75 | $6.80 | $7.03 | $7.38 | $7.96 |
| First-Line Supervisors/Managers of Retail Sales Workers | $18.24 | $16.68 | $18.12 | $15.30 | $16.57 | $14.04 | $15.57 | $16.20 | $17.00 |
| Packers and Packagers, Hand | $9.04 | $8.89 | $9.37 | $8.88 | $9.16 | $8.95 | $7.95 | $8.84 | $8.86 |
| Security Guards | $11.43 | $10.67 | $10.95 | $9.25 | $9.23 | $9.18 | $10.24 | $10.67 | $10.87 |
| Truck Drivers, Light Or Delivery Services | $12.55 | $12.59 | $15.03 | $11.77 | $12.27 | $10.12 | $10.52 | $13.15 | $11.73 |
Highlighted figures indicate a higher wage or salary in that state compared to Missouri.
Notes
iEmployment and wage estimates are based on results from the 2003/2004 Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey. The MERIC OES program conducts a semi-annual mail survey designed to produce estimates of employment and wages for specific occupations. Each state conducts an identical survey in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
iiSource: MERIC, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, data is for calendar year 2004.
Average Hourly Wage is calculated by dividing Total Wages by Average Employment by 2,080 hours (52 weeks x 40 hours) across all industries.
Average Annual Wage is calculated by dividing Total Wages by Average Employment across all industries.
