by
David J. Peters
dpeters4@mail.state.mo.us
Key Findings
According to 2000 estimates, there were 53,350 science-intensive jobs in Missouri earning an annual mean wage of $67,254 per job, which is much higher than the state average wage of $30,812 per job. On average in Missouri, entry-level wages were $56,036 per job and experienced-level wages were $79,470 per job. In addition, workers in science-intensive occupations accounted for 1.99% of all employment and 4.33% of all wages earned statewide.
Most science-intensive jobs were in Services (26,030 jobs earning $73,661 per job), Manufacturing (14,000 jobs earning $59,688 per job), Transport and Public Utilities (3,870 jobs earning $64,946 per job), Retail Trade (3,110 jobs earning $67,543 per job) and Public Administration (3,050 jobs earning $57,428 per job).
Nationally, there were 2.89 million science-intensive jobs earning an annual mean wage of $70,794 per job. Missouri employs 1.85% of this national total at 95.0% of the national mean annual wage, indicating lower labor costs for science-intensive jobs.
In Missouri, science-intensive occupations with the highest employment base were Computer Software Engineers (5,950 jobs at $65,182 per job), Engineering Managers (4,600 jobs at $75,615 per job), Pharmacists (4,600 jobs at $66,836 per job), Computer Systems Engineers (3,700 jobs at $64,743 per job) and Medical Laboratory Technologists (3,460 jobs at $39,026 per job).
Occupations with the largest percentage of national employment in Missouri were Obstetricians and Gynecologists (5.32% of national employment at 105.41% of national mean wages), Agricultural Engineers (5.07% of national employment at 97.04% of national mean wages), Aerospace Engineers (4.65% of national employment at 81.43% of national mean wages). Higher Education Physics Teachers (3.96% of national employment at 84.35% of national mean wages), Higher Education Chemistry Teachers (3.68% of national employment at 90.20% of national mean wages), Higher Education Engineering Teachers (3.64% of national employment at 100.62% of national mean wages), Higher Education Biological Science Teachers (3.60% of national employment at 71.50% of national mean wages) and Higher Education Agricultural Science Teachers (3.36% of national employment at 90.30% of national mean wages). These occupations can be considered target occupations, since Missouri has a fair share of national employment and state wage rates are at or below the national mean annual wage - indicating lower labor costs, a possible competitive advantage.
In the United States, science-intensive occupations with the highest employment base were Computer Software Engineers (374,640 jobs at $70,300 per job), Computer Systems Engineers (264,610 jobs at $70,890 per job), Engineering Managers (242,280 jobs at $85,450 per job), Pharmacists (212,660 jobs at $69,440 per job) and Mechanical Engineers (207,300 jobs at $60,860 per job).
