Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2010

51-9198 Helpers--Production Workers

Help production workers by performing duties requiring less skill. Duties include supplying or holding materials or tools, and cleaning work area and equipment. Apprentice workers are classified in the appropriate production occupations (51-0000).

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)
394,270 1.1 % $11.66 $24,240 0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.08 $8.97 $10.79 $13.63 $16.98
Annual Wage (2) $16,810 $18,650 $22,450 $28,340 $35,320

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)
Employment Services 99,640 3.74 $10.40 $21,640
Printing and Related Support Activities 18,370 3.71 $11.76 $24,460
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 15,530 3.15 $10.75 $22,350
Converted Paper Product Manufacturing 13,670 4.84 $12.57 $26,140
Bakeries and Tortilla Manufacturing 13,150 4.71 $12.28 $25,540

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Leather and Hide Tanning and Finishing 210 6.37 $12.11 $25,190
Grain and Oilseed Milling 3,220 5.57 $13.49 $28,050
Fruit and Vegetable Preserving and Specialty Food Manufacturing 9,380 5.55 $11.75 $24,440
Sugar and Confectionery Product Manufacturing 3,730 5.45 $12.90 $26,830
Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Mills 5,620 5.06 $16.18 $33,660

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Elementary and Secondary Schools 40 (7) $21.55 $44,830
Rail Transportation 490 0.22 $20.26 $42,150
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution 320 0.08 $19.24 $40,010
Coal Mining 470 0.59 $19.00 $39,520
Local Government (OES Designation) 930 0.02 $17.83 $37,080

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 38,670 2.76 0.89 $11.20 $23,300
Texas 30,810 3.05 0.98 $10.74 $22,340
Pennsylvania 26,450 4.82 1.56 $12.57 $26,140
Ohio 20,340 4.13 1.33 $12.05 $25,060
Illinois 19,720 3.57 1.15 $11.76 $24,460




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)
Arkansas 12,160 10.71 3.45 $10.99 $22,860
Alabama 12,570 6.95 2.24 $10.77 $22,410
Mississippi 6,130 5.73 1.85 $11.27 $23,430
Tennessee 13,720 5.34 1.72 $11.32 $23,550
Indiana 14,490 5.32 1.72 $11.44 $23,790




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
West Virginia 1,970 2.87 0.93 $14.62 $30,420
New Hampshire 1,150 1.90 0.61 $14.35 $29,840
Oregon 3,100 1.97 0.64 $13.57 $28,230
Washington 5,410 2.01 0.65 $13.37 $27,820
Alaska 310 1.00 0.32 $13.36 $27,790

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)
Chicago-Naperville-Joliet, IL Metropolitan Division 12,910 3.65 1.18 $11.30 $23,500
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 12,220 3.20 1.03 $10.88 $22,620
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 7,370 2.95 0.95 $10.79 $22,440
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 6,290 3.14 1.01 $10.63 $22,100
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 6,230 2.83 0.91 $10.81 $22,480
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 6,090 1.22 0.39 $12.37 $25,730
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 5,580 3.33 1.07 $11.72 $24,380
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 5,520 3.06 0.99 $12.92 $26,870
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 4,270 3.74 1.21 $10.90 $22,670
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI Metropolitan Division 4,160 4.09 1.32 $12.52 $26,030




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)
Kokomo, IN 910 23.97 7.73 $10.38 $21,590
Dalton, GA 1,440 22.65 7.30 $11.27 $23,450
Reading, PA 3,060 19.22 6.20 $11.13 $23,150
Steubenville-Weirton, OH-WV 790 18.90 6.09 $15.06 $31,330
Gadsden, AL 630 18.77 6.05 $9.50 $19,750
Columbus, IN 730 18.31 5.90 $11.41 $23,720
Elkhart-Goshen, IN 1,680 16.88 5.44 $9.15 $19,040
Fort Smith, AR-OK 1,830 15.93 5.14 $10.81 $22,480
Saginaw-Saginaw Township North, MI 1,210 15.08 4.86 $11.17 $23,230
Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR-MO 2,840 14.74 4.75 $10.67 $22,190