DWS News

April 1, 2003
Contact: Curt Stewart 801-526-4315

2003 Wage Trends Now Available

The most current information available on wages in Utah is now available on the Department of Workforce Services (DWS) website, jobs.utah.gov. Released April 1, the new wage data is the result of the yearly Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) survey of over 3,000 Utah employers, conducted jointly by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics and DWS. This comprehensive and localized information is useful to both job seekers and employers, as well as people planning their career or education and other planners. The new wage information, comprised of wage tables and informative articles, provides employers with information they need to recruit and retain workers and to remain competitive in the Utah labor market. It helps job seekers plan their careers (and career changes) by providing current, accurate information on the wages different occupations pay in Utah as a whole, and in selected sub-state areas.

"This is a tool for everybody who works, is planning to work, hires workers or makes plans relating to the Utah labor market", said Austin Sargent, DWS Economist. "Even if you don't plan any major changes in your career or business, it's helpful to be able to quickly find out what the 300 most prevalent occupations in Utah pay—for a variety of reasons."

The 2003 wage data now available reflects wages during the period from October through December, 2002. Wages are broken down into the Entry wage, Average wage, Median wage, and Middle Range of wages for each occupation. This enables the user to gauge roughly what a typical newcomer, as well as an experienced worker, could expect to be paid for a given occupation—more or less.

Wages are published for Utah as a whole and, when enough occupations exist for a statistically accurate sample, for sub-state areas as well. The sub-state areas include:

The Salt Lake City-Ogden area; the Provo-Orem area; Box Elder, Cache and Rich counties; Davis, Morgan and Weber counties; Summit and Wasatch counties; Tooele County; Iron and Washington counties; Central & Southwest Rural counties; and Eastern counties. These groupings allow users to compare wages for the same occupation in different parts of the state, as well as to the statewide data.

The survey results show that hourly wages in Utah vary widely and are dependent upon market demand and the level of skill and training required. The highest paid occupations include doctors, lawyers, air traffic controllers and engineering managers. The lowest-paid jobs were concentrated in the Food Preparation and Serving occupational category. There is a very strong correlation between level of education and wages—the more education and training an occupation requires, the more it generally pays.

To see this new Utah wage data, log on to http://jobs.utah.gov; click on Economic Information (on the right under Quick Links), then click on the first item in the menu. From there you can choose articles, various wage tables. You can also download or print the information you are interested in. For people who cannot access the Internet, a synopsis of the wage information will soon be available in print. Titled Utah Wage Trends, it will be available from any DWS employment center; by calling 801 526-9786, or e-mail: jkramer@utah.gov.