Social & human service assistants

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Total Workforce

240k

Average Age

41.5

Average Salary

$39,040

Average Male Salary

$42,692

Average Female Salary

$38,046

About

Employment

Diversity

Education

Skills

About

Social & human service assistants are most often employed by the Individual & family services industry. The average yearly wage for Social & human service assistants was $39,040 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Social & human service assistants by wage are Miscellaneous metal workers & plastic workers, including multiple machine tool setters, Miscellaneous life, physical, & social science technicians, including social science research assistants, and Other teachers and instructors.

Social & human service assistants are part of the Community & Social Service Occupations, along with Substance abuse and behavioral disorder counselors, Educational, guidance, and career counselors and advisors, Marriage and family therapists, Mental health counselors, Rehabilitation counselors, and 11 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Social & human service assistants are Salem, Beverly, Gloucester & Newburyport Cities PUMA, MA, Middlesex County PUMA, CT, and Concord, Kannapolis Cities & Harrisburg Town PUMA, NC. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Social & human service assistants are Herkimer (North & Central) & Oneida (Outer) Counties PUMA, NY, Downtown & Sky Harbor International Airport PUMA, AZ, and Madera City PUMA, CA.

Photo by U.S. Department of Agriculture

Management, business, science, & arts occupations Community & Social Service Occupations Education, legal, community service, arts, & media occupations

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Social & human service assistants and on wages and locations for those in the field. Individual & family services is the industry that employs the most Social & human service assistants, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Social & human service assistants, by average wage, is Business, professional, political, & similar organizations. Social & human service assistants are paid most in Middlesex County PUMA, CT but are relatively concentrated in Herkimer (North & Central) & Oneida (Outer) Counties PUMA, NY.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$39,040

AVERAGE SALARY

± $1,933

In 2018, Social & human service assistants earned an average of $39,040, $14,848 less than than the average national salary of $53,888.

Miscellaneous life, physical, & social science technicians, including social science research assistants make somewhat more than Social & human service assistants while Miscellaneous metal workers & plastic workers, including multiple machine tool setters make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Social & human service assistants as measured by average annual salary in the US.

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Wage Distribution

0.356

WAGE GINI

In 2018, Social & human service assistants had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.356, which is lower than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Social & human service assistants (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

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Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Social & human service assistants.

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Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Social & human service assistants

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Social & human service assistants.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Social & human service assistants, by number of employees, are Individual & family services, Civic, social, advocacy organizations, & grantmaking & giving services, and Administration of human resource programs.

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Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Social & human service assistants, by average wage, are Business, professional, political, & similar organizations, Scientific research & development services, Administration of environmental quality & housing programs, Public finance activities, Banking & related activities, and National security & international affairs.

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Industries by Share

240k

2018 Workforce

± 12,010

14.1%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 6.43%

The number of people employed as Social & human service assistants has been growing at a rate of 14.1%, from 210,133 people in 2017 to 239,662 people in 2018.

This graphic shows the share of Social & human service assistants employed by various industries. Individual & family services employs the largest share of Social & human service assistants at 27.8%, followed by Civic, social, advocacy organizations, & grantmaking & giving services with 12% and Administration of human resource programs with 8.48%.

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Diversity

Demographic information on Social & human service assistants in the US. The average age of male Social & human service assistants in the workforce is 40.3 and of female Social & human service assistants is 41.8, and the most common race/ethnicity for Social & human service assistants is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

51.3k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 5,559

188k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 10,649

78.6% of Social & human service assistants are Female, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Social & human service assistants.

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Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Social & human service assistants

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
White (Hispanic)

51.2% of Social & human service assistants are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 22.2% of Social & human service assistants, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Social & human service assistants.

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Age by Gender

40.3

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 1.6

41.8

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.778

The median age of Social & human service assistants is 41.5, and Male employees are generally 1.55 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

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Education

Data on higher education choices for Social & human service assistants from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Social & human service assistants is Social Sciences but a relatively high number of Social & human service assistants hold a major in Public Administration and Social Service.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Social & human service assistants from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Social & human service assistants need many skills, but most especially Social Perceptiveness, Speaking, and Active Listening. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Social & human service assistants need more than the average amount of Service Orientation, Social Perceptiveness, and Writing.