Customer service representatives

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2019 Workforce

2.85M

Average Age

38.2

Estimated Job Growth

4.89%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$34,699

Average Male Salary

$40,519

Average Female Salary

$31,790

About

Customer service representatives are most often employed by the Restaurants & Food Services industry. The average yearly wage for Customer service representatives was $34,699 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Customer service representatives by wage are Correspondence clerks & order clerks, Dancers & choreographers, and Electrical, electronics, & electromechanical assemblers.

Customer service representatives are part of the Office & Administrative Support Occupations, along with Firstline supervisors of office & administrative support workers, Switchboard operators, including answering service, Telephone operators, Communications equipment operators, all other, Bill & account collectors, and 45 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Customer service representatives are Brazos CountyCollege Station & Bryan Cities PUMA, TX, St. Louis County (Inner Ring North) PUMA, MO, and Hays County PUMA, TX. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Customer service representatives are St. Louis County (Inner Ring North) PUMA, MO, Milwaukee City (Central) PUMA, WI, and Nampa (Central & East) & Meridian (West) Cities PUMA, ID.

Sales & Office Occupations Office & Administrative Support Occupations Office & Administrative Support Occupations

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Customer service representatives and on wages and locations for those in the field. Restaurants & Food Services is the industry that employs the most Customer service representatives, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Customer service representatives, by average wage, is Software publishing. Customer service representatives are paid most in Orange & Villa Park Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in St. Louis County (Inner Ring North) PUMA, MO.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$34,699

AVERAGE SALARY

± $498

In 2019, Customer service representatives earned an average of $34,699, $20,825 less than than the average national salary of $55,524.

Electrical, electronics, & electromechanical assemblers make somewhat more than Customer service representatives while Correspondence clerks & order clerks make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Customer service representatives as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.429

WAGE GINI

In 2015, Customer service representatives had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.429, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Customer service representatives (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

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 Customer service representatives.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Customer service representatives

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Customer service representatives.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Customer service representatives, by number of employees, are Restaurants & Food Services, Business support services, and Insurance carriers.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Customer service representatives, by average wage, are Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing, Labor unions, Aluminum production & processing, Software publishing, Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, Support activities for mining, Railroad rolling stock manufacturing, Aerospace products & parts manufacturing, Alcoholic beverages merchant wholesalers, Paint, coating, & adhesive manufacturing , Software publishing, Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, Computer & peripheral equipment manufacturing, Support activities for mining, Support activities for mining, Engine, turbine, & power transmission equipment manufacturing , Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, and Forestry except logging.

Industries by Share

2.85M

2019 Workforce

± 41,026

-9.13%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 2.19%

The number of people employed as Customer service representatives has been declining at a rate of -9.13%, from 3,131,633 people in 2018 to 2,845,711 people in 2019.

This graphic shows the share of Customer service representatives employed by various industries. Restaurants & Food Services employs the largest share of Customer service representatives at 6.06%, followed by Business support services with 5.59% and Insurance carriers with 4.14%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Customer service representatives in the US. The average age of male Customer service representatives in the workforce is 36.3 and of female Customer service representatives is 39.1, and the most common race/ethnicity for Customer service representatives is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

948k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 23,836

1.9M

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 33,605

66.7% of Customer service representatives are Female, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Customer service representatives.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Customer service representatives

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

55.4% of Customer service representatives are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 18.3% of Customer service representatives, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Customer service representatives.

Age by Gender

36.3

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.367

39.1

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.265

The median age of Customer service representatives is 38.2, and Male employees are generally 2.8 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Customer service representatives from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Customer service representatives is Business but a relatively high number of Customer service representatives hold a major in Personal & Culinary Services.

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

Skills

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

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Growth Projections

Projections on wages and job growth for Customer service representatives from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The ten-year national workforce is projected to grow 6.85%, but Customer service representatives are expected to see a growth of 4.89% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow slower than the national average.

Job Growth

4.89%

ESTIMATED GROWTH

6.85%

NATIONAL AVERAGE

This line chart shows the 10-year projected employment growth (from 2018 to 2028) for Customer service representatives. This profession is expected to grow lower than 6.85%, the average rate of national job growth.