Firefighters

Detailed Occupation

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2022 Workforce

337k

Average Age

38.5

Estimated Job Growth

3.59%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$82,167

Average Male Salary

$82,913

Average Female Salary

$66,070

About

Firefighters are most often employed by the Justice, public order, & safety activities industry. The average yearly wage for Firefighters was $82,167 in 2022.

The locations that employ the most Firefighters are NYC-Staten Island Community District 3--South Shore PUMA, NY, San Diego County (South Central)--San Diego City (Central/Centre City & Balboa Park) PUMA, CA, and Spartanburg County (West and South)--Greer & Woodruff Cities PUMA, SC. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Firefighters are NYC-Staten Island Community District 3--South Shore PUMA, NY, Spartanburg County (West and South)--Greer & Woodruff Cities PUMA, SC, and Del Norte, Lassen, Modoc, Plumas & Siskiyou Counties PUMA, CA.

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Service Occupations Protective service occupations

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Firefighters workforce. Firefighters workforce in 2022 was 336,874 people, of which 4.43% were women and 95.6% were men. Firefighters are paid most in Los Angeles County--Baldwin Park, Azusa, Duarte & Irwindale Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in NYC-Staten Island Community District 3--South Shore PUMA, NY.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

321,960

Male Workforce

± 13.9k

14,914

Female Workforce

± 3k

The Firefighters workforce in 2022 was 336,874 people (4.43% women and 95.6% men). This implies an average annual growth of 15.5% between 2014 (291,622) and 2022 (336,874).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Firefighters.

During 2022, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Connecticut ($115,488), California ($109,165), and New Jersey ($109,007).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$82,167

AVERAGE WAGE

#129 in the ranking (2022)

$64,683

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2022, Firefighters earned an average of $82,167, $17,484 more than the average national salary of $64,683

The graph shows the ranking of Firefighters in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2022.

In 2022, Firefighters had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.29, which is lower than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Firefighters (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Firefighters compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Firefighters and on wages for those in the field. Justice, public order, & safety activities is the industry that employs the most Firefighters, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Firefighters, by average wage, is Petroleum refining ($117,874).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

337k

2022 Workforce

± 14,234

3.36%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 5.83%

This graphic shows the share of Firefighters employed by various industries. Justice, public order, & safety activities employs the largest share of Firefighters at 97.1%, followed by Executive offices & legislative bodies with 1.61% and Forestry except logging with 1.34%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Firefighters in the US. The workforce of Firefighters in 2022 was 336,874 people, with 4.43% woman, and 95.6% men. The average age of male Firefighters in the workforce is 38.6 and of female Firefighters is 36, and the most common race/ethnicity for Firefighters is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Firefighters in 2022 was 336,874 people, with 4.43% woman, and 95.6% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 30 to 34 years (58,531 people), 35 to 39 years (57,291 people), and 25 to 29 years (45,943 people). Among them they concentrated 48.1% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2022, 12.2% of Firefighters workers were Hispanic and 87.8% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (67.8%), Puerto Rican (21.1)%, and Cuban (11.1)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2022, 80.7% of the Firefighters workforce were White, of which 4.31% were women and 95.7% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Two or More Races (7.22%) and Black (7.15%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Firefighters from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Firefighters is Protective Services but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2022 were Protective Services.

Among the necessary skills for Firefighters, Critical Thinking stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Firefighters need more than the average amount of Equipment Maintenance.

Majors

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

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Firefighters in 2022 (counting all academic degrees) were Protective Services (15,706 people), Business (15,567 people), and Social Sciences (6,247 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Firefighters workers were Some college (126,533 people), Associates Degree (73,314 people), and Bachelors Degree (69,667 people).

The graphic shows the Firefighters workforce by gender and educational level.

Skills

Chart

Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Firefighters from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Firefighters need many skills, but most especially Critical Thinking, Coordination, Monitoring.

Projections

Projections on job growth for Firefighters from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 2.84%, but Firefighters are expected to see a growth of 3.59% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow more than the national average.

Job Growth

3.59%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

2.84%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Firefighters. This profession is expected to grow more than than 2.84%, the average rate of national job growth.