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Secretaries & administrative assistants

Detailed Occupation

2017 Workforce

3.28M

Average Age

46.5

Average Salary

$34,988

Average Male Salary

$40,984

Average Female Salary

$34,653

About

Secretaries & administrative assistants are most often employed by the Elementary & secondary schools industry. The average yearly wage for Secretaries & administrative assistants was $34,988 in 2017.

The locations that employ the most Secretaries & administrative assistants are North Cleveland County--South Oklahoma City & Moore Cities PUMA, OK, Bayamón PUMA, PR, and Toa Alta, Corozal & Naranjito PUMA, PR. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Secretaries & administrative assistants are Humacao, Fajardo & Islas Municipios PUMA, PR, Mayagüez, Añasco & Hormigueros PUMA, PR, and Bayamón PUMA, PR.

Photo by mark sebastian

Employment

Employment and salary information for the Secretaries & administrative assistants workforce. Secretaries & administrative assistants workforce in 2017 was 3,280,302 people, of which 94.7% were women and 5.28% were men.

Secretaries & administrative assistants are paid most in San Francisco County (Northeast)--Chinatown, North Beach & Russian Hill PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Humacao, Fajardo & Islas Municipios PUMA, PR.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

173,330

Male Workforce

± 10.2k

3,106,972

Female Workforce

± 42.8k

The Secretaries & administrative assistants workforce in 2017 was 3,280,302 people (94.7% women and 5.28% men). This implies an average annual growth of −5.15% between 2014 (3,458,303) and 2017 (3,280,302).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Secretaries & administrative assistants.

During 2017, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were District of Columbia ($47,253), New Jersey ($42,747), and Maryland ($42,638).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$34,988

AVERAGE WAGE

#336 in the ranking (2014)

$69,878

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2017, Secretaries & administrative assistants earned an average of $34,988, $34,890 less than the average national salary of $69,878

Wage Distribution

Gender

0.336

WAGE GINI

In 2017, Secretaries & administrative assistants had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.336, which is lower than the national average of 0.474. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Secretaries & administrative assistants (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Secretaries & administrative assistants compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Secretaries & administrative assistants and on wages for those in the field. Elementary & secondary schools is the industry that employs the most Secretaries & administrative assistants, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Secretaries & administrative assistants, by average wage, is Fiber, yarn, & thread mills ($72,504).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

3.28M

2017 Workforce

± 43,958

−2.18%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 1.93%

This graphic shows the share of Secretaries & administrative assistants employed by various industries. Elementary & secondary schools employs the largest share of Secretaries & administrative assistants at 32.8%, followed by Hospitals with 25.3% and Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges with 21.2%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Secretaries & administrative assistants in the US. The workforce of Secretaries & administrative assistants in 2017 was 3,280,302 people, with 94.7% woman, and 5.28% men. The average age of male Secretaries & administrative assistants in the workforce is 40.5 and of female Secretaries & administrative assistants is 46.8, and the most common race/ethnicity for Secretaries & administrative assistants is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Secretaries & administrative assistants in 2017 was 3,280,302 people, with 94.7% woman, and 5.28% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 50 to 54 years (452,575 people), 55 to 59 years (447,951 people), and 45 to 49 years (388,427 people). Among them they concentrated 39.3% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2017, 13.4% of Secretaries & administrative assistants workers were Hispanic and 86.6% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (50.4%), Puerto Rican (23.2)%, and Cuban (4.9)%

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

Races

In 2017, 82.4% of the Secretaries & administrative assistants workforce were White, of which 95.1% were women and 4.86% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Black (8.89%) and Asian (2.98%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Secretaries & administrative assistants from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Secretaries & administrative assistants is Business but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2017 were Legal.

Among the necessary skills for Secretaries & administrative assistants, Reading Comprehension stands, but the revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Secretaries & administrative assistants need more than the average amount of Writing.

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 Secretaries & administrative assistants in 2017 (counting all academic degrees) were Business (212,191 people), Education (85,962 people), and Social Sciences (56,207 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 Secretaries & administrative assistants workers were Some college (1,095,628 people), High School or Equivalent (883,365 people), and Bachelors Degree (628,802 people).

The graphic shows the Secretaries & administrative assistants workforce by gender and educational level.

Skills

Chart

Value

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Secretaries & administrative assistants from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Secretaries & administrative assistants need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Writing.

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