New Report Says 62% of America’s Jobs Pay Less Than $20 Per Hour

Almost two-thirds of America’s jobs aren’t paying a cent more than $20 an hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That means 62 percent of the nation’s jobs offer their employees less than $41,600 a year!

The BLS report (h/t Horizon Credit Union) notes that the US has 130 million jobs overall.  Of those positions, 18 million pay less than $10 an hour and a startling 63 million pay between $10 and $20. Add it all up and you’ve got 81 million jobs (out of 130 million) paying their workers less than $20. This includes administrative assistants, personal care aides, and retail workers.

Employers that offer a more generous salary, more than $42,000 a year, make up about 38 percent of the nation’s jobs. According to CNN Money, 27 million jobs offer an hourly pay between $20 and $30. That includes plumbers, office supervisors, electricians, and insurance sales agents — all four positions have an hourly pay that hover around $24 an hour, an annual salary of about $50,000.

About 10 percent of America’s jobs shell out between $30 and $40 per hour for its employees. This includes accountants ($65,080), registered nurses ($66,220), financial sales services agents ($72,640), computer programmers ($76,140) and civil engineers ($80,770).

Just seven percent of the nation’s positions places its employees at the upper echelon of the economic class. Ten million jobs offer more than $40 an hour which pays its workers more than $85,000 a year. This includes lawyers ($114,300), air traffic controllers ($121,280), dentists ($146,340), and chief executives ($82,500).

For those of you who are among the 62 percent earning less than $20, Horizon Credit Union suggests you “work hard and show value” to your employers to earn promotions and raises. And most importantly, get a side hustle.

“That business could be anything: selling deals on Amazon, starting a blog and getting popular, mowing yards, or washing cars.There are tens of thousands of opportunities you could start right from your couch,” it adds.