The United States of America is one of the most comfortable countries to stay. Hundreds of thousands of people move to this state every year. Therefore, one of the most burning questions that can be found on the Internet is what is the average salary in the USA for people of different professions? You can read more about employment opportunities, wages and the most promising specialties in this article.
US minimum wage
The most powerful economy in the world offers immigrants from different countries excellent opportunities for living and career growth. True, this applies mainly to highly qualified specialists with appropriate education. A variety of American work visas can effectively attract the most sought-after personnel from abroad.
If you are a US citizen or have the right to temporarily stay in the state, your labor rights and obligations are regulated by the Department of Labor. It guarantees not only safety and equality in the workplace, but also the timely payment of salaries, the amount of which should not fall below a certain minimum. Since wages are mainly calculated from the number of hours worked, the US law clearly defines the minimum rate for an hour: on average, it is $ 7 and 25 cents. If you have a work visa and are arranged officially, then your employer must pay you the appropriate money.
But there are exceptions to this law. The federal hourly minimum wage is not provided for the following positions:
- Housekeepers, nannies and carers.
- Workers engaged in remote manual work.
- Couriers.
- Call center operators.
The lowest paid sector is considered the restaurant business. For each state, the minimum wage is set separately. The highest payouts are in Columbia and Washington: there you will be paid $ 11 (642 rubles) per hour. I must say that many workers in America are balancing on this brink of minimum income. About 20 million people are paid at the lowest rate.
US average salary
In the USA, wages depend on your qualifications and length of service, as in other countries. Therefore, the more prestigious and demanded your profession is, the more substantial amount you will see at the end of the month on your account. Information about what average salaries in the USA are received by specialists of different professions can help you choose the right direction for those who are just planning or have already moved to America. According to the organization that is engaged in research on the labor market, the official average earnings for working citizens in 2017 amounted to $ 860 per month (50,190 rubles). Before taxes, this amount was approximately $ 3,800 (221.7 thousand rubles), but since tax deductions in America account for most of the costs, in the end, only 30-40% remains that a person can spend on his own needs.
Received wages in America are heterogeneous. Most men get white men aged 45 to 54 years - 1141 dollars (66.5 thousand rubles) per week. But women consistently receive 20% less than men. This fact is a common cause of strikes and protests. The unemployment rate is at a fairly low level and usually does not exceed 4%. Tens of thousands of new jobs are created annually, as America’s economy does not stop growing. Every US citizen has the opportunity to get a job, all people have this constitutional right, regardless of gender, religion, age, or physical or mental characteristics. What else do the United States guarantee to its residents?
US Workers Rights
If you decide to get a job on a work visa or as a US citizen, you will be guaranteed the following rights:
- Overtime payment - if you work more than 40 hours a week, then the employer is obliged to pay you extra hours of work at an increased rate.
- Safety - your workplace must fully comply with the rules of labor safety and health. In the event of injury at work, a US citizen may receive substantial compensation.
- Protection against sexual harassment - if an employee finds himself in such a situation, he must turn to a higher management or court, where the perpetrator will be punished depending on the gravity of the crime.
Average wages in different states
The average monthly salary in the United States per month significantly exceeds that in Russia and other countries. Without exaggeration, we can say that this amount is one of the highest in the whole world. The economic welfare of America is truly impressive. But the average wage varies from state to state. The fact is that each state in America has its own budget, which means that there are more economically developed districts, and less. There are states with dysfunctional economic development, whose incomes have been falling for more than a year. Needless to say, they can’t talk about high average wages. For example, Georgia has the lowest average hourly rate of $ 5.15. And the highest is in Connecticut ($ 8.7).
What other districts can be attributed to “successful”:
- Alaska
- Maryland;
- New Jersey;
- Columbia region.
But the most modest payments are received by employees of the following states:
- Puerto Rico;
- Mississippi;
- Arkansas
- Virginia
- Kentucky.
The average salary in the public sector
What is the average salary in the US for public servants? The budget sphere is a guarantee of official employment and timely payments. Workers in this area feel more secure. The following professionals fall into this category in the United States:
- Employees of state and municipal government.
- Teachers of public schools.
- Technical specialists working in government agencies.
- American Post Workers.
- Accountants and programmers.
As a matter of fact, any specialty can be called state if vacancies are placed in a department whose budget is formed at the expense of the state. Since entrepreneurship is developed in America, there are no professions that are involved only in the public sphere (except government bodies). For example, a teacher can work in a public school and receive a salary from the state, and can work in a private institution, and then his income will depend on the individual. The average salary of a teacher in the USA in the first case will be 44 thousand dollars (2.5 million rubles) per year, and in the second - about 57 thousand dollars (3.3 million rubles).
The highest income in the public sector is among medical workers. The average salary of a doctor in the United States is $ 14 thousand per month (818,700 rubles). He is followed by the profession of a teacher, whose salary is at around $ 4,000 (233.9 thousand rubles). Needless to say, teachers of public schools noticeably lose in comparison with workers in the private sector: they receive 10-15% more. The average salary for a policeman in the USA will be about 4 thousand dollars (233.9 thousand rubles). The top of a career in the public sphere is the position of a judge: his income is from 5 to 45 thousand dollars a month (from 292 thousand to 2.6 million rubles).
Average salary in private organizations
The private economy sector includes all positions in independent organizations, as well as self-employed citizens. The lowest paid of them is considered home staff:
- gardeners;
- babysitting
- housekeepers;
- cleaners.
Most often, private sector workers do not have uniform high requirements, and their education is not controlled. Therefore, the average wage remains at $ 8 (467 rubles) per hour. The more qualified the employee, the higher wages he will receive. The average salary of a worker in the USA is 42 thousand dollars a year (2.4 million rubles). For example, the income of doctors in the private sector is 10-15% more than in the budget. The average salary of a programmer in the US will be about 37-45 thousand dollars a year before taxes. But since the bulk of the private sector vacancies are such workers as security guards, sellers, waiters, movers and other maintenance personnel, the average salary in this area is much lower than in the public sector.
Average salary by economic sectors
The average monthly salary in the USA directly depends on the economic sector in which the specialist is involved. The highest incomes are from doctors, aircraft pilots, and mining workers. Managers and lawyers have slightly lower wages, but also quite high.
Here is a list of the most common professions and their average monthly salary before taxes:
- For managers, the average salary in the US in dollars is about 10,000 (584 thousand rubles).
- Insurance agents and economists receive 5-6 thousand (292-350 thousand rubles).
- Bank employees and advertising agents - 5 thousand dollars.
- Employees of cleaning services and nannies receive 2-2.5 thousand dollars (117-146 thousand rubles).
- The wages of programmers are highly dependent on qualifications, and can range from 5 to 15 thousand (292-877 thousand rubles).
- Airline employees receive a salary of 7-8 thousand dollars (409-467 thousand rubles).
- Information technology employee - 7 thousand dollars.
Salaries of illegal immigrants
All of the above numbers are relevant only for those US residents who work officially and have a valid permit. But in America there are about 13 million illegal immigrants who are trying to obtain citizenship and often work illegally. Such people cannot rely on the protection of the law, therefore they often work in unsafe conditions and receive a salary much less than officially established norms. The average income of an illegal immigrant in the United States is $ 3-7 per hour.
The most promising professions
The highest paid professions in the USA are rare specialties that you rarely find in the labor market. For example, production engineers, programmers, and system administrators are of this type. The number of offers from employers exceeds the number of specialists, so it’s not difficult for people with such professions to find a job.
Accrual system and taxes
All residents of the United States pay taxes on their income, which range from 10 to 40% of the money received on hand. Naturally, this greatly affects the final wage. For example, if a doctor can receive 16 thousand dollars a month (935.6 thousand rubles), after deducting income this amount will be 11,200 dollars (654.9 thousand rubles). Add here taxes on medical care, purchase and ownership of real estate, and no more than 5 thousand dollars (292 thousand rubles) remain, which a person can freely dispose of.
And the concept of “free” is very relative, because you still need to pay loans and a mortgage. And training for a doctor costs neither more nor less than half a million dollars. In general, despite the seemingly huge figures, in fact, specialists in America do not get the golden mountains, but they live quite comfortably.
Comparison of salaries in Russia and in the USA
Salaries in the United States, even the lowest, are an impressive sum for citizens of other less developed countries. The average salary in the US in rubles can shock an unprepared Russian. The income gap is quite substantial, which is why many people are looking for a way to leave the country as soon as possible. Doctors and teachers often become sellers and cleaners. But even in such low-paying areas, their income rises significantly.
Here are some examples of wages in America and Russia:
- In the United States, management personnel receive about $ 2.5 million a year, and in Russia - $ 1.2 million.
- The most indicative are the average salaries in Russia and the USA by doctors: in America a doctor will receive 11 million rubles a year, and in Russia - a maximum of a million.