Payroll & timekeeping clerks

Detailed Occupation

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2020 Workforce

156k

Average Age

46.1

Estimated Job Growth

−4.47%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$44,900

Average Male Salary

$48,528

Average Female Salary

$44,369

About

Payroll & timekeeping clerks are most often employed by the Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping & payroll services industry. The average yearly wage for Payroll & timekeeping clerks was $44,900 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Payroll & timekeeping clerks by wage are Driver/sales workers & truck drivers, Public safety telecommunicators, and Marriage and family therapists.

Payroll & timekeeping clerks 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 Payroll & timekeeping clerks are Williamson County (Southeast)Round Rock City PUMA, TX, Jurupa Valley & Eastvale Cities PUMA, CA, and Virginia Beach City (Central) PUMA, VA. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Payroll & timekeeping clerks are Colusa, Glenn, Tehama & Trinity Counties PUMA, CA, Williamson County (Southeast)Round Rock City PUMA, TX, and Jacksonville City (Arlington) PUMA, FL.

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Payroll & timekeeping clerks and on wages and locations for those in the field. Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping & payroll services is the industry that employs the most Payroll & timekeeping clerks, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Payroll & timekeeping clerks, by average wage, is Hardware, & plumbing & heating equipment, & supplies merchant wholesalers. Payroll & timekeeping clerks are paid most in Burlington County (West Central) PUMA, NJ but are relatively concentrated in Colusa, Glenn, Tehama & Trinity Counties PUMA, CA.

Yearly Wage

$44,900

AVERAGE SALARY

± $1,741

In 2020, Payroll & timekeeping clerks earned an average of $44,900, $11,054 less than than the average national salary of $55,954.

Public safety telecommunicators make somewhat more than Payroll & timekeeping clerks while Driver/sales workers & truck drivers make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Payroll & timekeeping clerks as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.271

WAGE GINI

In 2015, Payroll & timekeeping clerks had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.271, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Payroll & timekeeping clerks (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 Payroll & timekeeping clerks.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Payroll & timekeeping clerks

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Payroll & timekeeping clerks.

Most Common

The most common industries employing Payroll & timekeeping clerks, by number of employees, are Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping & payroll services, Construction, Elementary & secondary schools, General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, Employment services, Executive offices & legislative bodies, Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges, Truck transportation, Restaurants & Food Services, Justice, public order, & safety activities , and Nursing Care Facilities.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Payroll & timekeeping clerks, by average wage, are Hardware, & plumbing & heating equipment, & supplies merchant wholesalers, Miscellaneous paper & pulp products, and Software publishing.

Industries by Share

156k

2020 Workforce

± 9,683

0.0829%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 8.79%

The number of people employed as Payroll & timekeeping clerks has been growing at a rate of 0.0829%, from 155,584 people in 2019 to 155,713 people in 2020.

This graphic shows the share of Payroll & timekeeping clerks employed by various industries. Accounting, tax preparation, bookkeeping & payroll services employs the largest share of Payroll & timekeeping clerks at 9.81%, followed by Construction with 8.94% and Elementary & secondary schools with 6.51%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Payroll & timekeeping clerks in the US. The average age of male Payroll & timekeeping clerks in the workforce is 40 and of female Payroll & timekeeping clerks is 47, and the most common race/ethnicity for Payroll & timekeeping clerks is White (Non-Hispanic).

Composition by Sex

19.9k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 3,463

136k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 9,044

87.2% of Payroll & timekeeping clerks are Female, making them the more common sex in the occupation. This chart shows the sex breakdown of Payroll & timekeeping clerks.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Payroll & timekeeping clerks

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

66.2% of Payroll & timekeeping clerks are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 11.1% of Payroll & timekeeping clerks, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Payroll & timekeeping clerks.

Age by Sex

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 2.42

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.852

The median age of Payroll & timekeeping clerks is 46.1, and Male employees are generally 6.94 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Payroll & timekeeping clerks from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Payroll & timekeeping clerks is Business but a relatively high number of Payroll & timekeeping clerks hold a major in Business.

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 Payroll & timekeeping clerks from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Payroll & timekeeping clerks need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, and Speaking. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Payroll & timekeeping clerks need more than the average amount of Mathematics, Reading Comprehension, and Active Listening.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Projections

Projections on job growth for Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 3.71%, but Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks are expected to see a growth of −4.47% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow less than the national average.

Job Growth

For growth projections, the closest comparible industry reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics is Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks.

−4.47%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

3.71%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks. This profession is expected to grow less than than 3.71%, the average rate of national job growth.