May 2013 Occupational Employment and Wages — 2014-04-01

Retail salespersons and cashiers were the occupations with the largest employment in May 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. These two occupations combined made up nearly 6 percent of total U.S. employment, with employment levels of 4.5 million and 3.3 million, respectively. National employment and wage information for all occupations is shown in table 1. The data in this release are from the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program, which provides employment and wage estimates by area and by industry for wage and salary workers in 22 major occupational groups, 94 minor occupational groups, 458 broad occupations, and 821 detailed occupations. --The 10 largest occupations accounted for 21 percent of total employment in May 2013. In addition to retail salespersons and cashiers, the largest occupations included combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food; general office clerks; registered nurses; waiters and waitresses; and customer service representatives. --Most of the largest occupations were relatively low paying.