Office jobs dominate employment while physicians dominate wages in the Atlanta area in 2021

Workers in office and administrative support occupations were the largest major category by employment, while medical doctor occupations recorded the highest average pay among detailed occupations in the Atlanta area in May 2021, according to new information released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

Employment by major categories

Among the major categories, the largest percentage of workers were found in the office and administrative support occupations (13%) with sales and related fields and transportation and material moving occupations each containing approximately 10% of the area’s workforce.

Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations represented 5.3% of employment, while healthcare support occupations accounted for another 2.8%.

In contrast, workers employed in the life, physical, and social science occupations totaled only 0.6% of the area’s workforce, only two-thirds of the percentage of workers in this category nationally.

Highest paying occupations

Among the major categories, in the Atlanta area management occupations offered the highest average wages at $124,850 followed by legal occupations at $105,370.

For detailed occupations, obstetricians and gynecologists were at the top spot averaging $338,680 per year, followed by neurologists ($336,230), radiologists ($330,350), all other surgeons ($329,800), and anesthesiologists ($307,730).

Actuaries was the highest paying occupation outside the medical field, averaging $245,520. Among detailed occupations, 12.6% of workers were in occupations that averaged more than $100,000 per year.

Lowest paying occupations

Amusement and recreation attendants were the lowest paid detailed occupational group in the Atlanta area with wages averaging $21,570.

Other low paid occupations included cashiers ($23,260), fast food and counter workers ($24,120), and hosts and hostesses at restaurants, lounges, and coffee shops ($23,080).

Overall, average annual wages in the Atlanta area were $59,100 in May, 2021 with 61% of workers in occupations that fell below that average. Food preparation and serving related occupations were the lowest paid major category with average annual wages of $26,890. 

Labor costs growing at a much slower rate than inflation in the Atlanta area

Slower rising labor costs good news for employers, but not for workers facing higher consumer prices 

Compensation costs for private industry workers in the Atlanta-Athens Combined Statistical Area increased 2.5 percent in 2021, according to newly released information from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Wages and salaries for private industry workers rose 3.1 percent.

Earlier in the month, BLS released inflation data for 2021, and a comparison of the two reports shows that labor costs are rising at a much slower rate than consumer prices in the Atlanta area. BLS reported that consumer prices in the Atlanta metro area rose 9.7 percent in 2021.

For employers the slow rise in labor costs helps them offset some of the pressure coming from increasing producer prices, which rose 9.7 percent nationally.

The slower rise in wages and salaries, when compared to consumer prices, adds pressure on Atlanta area household budgets and incentivizes workers to search for ways to either lower their consumer costs or increase their compensation.

Both compensation costs and wages and salary costs in the Atlanta-Athens area were among the lowest increases recorded for 15 metro areas published by BLS.

The Seattle-Takoma, Wa, CSA showed the fastest increase in total compensation costs, up 6.3 percent over the year, while the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Port St Lucie, Fl, CSA recorded the fastest rise in wage and salary costs, moving up 6.0 percent over the year.

Nationally, compensation costs for private industry workers rose 4.4 percent in 2021, while wages and salary costs increased 5.0 percent.