Employment Analysis: California
State overview, hot jobs, high salaries, big employers
California is home to Hollywood and some of the most powerful people on Earth. It is also home to some of the best paying jobs and employers.
This is the first in a State Series of Job Analysis. For this inaugural article I chose to start with the State of California. I think at some point, everyone has considered, or at least dreamed about moving to the land of palm trees, movie stars and warm weather all year round, in search of a better life. So then, let's take a close look at what type of employment opportunities exist in California today.
Demographic Information
- Population 35,484,500
- Labor Force 17,552,200
- Unemployment Rate 5.8%
- Median Household Income $51,300
- Per Capita Income $36,700
When looking at average occupation salaries for this article, it became clear that much of the state is influenced by wealthy consumers and those that have large amounts of disposable income. So, I decided to concentrate not on top jobs, but average jobs that could be found anywhere in the nation. I believe this to be a truer representation of the employment market, if you were looking to compare a move to California for employment purposes against another state.
Top 10 Paying Jobs That Do NOT Require an Advanced Degree
- Dental Hygienists $37.29 (hourly) $77,600 (annual)
- Radiation Therapists $33.93 (hourly) $70,600 (annual)
- Registered Nurses $32.57 (hourly) $67,700 (annual)
- Computer Specialists $32.21 (hourly) $67,000 (annual)
- Nuclear Medicine Technologists $31.69 (hourly) $65,900 (annual)
- Appraisers and Assessors of Real Estate $29.49 (hourly) $61,300 (annual)
- Court Reporters $28.83 (hourly) $60,000 (annual)
- Electrical and Electronics Repairers $28.73 (hourly) $59,800 (annual)
- Geological and Petroleum Technicians $28.72 (hourly) $59,700 (annual)
- Diagnostic Medical Sonographers $28.46 (hourly) $59,200 (annual)
It goes without saying that there are hundreds of thousands of employers in the State of California and this article cannot cover them all. I have chosen to showcase the Top 20 which represents the largest employers in the state, by total number of employees. However, if you work for a large company in California that is hiring and experiencing healthy growth, please use the link at the bottom of the page to start a discussion and let me know. I may use this information in an upcoming article.
Top 20 Employers in the State of California
- 32ND ST NAVAL STATION San Diego 42,951
- UCLA Los Angeles 35,543
- UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Davis 18,135
- EDWARDS AFB Edwards Afb 15,978
- SHARP MEMORIAL HOSPITAL San Diego 13,500
- EDISON INTERNATIONAL Rosemead 12,102
- UNIVERSITY-SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Los Angeles 12,000
- TRAVIS AFB Travis A F B 10,863
- LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY MEDICAL Loma Linda 10,000
- CHASE MANHATTAN MORTGAGE CORP Moreno Valley 10,000
- SEMPRA ENERGY SOLUTIONS San Diego 10,000
- CISCO SYSTEMS INC San Jose 10,000
- NAVAL CONSTRUCTION BATTALION Port Hueneme 9,790
- BOEING CO Huntington Beach 9,000
- LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPT Los Angeles 9,000
- ORACLE Redwood City 9,000
- STANFORD UNIVERSITY Stanford 9,000
- APPLIED MATERIALS INC Santa Clara 8,500
- US NAVAL AIR STATION Lemoore Naval Air Station 8,300
- UNIV-CALIF AT SANTA BARBARA Santa Barbara 8,262
In the August issue of State Series of Job Analysis we will be discussing Texas. Do you have firsthand experience moving TO Texas for employment reasons? I would love to hear about your move, the employment market and the cost of living. I may include your information in the article. Please start a dialogue in the discussion area. If you want to be notified when the August issue is published, send me an email
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Copyright July 6, 2006. Tracey Drake and Suite 101. All rights reserved. Any unauthorized use of this material will constitute an infringement of copyright.
