Electrician Salary

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (as of May 2010), the average electrician salary is approximately $51,810. However, most electricians are paid hourly. This works out to be an average hourly wage is $24.91 for a licensed and certified electrician.

Electricians also tend to be employed, approximately 80% of electricians in the construction industry are. You will tend to work from contract to contract.

The lowest 10% makes a hourly wage of $14.13 with a salary of $29,400, while the top 10% makes a hourly wage of $38.89 with a salary of $80,890. There are many different reasons to explain the range of of wages made by an electrician.

If you want to see the average salary for your state, then click here.

Varying Factors for Differences in Electrician’s Salaries

• Experience: As with any other career, the more experience you have the more you will be paid. This is especially true for electricians, as electrician apprentices are only paid 30-50% of what a fully licensed electrician is paid.
• Location: The cost of living in a location will determine the wage for that area. For example, an electrician in Wyoming might only make $24.56, while one in Alaska will make $33.18. Also, people working in metropolitan areas tend to make more than those living in rural areas.
• Industry: The industry in which you work for will determine how much you get paid. Those working for the account, tax preparation, bookkeeping, and payroll services industry are the highest pay with a hourly wage of $36.91.
• Specialization: Those that specialize in electrical power generation, transmission and distribution make the most.
• Unions: Union member receive higher pay and benefits, but they have to pay a fee to be one. About 1 in 3 electricians is in a Union

Job Outlook for Electricians

The employment of electricians is expected to grow 12% by 2018. Although this is in line with the average growth amongst all jobs, opportunities should be abundant (especially for people who are well rounded in all skills as an electrician).

The growth is expected because of the growing population needing new accommodations as well as updating older ones. Also, as technology becomes more of a common place in life, electricians will be needed to implement the complex wiring systems. As well as jobs created by new demand, openings are expected to rise from electricians retiring. Growing regions around America will have the most opportunities for electricians.

However, as an electrician, you  are very sensitive to the fluctuations of the economy, but  this job is steadier than most other construction jobs. Maintenance electricians are also not hit as hard as construction electricians.