The 10 Lowest Paying Jobs In California For 2019

Back in high school I had the best job you could have in high school, I worked at the local movie theater for minimum wage plus free popcorn and movies. I was happy to make minimum wage back then, but now I couldn’t imagine living on the $5.86/hr I was making.

All of this reminiscing got me wondering, who gets paid the least in California?

So to piggy-backing on our research into the highest paying jobs in California, we decided to use data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to identify the lowest paying jobs.

After combing through the Bureau of Labor Statistics, we discovered that Forest And Conservation Workers are the lowest paid people in California.

Here’s a quick look at the 10 lowest paying jobs in California:

For more information on how much the lowest paying jobs pay, read on, or check out this other reading on California:

If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the California job scene here:

How we determined the lowest paid jobs in California

We looked at the BLS’s data set for all 766 job classifications in California in order to identify those that get paid the least.

We will update the data annually as it becomes available from the BLS. The most recent data is as of May 2018.

For more reading, check out:

Detailed List Of The Lowest Paying Jobs In California

Rank	Job Title	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	Forest And Conservation Workers	$24,720	$22,150	2,140
2	Graders And Sorters, Agricultural Products	$25,140	$22,380	9,680
3	Cooks, Fast Food	$25,330	$22,310	111,360
4	Shampooers	$25,510	$22,260	920
5	Gaming Dealers	$25,650	$22,250	15,020
6	Dishwashers	$25,650	$22,270	81,580
7	Combined Food Preparation And Serving Workers, Including Fast Food	$26,080	$22,410	406,630
8	Farmworkers And Laborers, Crop, Nursery, And Greenhouse	$26,240	$22,200	194,850
9	Manicurists And Pedicurists	$26,260	$22,450	23,940
10	Food Preparation And Serving Related Workers, All Other	$26,500	$22,320	13,120
11	Pressers, Textile, Garment, And Related Materials	$26,530	$22,310	6,390
12	Amusement And Recreation Attendants	$26,660	$22,450	50,470
13	Sewing Machine Operators	$26,670	$22,330	25,330
14	Ushers, Lobby Attendants, And Ticket Takers	$26,710	$22,270	15,560
15	Hosts And Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, And Coffee Shop	$26,850	$22,310	50,090
16	Dining Room And Cafeteria Attendants And Bartender Helpers	$27,020	$22,280	79,710
17	Textile Knitting And Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$27,150	$22,290	1,330
18	Personal Care Aides	$27,210	$22,450	558,350
19	Cashiers	$27,450	$22,270	420,430
20	Packers And Packagers, Hand	$27,880	$22,510	101,340
21	Food Preparation Workers	$27,910	$22,460	102,680
22	Slaughterers And Meat Packers	$27,980	$22,380	5,350
23	Counter Attendants, Cafeteria, Food Concession, And Coffee Shop	$28,120	$22,420	42,580
24	Parking Lot Attendants	$28,250	$22,680	23,900
25	Meat, Poultry, And Fish Cutters And Trimmers	$28,360	$22,630	6,460
26	Food Processing Workers, All Other	$28,430	$22,680	5,430
27	Gaming Change Persons And Booth Cashiers	$28,520	$22,250	2,900
28	Cooks, Short Order	$28,530	$22,870	16,590
29	Laundry And Dry-Cleaning Workers	$28,600	$22,470	17,370
30	Childcare Workers	$28,630	$22,630	60,460
31	Textile Bleaching And Dyeing Machine Operators And Tenders	$28,680	$22,660	1,520
32	Textile, Apparel, And Furnishings Workers, All Other	$28,730	$22,520	1,760
33	Cleaners Of Vehicles And Equipment	$28,840	$22,600	57,770
34	Sewers, Hand	$29,700	$23,860	1,370
35	Helpers–Production Workers	$29,770	$22,810	29,530
36	Nonfarm Animal Caretakers	$29,830	$22,740	21,430
37	Hotel, Motel, And Resort Desk Clerks	$29,880	$23,030	26,840
38	Gaming Cage Workers	$29,940	$22,340	3,780
39	Personal Care And Service Workers, All Other	$29,990	$23,090	4,420
40	Fabric Menders, Except Garment	$30,060	$23,430	70
41	Food Cooking Machine Operators And Tenders	$30,120	$22,720	5,230
42	Baggage Porters And Bellhops	$30,130	$22,760	5,880
43	Waiters And Waitresses	$30,250	$22,370	286,930
44	Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$30,340	$22,920	99,080
45	Food Servers, Nonrestaurant	$30,350	$22,660	23,340
46	Material Moving Workers, All Other	$30,390	$22,640	12,400
47	Automotive And Watercraft Service Attendants	$30,450	$22,780	7,980
48	Machine Feeders And Offbearers	$30,580	$22,590	7,980
49	Shoe Machine Operators And Tenders	$30,580	$24,960	90
50	Cooks, Restaurant	$30,620	$23,270	166,420
51	Tire Builders	$30,630	$23,200	270
52	Bakers	$30,710	$22,840	24,630
53	Bartenders	$30,850	$22,560	66,320
54	Stock Clerks And Order Fillers	$30,900	$22,510	241,400
55	Food Batchmakers	$31,090	$23,110	17,900
56	Physical Therapist Aides	$31,090	$22,870	6,420
57	Recreation Workers	$31,180	$22,880	47,680
58	Hairdressers, Hairstylists, And Cosmetologists	$31,400	$22,470	33,570
59	Retail Salespersons	$31,460	$22,550	436,300
60	Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, And Aquacultural Animals	$31,500	$22,740	2,510
61	Gaming And Sports Book Writers And Runners	$31,720	$22,310	1,980
62	Motion Picture Projectionists	$31,730	$21,850	160
63	Textile Cutting Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$31,870	$23,320	1,130
64	Telemarketers	$31,880	$22,780	11,100
65	Cutters And Trimmers, Hand	$31,940	$23,280	1,420
66	Tellers	$32,120	$24,650	43,070
67	Agricultural Equipment Operators	$32,180	$23,360	5,740
68	Shoe And Leather Workers And Repairers	$32,210	$23,410	1,100
69	Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Wood	$32,350	$23,410	2,860
70	Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Except Sawing	$32,360	$23,410	4,340
71	Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand	$32,380	$23,000	382,280
72	Coil Winders, Tapers, And Finishers	$32,440	$22,610	840
73	Veterinary Assistants And Laboratory Animal Caretakers	$32,480	$23,980	12,410
74	Packaging And Filling Machine Operators And Tenders	$32,480	$22,940	48,570
75	Psychiatric Aides	$32,660	$24,960	1,910
76	Umpires, Referees, And Other Sports Officials	$32,780	$22,200	2,320
77	Taxi Drivers And Chauffeurs	$32,990	$23,240	27,790
78	Security Guards	$33,070	$23,410	155,540
79	Receptionists And Information Clerks	$33,190	$23,610	102,590
80	Tour And Travel Guides	$33,220	$23,130	6,070
81	Grinding And Polishing Workers, Hand	$33,260	$23,960	3,800
82	Gaming Service Workers, All Other	$33,410	$22,560	1,710
83	Automotive Glass Installers And Repairers	$33,420	$22,730	1,660
84	Tire Repairers And Changers	$33,490	$23,790	10,700
85	Janitors And Cleaners, Except Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$33,570	$23,150	230,750
86	Home Health Aides	$33,680	$23,180	24,560
87	Crushing, Grinding, And Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$33,680	$23,600	3,000
88	Helpers–Installation, Maintenance, And Repair Workers	$33,720	$23,460	11,160
89	Merchandise Displayers And Window Trimmers	$33,720	$23,080	16,780
90	Pharmacy Aides	$33,730	$23,370	9,480
91	Helpers, Construction Trades, All Other	$33,840	$23,370	2,420
92	Cooks, All Other	$33,910	$24,850	4,600
93	Food And Tobacco Roasting, Baking, And Drying Machine Operators And Tenders	$33,920	$23,510	1,720
94	Floral Designers	$34,020	$24,080	4,510
95	Mail Clerks And Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service	$34,030	$23,360	6,650
96	Bicycle Repairers	$34,070	$23,040	2,530
97	Production Workers, All Other	$34,400	$22,950	28,120
98	Counter And Rental Clerks	$34,410	$22,850	85,960
99	Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, And Samplers, Recordkeeping	$34,420	$23,270	12,490
100	Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, And Other Recreational Protective Service Workers	$34,430	$23,450	15,390

Never miss an opportunity that’s right for you.

Author

Chris Kolmar

Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.

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