The 10 Lowest Paying Jobs In Illinois 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 Illinois?

So to piggy-backing on our research into the highest paying jobs in Illinois, 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 Dining Room And Cafeteria Attendants And Bartender Helpers are the lowest paid people in Illinois.

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

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

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

How we determined the lowest paid jobs in Illinois

We looked at the BLS’s data set for all 716 job classifications in Illinois 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 Illinois

Rank	Job Title	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	Dining Room And Cafeteria Attendants And Bartender Helpers	$21,340	$18,100	22,780
2	Cooks, Fast Food	$21,690	$18,090	18,120
3	Shampooers	$22,110	$18,140	830
4	Combined Food Preparation And Serving Workers, Including Fast Food	$22,240	$18,430	144,260
5	Pressers, Textile, Garment, And Related Materials	$22,530	$18,980	740
6	Waiters And Waitresses	$22,900	$17,990	83,910
7	Ushers, Lobby Attendants, And Ticket Takers	$22,990	$18,240	5,540
8	Cashiers	$23,380	$18,570	143,230
9	Dishwashers	$23,430	$18,560	19,730
10	Hosts And Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, And Coffee Shop	$23,560	$18,590	14,240
11	Manicurists And Pedicurists	$23,740	$18,590	4,730
12	Counter Attendants, Cafeteria, Food Concession, And Coffee Shop	$23,830	$18,510	18,400
13	Laundry And Dry-Cleaning Workers	$24,140	$19,050	8,510
14	Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, And Other Recreational Protective Service Workers	$24,220	$18,420	7,270
15	Amusement And Recreation Attendants	$24,240	$18,540	8,330
16	Childcare Workers	$24,250	$18,570	17,440
17	Bartenders	$24,280	$18,100	28,570
18	Textile, Apparel, And Furnishings Workers, All Other	$24,390	$18,930	240
19	Food Servers, Nonrestaurant	$24,450	$19,010	14,070
20	Nonfarm Animal Caretakers	$24,550	$18,750	8,380
21	Personal Care Aides	$24,600	$20,130	50,970
22	Ambulance Drivers And Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians	$24,650	$19,430	620
23	Hotel, Motel, And Resort Desk Clerks	$24,690	$19,070	7,760
24	Cooks, Short Order	$24,770	$19,440	6,150
25	Transportation Attendants, Except Flight Attendants	$24,990	$19,000	1,730
26	Food Preparation Workers	$25,200	$19,180	32,430
27	Personal Care And Service Workers, All Other	$25,260	$18,950	1,580
28	Home Health Aides	$25,370	$21,270	33,990
29	Locker Room, Coatroom, And Dressing Room Attendants	$25,560	$18,600	690
30	Dietetic Technicians	$25,770	$18,680	4,440
31	Recreation Workers	$25,810	$18,560	18,750
32	Floral Designers	$26,050	$18,830	1,890
33	Food Preparation And Serving Related Workers, All Other	$26,210	$19,840	400
34	Motion Picture Projectionists	$26,390	$19,160	250
35	Baggage Porters And Bellhops	$26,470	$19,850	2,270
36	Psychiatric Aides	$26,480	$20,130	1,690
37	Textile Knitting And Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$26,510	$19,970	310
38	Bakers	$26,620	$19,290	8,810
39	Packers And Packagers, Hand	$26,670	$19,690	51,520
40	Counter And Rental Clerks	$26,880	$18,750	11,110
41	Graders And Sorters, Agricultural Products	$26,980	$19,680	900
42	Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$27,000	$19,500	32,570
43	Funeral Attendants	$27,000	$18,780	970
44	Models	$27,110	$18,630	90
45	Cooks, Institution And Cafeteria	$27,550	$19,510	19,960
46	Teacher Assistants	$27,710	$18,680	60,630
47	Cooks, Restaurant	$27,720	$19,830	48,660
48	Cleaners Of Vehicles And Equipment	$27,830	$18,770	17,870
49	Library Assistants, Clerical	$27,840	$18,970	5,950
50	Driver/sales Workers	$27,980	$18,230	13,320
51	Automotive And Watercraft Service Attendants	$28,000	$19,900	2,620
52	Parking Lot Attendants	$28,000	$19,120	5,590
53	Veterinary Assistants And Laboratory Animal Caretakers	$28,060	$19,630	2,470
54	Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, And Aquacultural Animals	$28,270	$20,090	560
55	Cleaning, Washing, And Metal Pickling Equipment Operators And Tenders	$28,410	$20,930	680
56	Textile Winding, Twisting, And Drawing Out Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$28,410	$24,780	130
57	Tour And Travel Guides	$28,540	$19,960	910
58	Sewers, Hand	$28,620	$20,480	230
59	Retail Salespersons	$28,710	$18,820	168,130
60	Protective Service Workers, All Other	$28,800	$18,750	6,640
61	Nursing Assistants	$28,810	$21,620	61,140
62	Occupational Therapy Aides	$28,820	$17,600	2,550
63	Cooks, All Other	$28,820	$21,820	1,930
64	Sewing Machine Operators	$29,010	$19,800	3,710
65	Shoe And Leather Workers And Repairers	$29,170	$19,150	400
66	Couriers And Messengers	$29,280	$19,370	2,060
67	Tire Repairers And Changers	$29,420	$20,130	3,690
68	Public Address System And Other Announcers	$29,430	$18,480	410
69	Stock Clerks And Order Fillers	$29,520	$19,520	103,660
70	Mail Clerks And Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service	$29,610	$18,790	6,630
71	Gaming Cage Workers	$29,710	$20,420	250
72	Pharmacy Aides	$29,760	$19,800	400
73	Taxi Drivers And Chauffeurs	$29,770	$19,530	7,980
74	Skincare Specialists	$29,800	$18,420	1,970
75	Telemarketers	$29,840	$20,070	5,540
76	Tellers	$29,860	$21,400	18,530
77	Hairdressers, Hairstylists, And Cosmetologists	$29,900	$18,270	15,790
78	Farmworkers And Laborers, Crop, Nursery, And Greenhouse	$30,020	$19,320	2,030
79	Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand	$30,140	$20,350	158,670
80	Tax Preparers	$30,200	$19,040	3,370
81	Receptionists And Information Clerks	$30,210	$19,960	39,890
82	Etchers And Engravers	$30,260	$19,140	500
83	Janitors And Cleaners, Except Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$30,410	$19,960	87,220
84	Cutters And Trimmers, Hand	$30,480	$21,380	230
85	Slaughterers And Meat Packers	$30,640	$20,390	4,150
86	Helpers–Production Workers	$30,780	$21,080	14,640
87	Grinding And Polishing Workers, Hand	$30,900	$20,080	680
88	Meat, Poultry, And Fish Cutters And Trimmers	$30,900	$24,760	2,200
89	Butchers And Meat Cutters	$30,990	$21,220	7,490
90	Physical Therapist Aides	$31,100	$21,300	1,210
91	Bicycle Repairers	$31,290	$23,730	180
92	Gaming Change Persons And Booth Cashiers	$31,460	$19,040	260
93	Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education	$31,500	$20,580	24,120
94	Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Wood	$31,720	$25,010	1,100
95	Landscaping And Groundskeeping Workers	$31,740	$20,340	33,710
96	Food Cooking Machine Operators And Tenders	$31,740	$22,150	710
97	Residential Advisors	$32,330	$19,600	2,570
98	Merchandise Displayers And Window Trimmers	$32,340	$20,910	5,020
99	First-Line Supervisors Of Food Preparation And Serving Workers	$32,490	$20,780	28,330
100	Helpers–Carpenters	$32,510	$18,950	380

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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