The 10 Lowest Paying Jobs In Washington 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 Washington?

So to piggy-backing on our research into the highest paying jobs in Washington, 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 Food Preparation And Serving Related Workers, All Other are the lowest paid people in Washington.

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

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

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

How we determined the lowest paid jobs in Washington

We looked at the BLS’s data set for all 711 job classifications in Washington 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 Washington

Rank	Job Title	Average Salary	Entry Level Salary	# Of People
1	Food Preparation And Serving Related Workers, All Other	$25,550	$24,110	1,650
2	Food Servers, Nonrestaurant	$27,040	$24,150	4,940
3	Combined Food Preparation And Serving Workers, Including Fast Food	$27,410	$24,170	80,590
4	Dishwashers	$27,610	$24,150	12,520
5	Counter Attendants, Cafeteria, Food Concession, And Coffee Shop	$27,720	$24,180	13,770
6	Dining Room And Cafeteria Attendants And Bartender Helpers	$27,810	$24,140	9,430
7	Forest And Conservation Workers	$28,070	$23,300	380
8	Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$28,180	$24,250	17,620
9	Gaming Cage Workers	$28,350	$24,050	1,070
10	Hotel, Motel, And Resort Desk Clerks	$28,400	$24,420	5,520
11	Personal Care And Service Workers, All Other	$28,410	$23,930	2,800
12	Laundry And Dry-Cleaning Workers	$28,910	$24,250	3,130
13	Cooks, Fast Food	$28,960	$24,150	8,080
14	Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, And Other Recreational Protective Service Workers	$29,120	$24,240	2,270
15	Hosts And Hostesses, Restaurant, Lounge, And Coffee Shop	$29,130	$24,180	8,600
16	Personal Care Aides	$29,140	$24,880	47,240
17	Graders And Sorters, Agricultural Products	$29,340	$24,160	2,460
18	Cashiers	$29,350	$24,230	67,720
19	Farmworkers And Laborers, Crop, Nursery, And Greenhouse	$29,430	$24,270	11,100
20	Childcare Workers	$29,430	$24,250	7,890
21	Ushers, Lobby Attendants, And Ticket Takers	$29,550	$24,250	3,890
22	Cooks, Short Order	$29,690	$24,380	2,140
23	Amusement And Recreation Attendants	$29,830	$24,310	5,540
24	Physical Therapist Aides	$29,870	$24,340	860
25	Baggage Porters And Bellhops	$30,070	$24,150	600
26	Home Health Aides	$30,100	$24,440	9,110
27	Nonfarm Animal Caretakers	$30,130	$24,230	4,430
28	Packers And Packagers, Hand	$30,320	$24,240	18,210
29	Pressers, Textile, Garment, And Related Materials	$30,330	$24,500	790
30	Food Preparation Workers	$30,340	$24,340	17,380
31	Cutters And Trimmers, Hand	$30,510	$24,590	50
32	Cleaners Of Vehicles And Equipment	$30,780	$24,340	8,120
33	Manufactured Building And Mobile Home Installers	$31,120	$24,220	30
34	Gaming And Sports Book Writers And Runners	$31,130	$24,100	190
35	Veterinary Assistants And Laboratory Animal Caretakers	$31,180	$25,430	3,650
36	Meat, Poultry, And Fish Cutters And Trimmers	$31,190	$24,490	2,960
37	Automotive And Watercraft Service Attendants	$31,220	$24,490	2,450
38	Parking Lot Attendants	$31,390	$24,440	2,700
39	Manicurists And Pedicurists	$31,460	$24,880	3,190
40	Locker Room, Coatroom, And Dressing Room Attendants	$31,490	$24,340	190
41	Entertainment Attendants And Related Workers, All Other	$31,820	$25,380	140
42	Demonstrators And Product Promoters	$31,850	$25,400	3,810
43	Bicycle Repairers	$31,880	$25,760	420
44	Nursing Assistants	$32,130	$25,600	32,690
45	Driver/sales Workers	$32,200	$24,300	8,760
46	Floral Designers	$32,240	$24,460	1,130
47	Correspondence Clerks	$32,300	$24,500	70
48	Cooks, Restaurant	$32,370	$25,230	32,510
49	Helpers–Painters, Paperhangers, Plasterers, And Stucco Masons	$32,500	$26,170	270
50	Orderlies	$32,510	$24,680	430
51	Tailors, Dressmakers, And Custom Sewers	$32,620	$24,450	300
52	Gaming Surveillance Officers And Gaming Investigators	$32,950	$24,810	380
53	Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education	$32,960	$24,710	11,050
54	Pharmacy Aides	$32,990	$24,440	1,100
55	Slaughterers And Meat Packers	$33,070	$24,940	1,220
56	Grinding And Polishing Workers, Hand	$33,130	$24,550	220
57	Helpers–Production Workers	$33,190	$24,860	3,890
58	Bakers	$33,300	$24,580	5,850
59	Sewing Machine Operators	$33,320	$24,550	2,530
60	Agricultural Workers, All Other	$33,410	$24,220	500
61	Cleaning, Washing, And Metal Pickling Equipment Operators And Tenders	$33,450	$24,890	630
62	Food Batchmakers	$33,550	$24,950	4,840
63	Recreation Workers	$33,570	$24,440	6,840
64	Residential Advisors	$33,660	$25,000	1,740
65	Library Assistants, Clerical	$33,690	$25,080	1,760
66	Helpers–Roofers	$33,700	$25,430	260
67	Gaming Change Persons And Booth Cashiers	$33,840	$24,130	770
68	Funeral Attendants	$33,910	$24,340	130
69	Receptionists And Information Clerks	$33,990	$24,980	26,010
70	Food Processing Workers, All Other	$34,100	$25,110	320
71	Cooks, Institution And Cafeteria	$34,230	$25,860	10,650
72	Tellers	$34,240	$26,690	11,040
73	Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, And Aquacultural Animals	$34,270	$24,730	890
74	Extruding And Forming Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Synthetic And Glass Fibers	$34,430	$26,320	190
75	Textile Winding, Twisting, And Drawing Out Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders	$34,460	$24,390	230
76	Retail Salespersons	$34,500	$24,330	103,220
77	Counter And Rental Clerks	$34,500	$24,510	10,720
78	Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service	$34,740	$25,270	890
79	Packaging And Filling Machine Operators And Tenders	$34,740	$24,590	8,350
80	Office Machine Operators, Except Computer	$34,770	$24,520	830
81	Taxi Drivers And Chauffeurs	$34,840	$24,720	3,860
82	Agricultural Equipment Operators	$34,900	$25,740	940
83	Food Cooking Machine Operators And Tenders	$34,940	$25,250	850
84	Laborers And Freight, Stock, And Material Movers, Hand	$34,940	$24,790	71,690
85	Stock Clerks And Order Fillers	$34,960	$24,610	33,180
86	Helpers–Carpenters	$35,030	$24,120	390
87	Teacher Assistants	$35,130	$25,980	37,810
88	Janitors And Cleaners, Except Maids And Housekeeping Cleaners	$35,220	$24,720	45,380
89	Production Workers, All Other	$35,250	$25,280	2,610
90	Concierges	$35,290	$25,180	540
91	Tire Repairers And Changers	$35,300	$24,630	2,330
92	Bartenders	$35,390	$24,410	13,630
93	Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other	$35,460	$24,780	2,210
94	Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, And Tenders, Except Sawing	$35,530	$24,730	2,680
95	Photographic Process Workers And Processing Machine Operators	$35,690	$24,600	240
96	Couriers And Messengers	$35,720	$26,590	1,180
97	Waiters And Waitresses	$35,930	$24,260	54,770
98	Gaming Dealers	$36,070	$23,930	6,120
99	Transportation Attendants, Except Flight Attendants	$36,100	$29,640	1,140
100	Gaming Service Workers, All Other	$36,180	$24,030	140

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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