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Workforce development specialist salary

Quoted expert
Raina Gandhi

Average workforce development specialist salary

$43,666

$20.99 hourly rate

Entry-level workforce development specialist salary
$28,000 yearly salary
Updated January 8, 2025

Understanding Workforce Development Specialist Salaries

The average salary for a Workforce Development Specialist in the United States stands at $43,666 per year or approximately $21 per hour. This salary can vary significantly based on factors such as experience, location, and the specific organization. Entry-level positions tend to start lower, while specialists with several years of experience can command higher salaries.

Highest Paying States: States like California, New York, and Texas often offer the highest salaries for this role, reflecting the demand for skilled professionals in large metropolitan areas.

Career Progression: As specialists gain experience, they may take on more responsibilities, leading to advanced roles such as program director or manager, often translating to increased earnings. According to industry estimates, workforce development specialists can also enhance their earning potential through certifications and additional training.

For those considering this career path, understanding salary dynamics and opportunities for advancement is essential. Explore available positions to find the best fit for your skills and aspirations.

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Where can a Workforce Development Specialist earn more?

Compare salary by location
Vs
89k
69k
49k
29k
9k
Columbus, OH$62,646
Memphis, TN$39,060
Compare salary by company
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157k
137k
117k
97k
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57k
37k
17k
Meta$127,304
Arapahoe County$47,228

Workforce development specialist salaries by experience level

Workforce development specialist salary estimates from across the web

Based on the latest salary information compiled by Zippia, Salary.com, Ziprecruiter and Payscale, the average salary for a workforce development specialist typically falls between $43,666 and $65,999.
zippia
$43,666yearly
Salary.com[1]
$59,487yearly
ZipRecruiter[2]
$65,999yearly
payscale[3]
$58,795yearly

Average workforce development specialist salary by state

The average workforce development specialist salary in New Jersey, California, and Connecticut are the highest in the U.S. The lowest average workforce development specialist salary states are Vermont, South Carolina, and Alaska.

  • State view
  • County view
Average salary:

Highest paying states for workforce development specialists

RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
1Kansas$47,003$22.60
2Nebraska$45,420$21.84
3Michigan$45,211$21.74
4District of Columbia$59,737$28.72
5New Jersey$63,301$30.43
6Missouri$46,650$22.43
7New Mexico$43,893$21.10
8Illinois$50,920$24.48
9California$58,709$28.23
10Washington$53,214$25.58
11Arizona$43,420$20.88
12Connecticut$53,233$25.59
13Mississippi$43,953$21.13
14Montana$42,674$20.52
15Pennsylvania$42,537$20.45
16Louisiana$43,233$20.79
17Delaware$45,100$21.68
18New York$48,365$23.25
19Maryland$46,958$22.58
20Virginia$45,845$22.04
21Minnesota$43,651$20.99
22Rhode Island$44,547$21.42
23Texas$43,138$20.74
24Hawaii$45,551$21.90
25New Hampshire$43,283$20.81
26Kentucky$40,685$19.56
27Massachusetts$45,801$22.02
28Nevada$40,202$19.33
29North Carolina$42,315$20.34
30Colorado$43,597$20.96
31Tennessee$39,101$18.80
32Ohio$39,277$18.88
33Wisconsin$38,423$18.47
34South Dakota$38,046$18.29
35Georgia$38,965$18.73
36Alabama$38,929$18.72
37Iowa$38,448$18.48
38Florida$37,053$17.81
39North Dakota$34,992$16.82
40Utah$39,687$19.08
41Wyoming$39,504$18.99
42Indiana$36,842$17.71
43Oregon$41,127$19.77
44Alaska$32,906$15.82
45Arkansas$29,414$14.14
46Idaho$35,148$16.90
47Maine$35,395$17.02
48South Carolina$33,841$16.27
49Oklahoma$31,288$15.04
50West Virginia$28,434$13.67
51Vermont$33,904$16.30
Top workforce development specialist jobs near you

Highest paying cities for workforce development specialists

The highest-paying cities for workforce development specialists are Roseville, CA, Washington, DC, and Bridgeport, CT.

RankCityAvg. salaryHourly rate
1Roseville, CA$62,646$30.12
2Washington, DC$59,782$28.74
3Bridgeport, CT$53,954$25.94
4Renton, WA$53,478$25.71
5New York, NY$48,728$23.43
6Annapolis, MD$47,092$22.64
7Overland Park, KS$46,961$22.58
8Arlington, VA$46,574$22.39
9Kansas City, MO$46,549$22.38
10Boston, MA$45,493$21.87
11Urban Honolulu, HI$45,480$21.87
12Winona, MN$44,427$21.36
13Colorado Springs, CO$44,003$21.16
14Austin, TX$43,676$21.00
15Lafayette, LA$43,658$20.99
16Phoenix, AZ$43,522$20.92
17Philadelphia, PA$42,929$20.64
18Raleigh, NC$42,898$20.62
19Las Vegas, NV$40,018$19.24
20Memphis, TN$39,060$18.78

Workforce development specialist salary details

A workforce development specialist's salary ranges from $28,000 a year at the 10th percentile to $66,000 at the 90th percentile.

Average workforce development specialist salary graph
Average workforce development specialist salary graph, trends, and summary

What is a workforce development specialist's salary?

PercentileAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rate
90th Percentile$66,000$5,500$32
75th Percentile$54,000$4,500$26
Average$43,666$3,639$21
25th Percentile$35,000$2,917$17
10th Percentile$28,000$2,333$13

Highest paying workforce development specialist jobs

The highest paying types of workforce development specialists are senior training specialist, development officer, and training specialist.

Job titleAnnual salaryMonthly salaryHourly rateJob openings
Training Facilitator$51,968$4,331$24.9839,523
Facilitator$44,851$3,738$21.5630,474
Training Coordinator$46,698$3,891$22.4554,796
Training Consultant$56,760$4,730$27.2952,054
Corporate Trainer$58,803$4,900$28.2752,090
Epic Credentialed Trainer$75,929$6,327$36.5041,467

How would you rate the starting salaries for workforce development specialists, as well as the prospects for salary advancement?

Raina Gandhi

Assistant Dean of Career Services, American University

"Starting salaries for marketing majors are likely to be below business majors, but that shouldn't dissuade students from entering the field as the long-term earnings can be just as good. For entry-level positions, it's more of a supply and demand issue keeping salaries down." - Quote from Dr. Michael Clayton, Program Director of Masters in Marketing program.

Marketing starting salaries can vary significantly, based on the marketing area in which one works: sales management, PR management, advertising, market research, marketing management, etc.
Marketing job growth will vary, based on the marketing area in which one wishes to specialize and where you work. While newspaper publishing, which is a top employer of advertising managers, is declining, electronic media outlets will see employment growth.

At American University, undergraduate students can either major in business and earn a marketing specialization at the Kogod School of Business, or earn a marketing minor through the university. Kogod also offers residential and online graduate programs in marketing to help students who want to advance their careers in or pivot to the marketing field. All of our programs provide experiential learning through class projects, internships, leadership opportunities, and/or case competitions, and students leverage their business knowledge and skills to negotiate competitive salaries.

Top companies hiring workforce development specialists now:

  1. Micron Technology jobs (14)
  2. Boeing jobs (21)
  3. Verizon Communications jobs (10)
  4. El Paso County jobs (8)
  5. Empower Retirement jobs (9)

Which companies pay workforce development specialists the most?

Workforce development specialist salaries at Meta and Micron Technology are the highest-paying according to our most recent salary estimates. In addition, the average workforce development specialist salary at companies like Goldman Sachs and IBM are highly competitive.

RankCompanyAverage salaryHourly rate
1Meta$127,304$61.20
2Micron Technology$101,648$48.87
3Goldman Sachs$88,707$42.65
4IBM$84,833$40.79
5CDC Foundation$63,218$30.39
6Boeing$61,393$29.52
7University Hospitals$59,261$28.49
8Dana-Farber Cancer Institute$59,236$28.48
9State University of New York College at Cortland$57,189$27.49
10Logistics Management Institute$54,370$26.14
11Kinder Morgan$51,695$24.85
12Washington State University$51,491$24.76
13Louisiana State Police$51,088$24.56
14Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority$49,904$23.99
15Vencore$49,564$23.83
16UMOM New Day Centers$48,375$23.26
17El Paso County$48,085$23.12
18Bexar County$47,684$22.93
19Latin American Youth Center$47,578$22.87
20Arapahoe County$47,228$22.71

Wage gap by gender, race and education

$45,000$44,200$43,400$42,600$41,800$41,000
MaleFemale

Workforce Development Specialist salary by industry

The average workforce development specialist salary varies across industries:

  • The average workforce development specialist salary in the transportation industry is $60,428, the highest of any industry.
  • The average workforce development specialist salary in the finance industry is $48,577.
  • Workforce development specialists in the non profits industry earn an average salary of $36,330, the lowest of any industry.

Highest paying industries for workforce development specialists

RankIndustryAverage salaryHourly rate
1Transportation$60,428$29.05
2Telecommunication$48,577$23.35
3Technology$45,014$21.64
4Professional$42,198$20.29
5Government$40,647$19.54
6Education$38,778$18.64
7Non Profits$36,330$17.47

High paying workforce development specialist jobs

Workforce development specialist salary trends

The average workforce development specialist salary has risen by $5,258 over the last ten years. In 2014, the average workforce development specialist earned $38,408 annually, but today, they earn $43,666 a year. That works out to a 6% change in pay for workforce development specialists over the last decade.

Compare workforce development specialist salaries for cities or states with the national average over time.

Average workforce development specialist salary over time

Compare workforce development specialist salaries for individual cities or states with the national average.

Workforce development specialist salary by year

YearAvg. salaryHourly rate% Change
2025$43,700$20.99+2.4%
2024$42,600$20.49+0.6%
2023$42,400$20.38+0.8%
2022$42,000$20.21+2.2%
2021$41,100$19.76+1.4%

Recently added workforce development specialist salaries

CompanyJobLocationDate addedSalary
Nu TechnologyMilitary Community Workforce Development SpecialistSan Diego, CA06/30/2025$46,331
State of KentuckyWorkforce Development Specialist II (Fftl)Frankfort, KY06/27/2025$37,050
Metropolitan Family ServicesWorkforce SpecialistChicago, IL06/26/2025$49,250
Washington D.CPathways To Public Service Program-Workforce Development Specialist-Department of Employment SERWashington, DC06/26/2025$74,893
MacNyMacny-Workforce Development Specialist-Partners for Education & Business, INC.Syracuse, NY06/25/2025$60,500
State of TexasWorkforce Development Specialist (Orange or Port Arthur)Port Arthur, TX06/22/2025$37,200
Intellipro GroupContingent Workforce SpecialistSan Jose, CA06/21/2025$73,045
NextdeavorContingent Workforce SpecialistSan Jose, CA06/21/2025$66,784
MGM ResortsWorkforce Management Specialist-MGM Grand DetroitDetroit, MI06/20/2025$48,001
University of Maryland Medical Center Baltimore WashingtonWorkforce Development SpecialistBaltimore, MD06/19/2025$63,153

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