We never get all of what we learn into a news story, but this blog can give users data, notes and quotes from the notebook that informed what we published.
Our story in today's cyber/fiber Bee looks at the long-running competition between California's correctional officers and Highway Patrol officers for pay and respect. The story includes a chart that shows the current pay ranges for each occupation.
Several readers have called and e-mailed with the same question this morning: How much do people in other states earn for similar work?
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics tracks that data, although it lumps local jobs with state jobs. The patrol class is part of police and sheriff's data. Correctional officers are grouped with local jailers.
Depending on your point of view, it's a helpful comparison or an overbroad survey that fails to take into account factors such as California's relatively higher cost of living.
Here are a couple of BLS data tables that capture May 2010 pay, the most current information available. Clicking the links opens more tables and maps, on everything from metro area statistics to the national mean and median wages for each job group.
Top paying states for correctional officers and jailers:
| State | Employment | Employment per thousand jobs | Location quotient | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 11,340 | 3.01 | 0.84 | $32.01 | $66,590 |
| California | 44,120 | 3.15 | 0.88 | $31.49 | $65,500 |
| New York | 34,310 | 4.11 | 1.14 | $27.15 | $56,480 |
|
Nevada |
2,760 | 2.48 | 0.69 | $26.81 | $55,760 |
| Illinois | 11,990 | 2.17 | 0.60 | $24.86 | $51,700 |
Top-paying states for police and sheriff's patrol officers:
| State | Employment | Employment per thousand jobs | Location quotient | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 22,830 | 6.06 | 1.20 | $38.13 | $79,300 |
| California | 75,730 | 5.41 | 1.07 | $37.16 | $77,290 |
| District of Columbia | NA | NA | NA | $32.48 | $67,560 |
| Illinois | 30,110 | 5.45 | 1.07 | $32.06 | $66,680 |
| Nevada | 4,790 | 4.30 | 0.85 | $31.66 | $65,840 |
The Author
About Comments
Reader comments on Sacbee.com are the opinions of the writer, not The Sacramento Bee. If you see an objectionable comment, click the "report abuse" button below it. We will delete comments containing inappropriate links, obscenities, hate speech, and personal attacks. Flagrant or repeat violators will be banned. See more about comments here.