The higher paying sub-baccalaureate occupations that don’t require college include registered nurses, heavy truck drivers, bookkeepers, repair workers, carpenters, electricians and patrol officers. These jobs vary by metro area.
In Akron, Ohio (No. 16), registered nurse is the top opportunity occupation with 5,400 jobs paying an annual median wage of $69,200. The metro’s second best job group is secretaries and administrative assistants, providing 4,700 jobs and an annual median wage of $34,300.
Employment in the medical device industry in Memphis has grown 50 percent since 1999 --more than four times the national rate of growth, according to the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce.
In Detroit, assemblers and fabricators make up the largest opportunity occupation with 48,100 jobs. And in El Paso, Texas, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers are at the top with 5,200 jobs.
Four metro areas face triple negatives compared to the national employment environment. Bridgeport, CT, San Francisco, San Jose and Trenton, NJ, each have an unfavorable occupational mix, high employers’ educational expectations and steep regional price levels.
This article was provided by Bloomberg News.