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The national median salary for Emergency Management Directors is $86,133 per year ($41.41/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $64,459 and $119,683 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $160,410 per year. There are approximately 12,570 emergency management directors employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Plan and direct disaster response or crisis management activities, provide disaster preparedness training, and prepare emergency plans and procedures for natural (e.g., hurricanes, floods, earthquakes), wartime, or technological (e.g., nuclear power plant emergencies or hazardous materials spills) disasters or hostage situations.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+3.0%
About as fast as average
Annual openings
1K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
13K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
4% from new growth96% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
5 years or more
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
7K
$81,270
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
2K
$73,590
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals
NAICS 622100
730
$96,650
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
NAICS 611300
340
$103,180
Management of Companies and Enterprises
NAICS 551100
280
$132,070
Wage range across top 5 industries: $73,590 to $132,070 (79% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$24.64
$51,251
P25
$30.99
$64,459
P50MEDIAN
$41.41
$86,133
P75
$57.54
$119,683
P90
$77.12
$160,410
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · other sector
Active
Openings Rate
3.4%
Quits Rate
2.0%
The labor market rebounded in March: hires jumped to 5.6M (+655K) and separations rose to 5.4M (+356K), both more than offsetting February's drop. Job openings held at 6.9M. Quits ticked to 2.0%.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average emergency management directors salary?
The national median salary for Emergency Management Directors is $86,133 per year ($41.41/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $64,459 and $119,683 annually.
How much do top-earning emergency management directors make?
The 90th percentile salary for Emergency Management Directors is $160,410 per year ($77.12/hr). The 75th percentile is $119,683 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for emergency management directors?
Entry-level Emergency Management Directors (10th percentile) earn approximately $51,251 per year ($24.64/hr). The 25th percentile is $64,459 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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