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The national median salary for Labor Relations Specialists is $93,496 per year ($44.95/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2024. The middle 50% of earners make between $67,683 and $123,094 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $153,442 per year. There are approximately 64,590 labor relations specialists employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Resolve disputes between workers and managers, negotiate collective bargaining agreements, or coordinate grievance procedures to handle employee complaints.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
-0.1%
Little or no change
Annual openings
5K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
65K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
0% from new growth100% 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
Less than 5 years
On-the-job training
None
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Business, Professional, Labor, Political, and Similar Organizations
NAICS 813900
50K
$93,820
Management of Companies and Enterprises
NAICS 551100
2K
$98,450
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
1K
$76,560
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
1K
$93,040
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools
NAICS 611300
860
$76,750
Wage range across top 5 industries: $76,560 to $98,450 (29% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$23.98
$49,878
P25
$32.54
$67,683
P50MEDIAN
$44.95
$93,496
P75
$59.18
$123,094
P90
$73.77
$153,442
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · finance sector
Hot
Openings Rate
6.0%
Quits Rate
1.2%
Finance and Insurance openings surged to 428K (+98K) in March, pushing the openings rate to 6.0% -- the highest in any major sector. Quits ticked up to 1.2%. Demand for finance talent has reaccelerated sharply.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average labor relations specialists salary?
The national median salary for Labor Relations Specialists is $93,496 per year ($44.95/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2024 data. The middle 50% earn between $67,683 and $123,094 annually.
How much do top-earning labor relations specialists make?
The 90th percentile salary for Labor Relations Specialists is $153,442 per year ($73.77/hr). The 75th percentile is $123,094 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for labor relations specialists?
Entry-level Labor Relations Specialists (10th percentile) earn approximately $49,878 per year ($23.98/hr). The 25th percentile is $67,683 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.
Built and maintained by Falcon Incentives, a compensation strategy and incentive design consultancy.