Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 23-1022 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$75,525
$36.31/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Is this a competitive Arbitrators salary in 2026?
Based on BLS OEWS wage percentiles, JOLTS June 2026 demand signals, and ECI Q2 2026 wage growth.
$Competitive · ~P50
P10$47K
P25$57K
P50$76K
P75$108K
P90$155K
Drag the dot or type an amount above.
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Demand: HOT. Demand is hot -- professional & business services job openings are running at 5.5% (JOLTS, June 2026), a tight market. Candidates have leverage, so a competitive offer sits at or above the median; below-median offers often will not close.
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Merit budget: Wages in professional services are rising about 2.5% a year (BLS ECI, Q2 2026). Budget a 2.1-2.6% merit increase to hold this role at market.
Our read
For a competitive 2026 offer, target $75,525 to $107,994 (market median to the 75th percentile). Lean toward the top of the range for senior or hard-to-fill roles.
Figures are market benchmarks from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; apply professional judgment before making pay decisions.
How Arbitrators pay is moving in 2026
Trend, demand, and spread context from BLS OEWS, JOLTS, and ECI
Pay trend
BLS's May 2025 median estimate for this role is 11.6% above its May 2024 estimate. A swing that large usually reflects survey sampling or classification changes between OEWS vintages rather than actual pay changes, so lean on the sector wage-growth benchmark (2.5% per year, BLS ECI) for planning.
Hiring demand · HOT
Professional & Business Services is running a 5.5% job-openings rate with quits at 2.2% (BLS JOLTS). Demand has cooled for 2 straight months (6.2% down to 5.5%).
Pay spread
Top earners (P90) make about 3.3 times what entry-level (P10) workers make in this role. That spread is wider than typical, so expect large pay differences by experience, employer size, and geography; build generous ranges and differentiate strongly.
What changed recently
Aug 4, 2026JOLTS June 2026: sector openings eased to 5.5% (down 0.3pp), still the highest of any major sector. Quits held at 2.2%.
Jul 31, 2026ECI Q2 2026: sector wages growing 2.5% per year. Nationally, wages rose 3.2% while CPI hit 3.5%, so real wages turned negative.
Commentary is generated from published BLS figures (OEWS May 2025 vs May 2024, JOLTS June 2026, ECI Q2 2026) and refreshed each release. It is interpretation, not a BLS product.
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators is $75,525 per year ($36.31/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $57,366 and $107,994 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $155,438 per year. There are approximately 9,210 arbitrators, mediators, and conciliators employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Facilitate negotiation and conflict resolution through dialogue. Resolve conflicts outside of the court system by mutual consent of parties involved.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
+4.3%
Faster than average
Annual openings
300
per year, on avg
Workforce today
9K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
13% from new growth87% 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
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Legal Services
NAICS 541100
3K
$71,430
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
2K
$92,790
State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999200
1K
$81,330
Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
NAICS 541900
940
$75,620
Individual and Family Services
NAICS 624100
380
$53,360
Wage range across top 5 industries: $53,360 to $92,790 (74% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$22.70
$47,216
P25
$27.58
$57,366
P50MEDIAN
$36.31
$75,525
P75
$51.92
$107,994
P90
$74.73
$155,438
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · professional sector
Hot
Openings Rate
5.5%
Quits Rate
2.2%
Professional & Business Services openings eased to 1.30M in June (-71K), rate 5.5% -- still the highest of any major sector. Quits held at 2.2%. White-collar demand is cooling at the edges but remains the tightest market.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average arbitrators, mediators, and conciliators salary?
The national median salary for Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators is $75,525 per year ($36.31/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $57,366 and $107,994 annually.
How much do top-earning arbitrators, mediators, and conciliators make?
The 90th percentile salary for Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators is $155,438 per year ($74.73/hr). The 75th percentile is $107,994 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for arbitrators, mediators, and conciliators?
Entry-level Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators (10th percentile) earn approximately $47,216 per year ($22.70/hr). The 25th percentile is $57,366 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 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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