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The average worker in the Honolulu area earned $23.71 an hour in May 2015, about 2 percent above the U.S. average of $23.23 an hour, according to recent data from the U.S. Department of Labor.
Management occupations in Honolulu were the highest paid at $46.38 an hour, followed by health care practitioners and technical occupations at $44.42 an hour.
Food preparation and serving-related occupations accounted for 11.5 percent of local employment compared with 9.1 percent nationally. Office and administrative support occupations accounted for the largest share of local employment at 14.9 percent.
The top five occupations with the most employees were retail salesperson, 17,370; cashier, 10,480; office clerk, 10,150; waiter and waitress, 9,360; and janitor and cleaner, except maid and housekeeping, 9,140.
In the U.S., unemployment rates were lower in May than a year earlier in 333 of the 387 metropolitan areas, higher in 49 areas and unchanged in five areas. Twenty-four had jobless rates of less than 3 percent, and two areas had rates of at least 10 percent. Honolulu’s not-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, which was reported two weeks ago, was 2.9 percent.