Rare Jobs Are Hard to Find — Duh@ — Dave’s Diary

The Central Washington State Fair is looking for workers and the fruit industry is looking too. Still, despite national media reports, the jobs market is pretty tight out there. The majority of people are in search of the most common jobs. Those jobs would indicate that those industries are expanding and critical to the economy.  Unfortunately, many of the most common jobs -- such as cashiers or restaurant servers -- tend to pay low wages, require little education and offer few opportunities for advancement. The one exception is registered nurses.

So … my twisted approach says wouldn’t it be easier and less crowded to search for the least common jobs?  Humor me. I think you’ll find it interesting!

24/7 Wall Street ran the numbers issued by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for 800 professions to come up with the top 10 most and least common jobs

The 10 most common jobs and average pay:

1. Retail salespersons ($25,370)
2. Cashiers ($20,420)
3. Food preparation and serving workers ($18,880)
4. Office clerks ($29,990)
5. Registered nurses ($68,910)
6. Waiters and waitresses ($20,880)
7. Customer service representatives ($33,370)
8. Hand laborers and material movers ($26,690)
9. Secretaries and administrative assistants ($34,000)
10. Janitors and cleaners ($25,140)

The 10 least common jobs and average pay:

1. Fabric menders ($27,910)
2. Wood pattern-makers ($39,940)
3. Industrial-organizational psychologists ($87,960)
4. Mathematical technicians ($60,260)
5. Segmental pavers ($35,290)
6. Radio operators ($45,210)
7. Wood model makers ($33,910)
8. Animal breeders ($40,310)
9. Timing device assemblers and adjusters ($31,410)
10. Geographers ($75,070)