Do “Good Jobs” Now Pay $40K?

They used to pay at least $50K. Right?

The most interesting thing about MarketWatch’s list of early-career jobs that pay at least $40K is that the number has now shifted to $40K.

It used to be $50K.

The 15 best jobs if you’re under 25-and they pay at least $40k

Here, I will prove it:

50 Jobs over $50,000 – Without a Degree (Part 1)

In 2013, Mr. Money Mustache made a list of 50 jobs that paid over $50,000 and didn’t require a college degree. I wrote a critique of this post on my personal blog, and then MMM wrote a critique of my critique on his blog, and… well, the point is that the number was $50K.

In 2015, Monster.com’s Liz Torres wrote about entry-level jobs paying “above $40K,” which means not $50K. The “good job” salary number is starting to trend downwards.

Top 10 Best Entry-Level Jobs That Pay Above $40K

The 2016 article linked below claims to list jobs paying over $50K, but uses 2013 salary data. (I checked current salary data and learned that some jobs on the list, like dental hygienist, earn more than they did in 2013. Others, like paralegal, earn less; it’s no longer a $50K job, depending on your location.)

Fastest growing Georgia jobs that don’t require bachelor’s degree

Also, here’s a story from last month indicating $50K jobs are something we have to fight for:

Fight for $50K careers, not $15 jobs: Column

And okay, fine, you could argue that I’ve cherry-picked a few articles that fit my thesis, but I also suggest searching “best jobs $40K” and “best jobs $50K” to see what you come up with.

I’ll end this argument with a story from my own life, which I know I’ve told before on The Billfold: in 2008, when I was in my last year of graduate school, I decided I was done with earning low-to-no-money in the arts. I went to an advisor, listed my skills, and asked “what can I do with this that will pay at least $50K?” He suggested becoming an executive assistant, which sounded fine, so I moved to Washington, DC, walked into a temp agency, blew the typing test out of the water, and said “I would like an temp-to-perm executive assistant job that pays at least $50K.”

The temp agency said that was more than reasonable. They had plenty of those kinds of jobs. All they had to do was match me to the one that was the best fit.

I can’t imagine that scenario happening today.

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