These Are The Highest Paying And Lowest Paying Jobs In NJ

NEW JERSEY— The highest-paying jobs in New Jersey cluster in a few industries: management, law and technology.

Labor economists say those rankings reflect both skill demands and longstanding labor market patterns.

“STEM fields being among the highest paid occupations,” said Yana van der Meulen Rodgers, professor and chair of the Department of Labor Studies and Employment Relations at Rutgers University.

Those sectors require specialized education, technical expertise and, in many cases, advanced degrees.

Patch analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data for the state to bring you the facts and compiled a list of the most lucrative fields:

Top 10 Highest-Paying Jobs In NJ

1) Legal occupations — $126,417

2) Computer and mathematical occupations — $114,224

3) Management occupations — $106,730

4) Computer, engineering and science occupations — $104,707

5) Management, business and financial occupations — $101,924

6) Architecture and engineering occupations — $101,421

7) Law enforcement workers (including supervisors) — $101,202

8) Health diagnosing and treating practitioners — $95,723

9) Business and financial operations occupations — $94,278

10) Management, business, science and arts occupations — $89,869

However, Rodgers said salary alone should not determine a career decision.

Many of the highest-paying professions demand intense hours and workplace cultures built around long workdays.

In law firms, consulting and investment banking, the expectations can extend well beyond a traditional schedule.

“Legal jobs have a culture of face time and billable hours,” Rodgers said.

Those demands can reshape work-life balance and affect career longevity.

“People really need to consider the trade-off between the higher salary and having almost no time or no work-life balance,” she said.

When measured by hourly pay rather than annual salary, she added, some of those high-income careers look less lucrative.

Here is a list of jobs with the lowest pay incentive:

Top 10 Lowest-Paying Jobs In NJ

1) Food preparation and serving related occupations — $21,195

2) Personal care and service occupations — $22,011

3) Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations — $23,804

4) Service occupations — $30,611

5) Material moving occupations — $31,887

6) Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations — $32,167

7) Healthcare support occupations — $34,389

8) Production, transportation, and material moving occupations — $39,729

9) Production occupations — $41,933

10) Transportation occupations — $43,344