Average pay in the high-tech oriented San Jose, San Francisco and Oakland, California  Bay Area metropolitan area was 19% above the national average in 2007, the highest among metropolitan areas studied by the National Compensation Survey (NCS), the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced in a report issued on July 25, 2008.

In contrast, pay was lowest in the Brownsville-Harlingen, Texas metropolitan area with a pay realative of 76 meaning Brownsville workers earned an average of 76 cents for every dollar earned by U.S. workers nationwide.

Top 5 Metropolitan Area Pay Relative Rankings (0f 77 metropolitan areas surveyed)
1. San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, CA – 119
2. New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, PA – 115
3. Salinas, CA – 114
4. Hartford, West Hartford, Willimantic, CT – 113
5. Boston, Worcester, MA; Manchester, NH – 112

Bottom 3 lowest pay area relative rankings
75. Corpus Christi, TX – 87
76. Johnstown, PA – 85
77. Brownsville, TX – 76

Metropolitan area pay relative ranking for various occupational groups is as follows:

Management, business and financial
1. New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, PA -115
2. Salinas, CA – 114

Professional and related
1. Salinas, CA – 120
2. San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, CA – 118

Service
1. San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, CA – 124
2. Hartford, West Hartford, Willimantic, CT – 121

Sales and related
1. Salinas, CA – 128
2. San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, CA – 124

Office and administrative support
1. San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, CA – 121
2. Boston, Worcester, MA; Manchester, NH – 115
2. New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, PA – 115

Construction and extraction
1. New York, NY; Newark, NJ; Bridgeport, PA – 133
2. Chicago, Naperville, IL; Michigan City, IN – 131

Installation, maintenance and repair
1. Boston, Worcester, MA; Manchester, NH – 115
1. Sacramento, Arden-Arcade, CA; Truckee, CA – 115

Production
1. Detroit, Warren, Flint, MI – 117
1. Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, WA – 117

Transportation and material moving
1. Springfield, MA – 113
2. Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia, WA – 112

For additional information go to: http://www.shrm.org/rewards/library_published/compensation/nonIC/CMS_026258.asp. Note must be a SHRM member to view.

Source: SHRM, Metro San Francisco Tops in Pay; Brownsville, Texas Trails, August 8, 2008, Stephen Miller.