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Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive in Washington

Considering working as a Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive in Washington? Here’s what the data says. Perform routine administrative functions such as drafting correspondence, scheduling appointments, organizing and maintaining paper and electronic files, or providing information to callers. Excludes legal, medical, and executive secretaries (43-6011 through 43-6013).

What do Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Make in Washington?

For a secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive working in Washington, the typical annual salary is $54,560 per year (or about $26.23/hour).Annual wages span from $41,540 at the 10th percentile to $70,210 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$41,540	$19.97
25th percentile	$47,540	$22.86
Median (50th)	$54,560	$26.23
75th percentile	$63,190	$30.38
90th percentile	$70,210	$33.75

Location quotient — how concentrated this career is in Washington nationwide is 0.86, meaning fewer secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive per worker than the national average.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive earn a median of $42,498 per year ($20.43/hour), above the Washington median.

Employment Outlook

There are roughly 1,902,502 secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive across the United States. In Washington alone, around 34,280 people work in this role. That puts the state above the typical state, which employs around 23,260 secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive.

Top Washington Metros for Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive

The largest metro-area employers of secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive in Washington.

Metro Area	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	17,140	$58,310
Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA	2,710	$47,570
Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA	2,180	$52,610
Kennewick-Richland, WA	1,440	$51,410
Yakima, WA	1,180	$51,050
Bellingham, WA	1,010	$51,430
Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA	880	$56,650
Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA	590	$55,370
Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA	540	$51,770
Longview-Kelso, WA	500	$55,140
Walla Walla, WA	290	$49,680

Top States for Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive Employment

These states have the highest employment of secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive work.

State	Number Employed
California	169,670
Texas	150,480
New York	127,620
Florida	98,270
Illinois	79,440
Pennsylvania	72,610
New Jersey	60,320
Maryland	55,250
Ohio	53,690
Georgia	49,870
North Carolina	45,740
Michigan	42,500
Alabama	42,180
Missouri	36,350
Tennessee	35,410
Virginia	35,140
Massachusetts	34,570
Washington	34,280
Arizona	31,620
Minnesota	30,160

Highest-Paying States for Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive

The highest-paying states for secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive.

State	Annual Median Salary
District of Columbia	$55,800
Connecticut	$55,690
Washington	$54,560
Massachusetts	$53,690
California	$53,190
Rhode Island	$51,500
Hawaii	$50,580
Oregon	$49,950
Minnesota	$49,900
New Jersey	$49,600

Skills

The most important secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Key knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

Top abilities for secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Day-to-day, secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive typically:

• Answer telephones and give information to callers, take messages, or transfer calls to appropriate individuals.
• Greet visitors or callers and handle their inquiries or direct them to the appropriate persons according to their needs.
• Create, maintain, and enter information into databases.
• Use computers for various applications, such as database management or word processing.
• Operate office equipment, such as fax machines, copiers, or phone systems and arrange for repairs when equipment malfunctions.
• Set up and manage paper or electronic filing systems, recording information, updating paperwork, or maintaining documents, such as attendance records, correspondence, or other material.
• Operate electronic mail systems and coordinate the flow of information, internally or with other organizations.
• Schedule and confirm appointments for clients, customers, or supervisors.
• Maintain scheduling and event calendars.
• Compose, type, and distribute meeting notes, routine correspondence, or reports, such as presentations or expense, statistical, or monthly reports.
• Complete forms in accordance with company procedures.
• Locate and attach appropriate files to incoming correspondence requiring replies.

Work Activities

• Working with Computers
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Getting Information
• Performing Administrative Activities
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
• Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
• Documenting/Recording Information
• Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
• Communicating with People Outside the Organization
• Processing Information
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems

Tools & Technology

Common tools and software used in this occupation include: Hot technologies: Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Apache Cassandra In-demand technologies: Microsoft Excel

Related Careers

Other careers like secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical, and executive include:

• Human Resources Specialists
• Management Analysts
• Social Science Research Assistants
• First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers
• First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers
• Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service

Also Known As

Administrative Assistant (Admin Assistant), Administrative Associate, Administrative Clerk, Administrative Coordinator, Administrative Liaison, Administrative Resources Associate, Administrative Secretary (Admin Secretary), Administrative Specialist (Admin Specialist), Administrative Support Assistant (ASA), Administrative Support Specialist, Administrative Technician, Alumni Secretary, Appointment Scheduler, Clerical Secretary, Clerk Secretary.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 43-6014.00