Electricians Out-Earn Lawyers in These States — Here Is the Data
Electrician job postings rose 18% over the past three years, according to a Randstad analysis of more than 50 million job listings published in Fortune. The primary driver: data center construction, which has surged alongside AI infrastructure investment.
The Numbers
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the median annual wage for electricians at approximately $61,590 nationally — but that number obscures wide state-level variation. In states like Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois, New York, and Oregon, the median for licensed journeymen and master electricians exceeds $80,000 to $90,000 per year. The BLS median for lawyers nationally sits around $145,760 — but the average attorney (including public defenders and solo practitioners) earns significantly less, and many carry six-figure student loan debt that electricians do not.
The comparison is not perfect — it never is. But the headline is real: in states with strong union density and active construction markets, experienced licensed electricians are earning more than the median lawyer in that state, with no law school debt.
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Demand is not the bottleneck. The bottleneck is licensure. Electricians who hold a current journeyman or master license are the ones capturing this wage premium — not apprentices, not unlicensed helpers.
The Randstad data also shows that employers are increasingly requiring licensure even for journeyman-level positions that previously accepted experience alone. Passing the exam is no longer just a box to check — it is the gate to the jobs paying the most.
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Related Guides
- Journeyman vs. Master Electrician: Which License Do You Need? — How license level affects your earning potential and career trajectory
- New York Electrician License Requirements — One of the states where union electricians regularly exceed $100K per year
- California Electrician License Requirements — High union density and active construction market driving top wages
- Compare Electrician License Requirements by State — Salary benchmarks and licensing requirements across all 50 states
Source: Fortune / Randstad, March 20, 2026. BLS wage data: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2023.
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