That is the full-time figure: 40 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, 2080 hours — the same basis the Bureau of Labor Statistics uses when it converts hourly rates to annual ones. Gross, before tax and deductions.
| Period | Gross pay |
|---|---|
| Hourly (40 hrs/week) | $23.00 |
| Daily (8 hrs) | $184.00 |
| Weekly | $920 |
| Biweekly (every 2 weeks) | $1,840 |
| Semi-monthly (twice a month) | $1,993 |
| Monthly | $3,987 |
| Annual | $47,840 |
Part-time and shift work rarely lands on exactly forty. At $23 an hour:
| Hours per week | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 40 hrs | $47,840 | $3,987 |
| 35 hrs | $41,860 | $3,488 |
| 30 hrs | $35,880 | $2,990 |
| 25 hrs | $29,900 | $2,492 |
| 20 hrs | $23,920 | $1,993 |
These are the occupations whose national median sits within a dollar of $23 an hour. Median means half the people in that occupation earn more, half less — so this is the middle of the profession, not its entry rate or its ceiling.
| Occupation | Median hourly | Median annual | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive | $22.86 | $47,540 | 1,706,790 |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | $23.84 | $49,590 | 1,529,700 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers | $23.33 | $48,520 | 1,121,800 |
| Construction Laborers | $22.66 | $47,120 | 1,096,780 |
| Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators | $22.32 | $46,420 | 774,420 |
| Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers | $23.35 | $48,570 | 597,370 |
| Billing and Posting Clerks | $23.32 | $48,500 | 404,060 |
| Bus Drivers, School | $23.04 | $47,920 | 402,930 |
| Dental Assistants | $23.11 | $48,070 | 387,790 |
| Self-Enrichment Teachers | $22.50 | $46,800 | 332,110 |
| Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors | $22.67 | $47,160 | 322,930 |
| Painters, Construction and Maintenance | $23.75 | $49,400 | 225,190 |
$23 an hour is higher than the median wage in about 32% of the occupations the federal wage survey tracks. The median American worker earns $24.51 an hour ($50,980 a year), so $23 is 6% below that. This is close to the middle of the distribution.
Overtime, shift differentials, bonuses and employer benefits are excluded, and so is tax. Location matters more than most people expect: the same occupation can pay two or three times more in one metro than another, which is why every salary guide here breaks the figure down by metropolitan area rather than quoting one national number.