The North Carolina Department of Commerce gave a 5 star rating to the job prospects for electricians during the ten-year period ending in 2022. The state reserves this rating for jobs with the best prospects based on wages, number of openings, and job growth rate.
In fact, this Department expects the number of jobs for electricians in North Carolina to increase by more than 28% during this time frame. This level of growth should result in an average of 671 jobs a year becoming available.
Skilled craft workers such as electricians are in demand in North Carolina. Nearly 90% of the state’s contractors surveyed by the American General Contractors of America in 2015 expect it to be difficult to find and hire skilled craft workers over the coming year.
The Charlotte Business Journal described how construction in the area is booming as of July 2016. Construction started on a $66 million FedEx distribution center—the second to be built in the business park along I-85 in Cabarrus County.
Plans to remake the former Pepsi bottling facility in North End are underway. Developers will transform the building into 432 apartments and 26,000-square feet of retail space. South Charlotte’s Toringdon will soon boast a new hotel, multifamily development, and retail space.
The Charlotte City Council approved two major construction projects in July 2016. One is a second Marriott hotel to be built in SouthPark. The other is a plan to redevelop industrial buildings in the South End to a 400+ apartment complex and up to 2,500 square feet to be used for nonresidential properties.
Salaries for Residential Electricians Throughout North Carolina
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics provides the range of salaries earned by electricians in North Carolina’s cities and rural areas. Highly skilled master electricians can expect to earn salaries at the highest end of these ranges (2015):
Salaries for Specialty Electricians in North Carolina’s Major Cities
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics provides salaries for a number of different types of specialized electricians that work in North Carolina’s largest cities (2015). Those with the most education and experience tend to earn salaries at the upper end of the ranges shown here:
Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers:
- Asheville: $67,250 – $77,840
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $52,540 – $72,379
- Durham-Chapel Hill: $69,650 – $78,270
- Fayetteville: $45,380 – $73,100
- Goldsboro: $68,950 – $81,560
- Greensboro-High Point: $63.430 – $77,620
- Greenville: $47,330 – $61,550
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton: $48,440 – $73,000
- New Bern: $61.420 – $81,010
- Raleigh: $59,820 – >$187,200*
- Rocky Mount: $41,800 – $54,270
- Wilmington: $59,570 – $80,490
- Winston-Salem: $46,990 – $76,560
*Salaries are equal to or greater than $187,200. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics does not report salaries this high.
Electrical and Electronics Repairers Specializing in Commercial and Industrial Equipment:
- Asheville: $42,190 – $60,330
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $56,830 – $77,080
- Durham-Chapel Hill: $49,860 – $76,590
- Fayetteville: $55,010 – $62,840
- Greensboro-High Point: $53,100 – $71,440
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton: $47,700 – $64,260
- Raleigh: $45,730 – $72,380
- Wilmington: $46,820 – $79,140
- Winston-Salem: $45,630 – $80.120
Electrical and Electronics Repairers Specializing in Powerhouse, Substation, and Relay:
- Asheville: $75,310 – $95,370
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $69,770 – $93,220
- Durham-Chapel Hill: $74,520 – $93,300
- Fayetteville: $55,220 – $85,010
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton: $70,040 – $88,080
- Raleigh: $67,910 – $79,290
Electronic Equipment Installers and Repairers Specializing in Motor Vehicles:
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $32.320 – $43,410
- Fayetteville: $18,120 – $22.230
- Raleigh: $35,000 – $54,670
Electronic Home Entertainment Equipment Installers and Repairers:
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $43,620 – $55,220
- Raleigh: $29,860 – $44,670
Security and Fire Alarm Systems Installers:
- Asheville: $34,040 – $44,880
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia: $43,350 – $58,040
- Durham-Chapel Hill: $25.840 – $47,460
- Fayetteville: $35,880 – $67,090
- Greensboro-High Point: $37,400 – $59,680
- Greenville: $37,890 – $59,800
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton: $45,030 – $72,540
- Raleigh: $43,900 – $60,180
- Wilmington: $37,680 – $50,340
- Winston-Salem: $42,600 – $57,640
The statewide average for electricians in these specialized roles is shown in the table below:
Salaries for Electrician Apprentices in Urban and Rural North Carolina
The North Carolina Department of Commerce expects an extremely high number of new jobs for electrician apprentices in the state in the ten-year period ending in 2022. It predicts that the number of electrician apprentices will increase by more than 50% during this period.
North Carolina had the 2nd highest concentration of electrician apprentices in the country as of 2015 according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Several areas of North Carolina had an exceptionally high number of jobs for electrician apprentices that year:
- Charlotte area—7th highest number of jobs of any city
- Piedmont rural area—2nd highest number of jobs of any rural area
- Southeast Coastal rural area—4th highest number of jobs of any rural area
This agency provides salary data for the occupational classification for “Electrician’s Helpers” throughout North Carolina. Shown below is information that represents the wages earned during an electrical apprenticeship: