There’s no one way to earn an $80,000 salary, as this list makes clear.
Have you ever wondered what your neighbour earns? Or that professional-looking woman sitting across from you on the train?
Well, we’ve had a bit of a snoop around some work-related online forums and uncovered some surprising truths about what kind of jobs earn the same levels of pay.
Here are five very different jobs that all earn around the $80,000 mark.
1. A mechanic.
Next time you take your car in for a service, consider that your friendly, local mechanic – if he or she has clocked up a few years’ experience – could be earning around $80,000.
One mechanic on a job forum said he earns $78K for a 40-hour week, with super on top (at 13 per cent) and overtime or shift work if he wants it.
Nice.
An average mechanic would have made their way to this kind of work by completing high school, gaining a tertiary certificate, and then undergoing more on-the-job training with a future employer. The core skill set for a mechanic is obviously assessing and repairing cars, including the maintenance and testing of engines. Customer service skills also come in handy, especially when it comes to explaining how things works to non-car people. Ahem.
Considering what we put our cars through, and the technology of modern car systems, it makes sense to pay our mechanics a decent wage, no?
2. A senior paralegal.
An experienced paralegal worker can also earn around $80,000 a year. A senior paralegal within a state government department reports that she can earn between $74,000 and $81,000 for her role, for a 35-hour week. It’s a lot less physical than a mechanic and would involve a lot more paper, we’re guessing.