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Jobs in Queens run the gamut on salaries

By Shanice Punnett

How much do lawyers make annually in Queens? What about police officers, firefighters or even dentists? These are some of the questions people ask, before or during a job search or simply just out of curiosity.

Much of the data on average annual salaries for various fields is pegged to the city or state rather than Queens, but compensation in the borough is in the same ballpark.

Some of the higher paid professions include those in the health-related and law and political fields. These careers tend to require more education than skill, whereas the lower paid jobs for barbers and cooks, for example, require more skill than education or a bit of both.

The law and political fields include professionals who are judges, lawyers, paralegals, city and state officials and police officers. Judges, lawyers and the like make six-figure salaries.

Mayor Bill de Blasio makes $225,000 a year, Borough President Melinda Katz earns $160,000 and Queens’ City Council members each bring home $112,500. U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and members of Congress make $174,000, while state senators and state assemblymen from Queens pull in $79,500.

The Queens district attorney earns $190,000, according to the NYC Green Book. Paralegals and legal assistants make $53,570 and correctional officers $61,140, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Police and sheriff’s patrol officers make about $68,510.

Those in the health-related careers include dentists, surgeons, veterinarians, pharmacists, massage therapists and nurse practitioners. A number of these professionals also make six-figure salaries.

Surgeons make about $206,850, dentists $156,480, veterinarians $111,960 and pharmacists $116,430. Massage therapists bring in about $51,320, while nurse practitioners make $97,730, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

Other fields where large numbers of Queens residents work are education, customer service and the food sector. These jobs include janitors, barbers, cooks, high school teachers and firefighters. Additional jobs are travel agents, telemarketers, doormen, graphic designers and bartenders.

Janitors make $30,160, barbers $21,890, cooks $20,690 and bartenders from $50,000 to $70,000. High school teachers make $74,130, firefighters $70,150 and travel agents $37,350.

And lastly, telemarketers bring in about $26,690 and graphic designers $59,140, according to the Bureau of Labor Statstics. Doormen should make $21.46 per hour, according to the SEIU union, which works out to about $44,636.80 annually for a five-day work week.