Occupational Employment Statistics

DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA

43-2011 Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service

Occupational Description:
Operate telephone business systems equipment or switchboards to relay incoming, outgoing, and interoffice calls. May supply information to callers and record messages.

Occupational Employment Statistics(OES) Wage Data
First Quarter 2025

Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Percentiles
Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Mean	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th
Northeast Minnesota	30	9	$19.93/hr	$16.51/hr	$19.01/hr	$19.18/hr	$21.88/hr	$22.48/hr

Leading Industries for Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service

Industry	OES Employment (Statewide)	OES Median Wage (Statewide)
Manufacturing	N/A	N/A
Trade, Transportation and Utilities	N/A	N/A
Financial Activities	N/A	N/A
Professional and Business Services	160	$23.78/hr
Education and Health Services	140	$22.23/hr
Leisure and Hospitality	20	$17.61/hr
Public Administration	N/A	N/A

Other Regional Data for Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service

Geography	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Southwest Minnesota	N/A	N/A	N/A
Fargo ND-MN MSA	N/A	N/A	N/A
La Crosse WI-MN MSA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Mankato-North Mankato MN MSA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Rochester MN MSA	N/A	N/A	N/A
St Cloud MN MSA	N/A	N/A	N/A
Southwest Balance of State	N/A	N/A	N/A
Central Minnesota	20	$22.80/hr	N/A
Northwest Minnesota	20	$18.80/hr	-18.2%
Northwest Balance of State	20	$18.81/hr	N/A
Southeast Balance of State	20	$21.03/hr	N/A
Northeast Minnesota	30	$19.18/hr	N/A
Southeast Minnesota	40	$21.03/hr	N/A
Duluth MN-WI MSA	40	$19.18/hr	N/A
Seven County Mpls-St Paul, MN	190	$24.27/hr	-25.8%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington MN-WI MSA	190	$23.99/hr	N/A
Minnesota	340	$23.48/hr	-25.8%

Related Occupations

Occupations	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Receptionists and Information Clerks	12,480	$17.96/hr	0.2%
Telephone Operators	N/A	N/A	N/A
Office Clerks, General	55,710	$22.87/hr	-3.9%
Customer Service Representatives	59,170	$23.09/hr	-4.4%
Interviewers, Except Eligibility and Loan	1,840	$23.19/hr	-8.6%
Insurance Claims and Policy Processing Clerks	4,030	$26.06/hr	-1.7%
Billing and Posting Clerks	6,830	$25.63/hr	0.5%
Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants	16,240	$23.74/hr	5.1%
Court, Municipal, and License Clerks	6,030	$26.90/hr	3.9%
Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, Except Legal, Medical, and Executive	30,160	$24.27/hr	-10.1%

Task for Switchboard Operators, Including Answering Service

Answer incoming calls, greeting callers, providing information, transferring calls or taking messages as necessary.
Operate communication systems, such as telephone, switchboard, intercom, two-way radio, or public address.
Process incoming or outgoing mail, packages, or deliveries.
Monitor alarm systems to ensure that secure conditions are maintained.
Page individuals to inform them of telephone calls, using paging or interoffice communication equipment.
Keep records of calls placed and charges incurred.
Record messages, suggesting rewording for clarity or conciseness.
Stamp messages with time and date and file them appropriately.
Relay or route written or verbal messages.
Stamp messages with time and date and file them appropriately.