North Central Coast Region
The North Central Coast region is comprised of Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz counties.
Top Job Openings 2022-2032
High-Skill Occupations
- General and Operations Managers:
- 3,530 projected job openings, $112,654 median annual wage, 73 job ads.
- Registered Nurses:
- 3,150 projected job openings, $150,082 median annual wage, 394 job ads.
- Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education:
- 2,280 projected job openings, $101,498 median annual wage, 17 job ads.
- Substitute Teachers, Short-Term:
- 1,520 projected job openings, $58,279 median annual wage, 16 job ads.
- Accountants and Auditors:
- 1,490 projected job openings, $87,055 median annual wage, 30 job ads.
Middle-Skill Occupations
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers:
- 4,440 projected job openings, $59,179 median annual wage, 90 job ads.
- Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary:
- 4,310 projected job openings, $47,538 median annual wage, 120 job ads.
- Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks:
- 3,710 projected job openings, $60,286 median annual wage, 34 job ads.
- Medical Assistants:
- 3,160 projected job openings, $49,499 median annual wage, 79 job ads.
- Nursing Assistants:
- 2,530 projected job openings, $48,317 median annual wage, 52 job ads.
Entry-Level Occupations
- Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse:
- 60,830 projected job openings, $38,474 median annual wage, 7 job ads.
- Home Health and Personal Care Aides:
- 22,790 projected job openings, $34,540 median annual wage, 192 job ads.
- Fast Food and Counter Workers:
- 19,500 projected job openings, $38,674 median annual wage, 148 job ads.
- Cashiers:
- 13,350 projected job openings, $37,523, median annual wage, 60 job ads.
- Waiters and Waitresses:
- 10,240 projected job openings, $36,469 median annual wage, 112 job ads.
The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program has combined some detailed job categories from 2018 into broader categories or special groupings to improve data quality.
The total number of expected job openings from 2022 to 2032 includes workers leaving their jobs, people changing jobs, and new jobs being created. The top 5 jobs were chosen based on these total job openings.
Median wages are the middle point of what workers earn in the first quarter of 2024. Half of the workers earn less than the median wage, and half earn more. These wages do not include self-employed people or unpaid family workers. The median yearly wage has been rounded up to $34,320 to match state minimum wage laws as of January 1, 2025.
Information about online job ads comes from the Lightcast data series, which collects, studies, and organizes ads from many online job boards.