worradirek // Shutterstock
1 / 50#49. Helpers--production workers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $35,770
- Median hourly wage: $17.20
- Total employment: 170 people (0.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lowest-paying jobs in Tucson
Uncertainty clouds the current job market. On one hand, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports unemployment rates at 4.2% as of May 2025—and that hasn't changed much in the past year, a typical indicator of a positive economy. At the same time, average weekly earnings have increased by 3.9% over the 12 months ending May 2025 to reach $1,243.03.
However, the American economy may soon shift. The Trump administration's federal budget cuts have eliminated tens of thousands of jobs, and constant changes in import tariffs leave companies unable to plan for their future employment needs.
With these factors in mind, minimum or low-wage jobs are increasingly unsustainable for most. In 2025, a full-time job at the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour puts a worker under the poverty threshold, according to the Economic Policy Institute. While states can opt to have higher minimum wages, 20 states are at or below the federal minimum as of 2025.
Salaries can also vary by gender, race, and educational attainment. According to a March 2025 report from the Pew Research Center, women's earnings are about 85% of men's, and women also remain overrepresented in low-paying jobs. Meanwhile, April 2025 BLS data shows that Hispanic workers' median earnings lag behind those of other race and ethnicity groups, and full-time workers without a high school diploma earned the least compared to their more educated counterparts.
It's important to note, though, that low pay doesn't always equal low job satisfaction. Some people feel drawn to a particular field, seek a certain work environment, or aim for work-life balance. No matter the reason, Stacker used BLS data to find the 50 lowest-paying jobs in Tucson. Jobs are ranked by their median annual pay as of May 2024, so any jobs without annual compensation figures available were excluded from this analysis.
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Ground Picture // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Stockers and order fillers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $35,770
- Median hourly wage: $17.20
- Total employment: 5,370 people (13.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
refrina // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Animal control workers
- Median annual wage: $35,550
- Median hourly wage: $17.09
- Total employment: 40 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Waiters and waitresses
- Median annual wage: $35,420
- Median hourly wage: $17.03
- Total employment: 6,920 people (17.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
kanemme6 // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. Tire repairers and changers
- Median annual wage: $35,380
- Median hourly wage: $17.01
- Total employment: 550 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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encierro // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals
- Median annual wage: $35,360
- Median hourly wage: $17.00
- Total employment: 70 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DSBfoto // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $35,250
- Median hourly wage: $16.95
- Total employment: 5,350 people (13.87 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Physical therapist aides
- Median annual wage: $35,240
- Median hourly wage: $16.94
- Total employment: 110 people (0.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic
- Median annual wage: $35,040
- Median hourly wage: $16.85
- Total employment: 130 people (0.32 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jason Person // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Cooks, short order
- Median annual wage: $35,010
- Median hourly wage: $16.83
- Total employment: Not available
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Oksana Shufrych // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Recreation workers
- Median annual wage: $34,980
- Median hourly wage: $16.82
- Total employment: 1,810 people (4.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
zhu difeng // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Merchandise displayers and window trimmers
- Median annual wage: $34,740
- Median hourly wage: $16.70
- Total employment: 410 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Vasin Lee // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Residential advisors
- Median annual wage: $34,720
- Median hourly wage: $16.69
- Total employment: 300 people (0.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aboutsung // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
- Median annual wage: $34,650
- Median hourly wage: $16.66
- Total employment: 1,230 people (3.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lucky Business // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Sales and related workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $34,580
- Median hourly wage: $16.63
- Total employment: 180 people (0.47 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Pressmaster // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $34,490
- Median hourly wage: $16.58
- Total employment: 830 people (2.15 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Food preparation workers
- Median annual wage: $34,430
- Median hourly wage: $16.55
- Total employment: 2,460 people (6.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Home health and personal care aides
- Median annual wage: $34,400
- Median hourly wage: $16.54
- Total employment: 9,980 people (25.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Richard Thornton // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. School bus monitors
- Median annual wage: $34,270
- Median hourly wage: $16.47
- Total employment: 290 people (0.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Finist4 // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Manicurists and pedicurists
- Median annual wage: $34,110
- Median hourly wage: $16.40
- Total employment: 520 people (1.34 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Kitreel // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Food batchmakers
- Median annual wage: $34,100
- Median hourly wage: $16.40
- Total employment: 180 people (0.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Retail salespersons
- Median annual wage: $34,040
- Median hourly wage: $16.37
- Total employment: 11,070 people (28.69 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gabriel Georgescu // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks
- Median annual wage: $34,000
- Median hourly wage: $16.35
- Total employment: 770 people (2.0 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Motortion Films // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Personal care and service workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $33,990
- Median hourly wage: $16.34
- Total employment: Not available
Pressmaster // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Baggage porters and bellhops
- Median annual wage: $33,910
- Median hourly wage: $16.30
- Total employment: 70 people (0.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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O.PASH // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Animal trainers
- Median annual wage: $33,870
- Median hourly wage: $16.28
- Total employment: 110 people (0.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paul.J.West // Shutterstock
27 / 50#23. Teaching assistants, except postsecondary (tie)
- Median annual wage: $33,690
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 3,250 people (8.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Africa Studio // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs (tie)
- Median annual wage: $33,690
- Median hourly wage: $16.20
- Total employment: 580 people (1.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $33,560
- Median hourly wage: $16.14
- Total employment: 2,290 people (5.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Shakirov Albert // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Floral designers
- Median annual wage: $33,550
- Median hourly wage: $16.13
- Total employment: 30 people (0.09 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Robert Przybysz // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Pressers, textile, garment, and related materials
- Median annual wage: $33,280
- Median hourly wage: $16.00
- Total employment: 40 people (0.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Preschool teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $33,170
- Median hourly wage: $15.95
- Total employment: 1,370 people (3.56 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmytro Sheremeta // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Locker room, coatroom, and dressing room attendants
- Median annual wage: $32,950
- Median hourly wage: $15.84
- Total employment: 40 people (0.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krysja // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Funeral attendants
- Median annual wage: $32,780
- Median hourly wage: $15.76
- Total employment: 60 people (0.14 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Laundry and dry-cleaning workers
- Median annual wage: $32,670
- Median hourly wage: $15.71
- Total employment: 410 people (1.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Martin Smith // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Parking attendants
- Median annual wage: $32,090
- Median hourly wage: $15.43
- Total employment: 460 people (1.18 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roman Korotkov // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Crossing guards and flaggers
- Median annual wage: $32,050
- Median hourly wage: $15.41
- Total employment: 220 people (0.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VGstockstudio // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Food servers, nonrestaurant
- Median annual wage: $31,970
- Median hourly wage: $15.37
- Total employment: 690 people (1.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Dishwashers
- Median annual wage: $31,950
- Median hourly wage: $15.36
- Total employment: 1,100 people (2.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Childcare workers
- Median annual wage: $31,820
- Median hourly wage: $15.30
- Total employment: 710 people (1.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Nejron Photo // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Cleaners of vehicles and equipment
- Median annual wage: $31,690
- Median hourly wage: $15.23
- Total employment: 740 people (1.92 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Driver/sales workers
- Median annual wage: $31,620
- Median hourly wage: $15.20
- Total employment: 1,360 people (3.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Chaay_Tee // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Office machine operators, except computer
- Median annual wage: $31,260
- Median hourly wage: $15.03
- Total employment: 50 people (0.12 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Roschetzky Photography // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Food cooking machine operators and tenders
- Median annual wage: $31,200
- Median hourly wage: $15.00
- Total employment: 80 people (0.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dragon Images // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop
- Median annual wage: $30,960
- Median hourly wage: $14.89
- Total employment: 1,180 people (3.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Dean Drobot // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Cashiers
- Median annual wage: $30,930
- Median hourly wage: $14.87
- Total employment: 9,730 people (25.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BlueSkyImage // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Fast food and counter workers
- Median annual wage: $30,890
- Median hourly wage: $14.85
- Total employment: 10,900 people (28.24 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alexander Oganezov // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Amusement and recreation attendants
- Median annual wage: $29,950
- Median hourly wage: $14.40
- Total employment: 730 people (1.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alena Veasey // Shutterstock
49 / 50#1. Cooks, fast food (tie)
- Median annual wage: $29,850
- Median hourly wage: $14.35
- Total employment: 980 people (2.54 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Ushers, lobby attendants, and ticket takers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $29,850
- Median hourly wage: $14.35
- Total employment: 550 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
This story features data reporting by Wade Zhou, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 364 metros.
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