Standret // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Counter and rental clerks
- Median annual wage: $41,320
- Median hourly wage: $19.87
- Total employment: 80 people (1.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lowest-paying jobs in Albany, Oregon
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 Albany. 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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DuxX // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Packaging and filling machine operators and tenders
- Median annual wage: $41,040
- Median hourly wage: $19.73
- Total employment: 240 people (5.19 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Preschool teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $40,560
- Median hourly wage: $19.50
- Total employment: 100 people (2.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
worradirek // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Helpers--installation, maintenance, and repair workers
- Median annual wage: $40,500
- Median hourly wage: $19.47
- Total employment: 50 people (1.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers
- Median annual wage: $40,470
- Median hourly wage: $19.46
- Total employment: 320 people (7.04 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Ground Picture // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Stockers and order fillers
- Median annual wage: $40,110
- Median hourly wage: $19.28
- Total employment: 2,160 people (47.05 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Tellers
- Median annual wage: $39,740
- Median hourly wage: $19.11
- Total employment: 100 people (2.2 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ESB Basic // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Customer service representatives
- Median annual wage: $39,430
- Median hourly wage: $18.96
- Total employment: 400 people (8.79 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. Cooks, institution and cafeteria
- Median annual wage: $38,900
- Median hourly wage: $18.70
- Total employment: 160 people (3.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
New Africa // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Receptionists and information clerks
- Median annual wage: $38,270
- Median hourly wage: $18.40
- Total employment: 330 people (7.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Motortion Films // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Personal care and service workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $37,900
- Median hourly wage: $18.22
- Total employment: 900 people (19.61 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Loveischiangrai // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers
- Median annual wage: $37,800
- Median hourly wage: $18.17
- Total employment: 260 people (5.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DSBfoto // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $37,370
- Median hourly wage: $17.97
- Total employment: 570 people (12.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
SviatlanaLaza // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Packers and packagers, hand
- Median annual wage: $37,280
- Median hourly wage: $17.92
- Total employment: 130 people (2.74 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Security guards
- Median annual wage: $36,640
- Median hourly wage: $17.61
- Total employment: 110 people (2.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Laundry and dry-cleaning workers
- Median annual wage: $36,510
- Median hourly wage: $17.55
- Total employment: 40 people (0.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paolo Bona // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Cooks, restaurant
- Median annual wage: $36,390
- Median hourly wage: $17.50
- Total employment: 320 people (7.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ORION PRODUCTION // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $36,280
- Median hourly wage: $17.44
- Total employment: 60 people (1.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nomad_Soul // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Bakers
- Median annual wage: $36,240
- Median hourly wage: $17.42
- Total employment: 70 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VGstockstudio // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Food servers, nonrestaurant
- Median annual wage: $35,950
- Median hourly wage: $17.28
- Total employment: 80 people (1.83 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Oksana Shufrych // Shutterstock
21 / 50#30. Recreation workers
- Median annual wage: $35,930
- Median hourly wage: $17.27
- Total employment: 80 people (1.68 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
zhu difeng // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Merchandise displayers and window trimmers
- Median annual wage: $35,910
- Median hourly wage: $17.26
- Total employment: 30 people (0.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Peter Braakmann // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Agricultural equipment operators
- Median annual wage: $35,810
- Median hourly wage: $17.22
- Total employment: 30 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nejron Photo // Shutterstock
24 / 50#26. Cleaners of vehicles and equipment (tie)
- Median annual wage: $35,800
- Median hourly wage: $17.21
- Total employment: 110 people (2.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Food preparation workers (tie)
- Median annual wage: $35,800
- Median hourly wage: $17.21
- Total employment: 340 people (7.39 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Gabriel Georgescu // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks
- Median annual wage: $35,760
- Median hourly wage: $17.19
- Total employment: 60 people (1.22 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Kzenon // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Self-enrichment teachers
- Median annual wage: $35,660
- Median hourly wage: $17.15
- Total employment: 50 people (1.07 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Africa Studio // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs
- Median annual wage: $35,620
- Median hourly wage: $17.13
- Total employment: 130 people (2.83 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Retail salespersons
- Median annual wage: $35,590
- Median hourly wage: $17.11
- Total employment: 1,050 people (22.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Tyler Olson // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Educational instruction and library workers, all other
- Median annual wage: $35,550
- Median hourly wage: $17.09
- Total employment: 70 people (1.43 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Kitreel // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Food batchmakers
- Median annual wage: $35,530
- Median hourly wage: $17.08
- Total employment: 30 people (0.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $35,510
- Median hourly wage: $17.07
- Total employment: 220 people (4.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paul.J.West // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Teaching assistants, except postsecondary
- Median annual wage: $35,320
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 740 people (16.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Olena Yakobchuk // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Automotive and watercraft service attendants
- Median annual wage: $35,180
- Median hourly wage: $16.92
- Total employment: 200 people (4.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Finist4 // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Manicurists and pedicurists
- Median annual wage: $34,930
- Median hourly wage: $16.79
- Total employment: 40 people (0.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Pressmaster // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $34,240
- Median hourly wage: $16.46
- Total employment: 90 people (1.91 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
encierro // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Farmworkers, farm, ranch, and aquacultural animals
- Median annual wage: $34,150
- Median hourly wage: $16.42
- Total employment: 40 people (0.85 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
MAVV // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse
- Median annual wage: $34,030
- Median hourly wage: $16.36
- Total employment: 180 people (3.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jason Person // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Cooks, short order
- Median annual wage: $33,970
- Median hourly wage: $16.33
- Total employment: 60 people (1.41 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Andrey_Popov // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers
- Median annual wage: $33,460
- Median hourly wage: $16.09
- Total employment: 40 people (0.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Driver/sales workers
- Median annual wage: $33,400
- Median hourly wage: $16.06
- Total employment: 100 people (2.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Dishwashers
- Median annual wage: $33,040
- Median hourly wage: $15.89
- Total employment: 90 people (1.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
aboutsung // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
- Median annual wage: $33,000
- Median hourly wage: $15.87
- Total employment: 110 people (2.3 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dean Drobot // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Cashiers
- Median annual wage: $32,580
- Median hourly wage: $15.67
- Total employment: 1,070 people (23.35 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BlueSkyImage // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Fast food and counter workers
- Median annual wage: $32,530
- Median hourly wage: $15.64
- Total employment: 1,440 people (31.38 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Krakenimages.com // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Childcare workers
- Median annual wage: $31,510
- Median hourly wage: $15.15
- Total employment: 130 people (2.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Waiters and waitresses
- Median annual wage: $30,980
- Median hourly wage: $14.90
- Total employment: 380 people (8.26 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
santypan // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Bartenders
- Median annual wage: $30,890
- Median hourly wage: $14.85
- Total employment: 260 people (5.71 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alexander Oganezov // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Amusement and recreation attendants
- Median annual wage: $30,590
- Median hourly wage: $14.71
- Total employment: 90 people (1.86 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dragon Images // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop
- Median annual wage: $30,050
- Median hourly wage: $14.45
- Total employment: 80 people (1.72 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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