Ruslan Galiullin // Shutterstock
1 / 50#50. Office clerks, general
- Median annual wage: $36,460
- Median hourly wage: $17.53
- Total employment: 590 people (16.06 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Lowest-paying jobs in Weirton
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 Weirton. 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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Dragana Gordic // Shutterstock
2 / 50#49. Pharmacy technicians
- Median annual wage: $36,430
- Median hourly wage: $17.51
- Total employment: 230 people (6.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Weerayuth Kanchanacharoen // Shutterstock
3 / 50#48. Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand
- Median annual wage: $36,090
- Median hourly wage: $17.35
- Total employment: 550 people (14.78 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ALPA PROD // Shutterstock
4 / 50#47. Medical secretaries and administrative assistants
- Median annual wage: $36,010
- Median hourly wage: $17.31
- Total employment: 200 people (5.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gorodenkoff // Shutterstock
5 / 50#46. First-line supervisors of retail sales workers
- Median annual wage: $35,990
- Median hourly wage: $17.30
- Total employment: 410 people (11.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Dragon Images // Shutterstock
6 / 50#45. Social and human service assistants
- Median annual wage: $35,550
- Median hourly wage: $17.09
- Total employment: 100 people (2.8 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Syda Productions // Shutterstock
7 / 50#44. Tellers
- Median annual wage: $35,360
- Median hourly wage: $17.00
- Total employment: 150 people (3.96 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
8 / 50#43. Interviewers, except eligibility and loan
- Median annual wage: $35,240
- Median hourly wage: $16.94
- Total employment: 90 people (2.49 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
9 / 50#42. First-line supervisors of food preparation and serving workers
- Median annual wage: $34,800
- Median hourly wage: $16.73
- Total employment: 340 people (9.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
ESB Basic // Shutterstock
10 / 50#41. Customer service representatives
- Median annual wage: $34,770
- Median hourly wage: $16.71
- Total employment: 310 people (8.37 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Undrey // Shutterstock
11 / 50#40. Data entry keyers
- Median annual wage: $34,420
- Median hourly wage: $16.55
- Total employment: 40 people (1.01 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
LightField Studios // Shutterstock
12 / 50#39. Emergency medical technicians
- Median annual wage: $33,920
- Median hourly wage: $16.31
- Total employment: 40 people (1.17 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
13 / 50#38. Security guards
- Median annual wage: $33,690
- Median hourly wage: $16.20
- Total employment: 170 people (4.66 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DSBfoto // Shutterstock
14 / 50#37. Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $33,340
- Median hourly wage: $16.03
- Total employment: 440 people (11.97 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
zhu difeng // Shutterstock
15 / 50#36. Merchandise displayers and window trimmers
- Median annual wage: $32,790
- Median hourly wage: $15.76
- Total employment: 50 people (1.29 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Standret // Shutterstock
16 / 50#35. Counter and rental clerks
- Median annual wage: $32,670
- Median hourly wage: $15.71
- Total employment: 60 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
New Africa // Shutterstock
17 / 50#34. Receptionists and information clerks
- Median annual wage: $32,410
- Median hourly wage: $15.58
- Total employment: 270 people (7.28 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
18 / 50#33. Waiters and waitresses
- Median annual wage: $31,260
- Median hourly wage: $15.03
- Total employment: 480 people (13.1 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nomad_Soul // Shutterstock
19 / 50#32. Bakers
- Median annual wage: $30,470
- Median hourly wage: $14.65
- Total employment: 30 people (0.82 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Loveischiangrai // Shutterstock
20 / 50#31. Landscaping and groundskeeping workers
- Median annual wage: $30,100
- Median hourly wage: $14.47
- Total employment: 200 people (5.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Vasin Lee // Shutterstock
21 / 50#29. Residential advisors (tie)
- Median annual wage: $30,080
- Median hourly wage: $14.46
- Total employment: 60 people (1.53 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
LightField Studios // Shutterstock
22 / 50#29. Bus drivers, school (tie)
- Median annual wage: $30,080
- Median hourly wage: $14.46
- Total employment: 150 people (3.98 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Oksana Shufrych // Shutterstock
23 / 50#28. Recreation workers
- Median annual wage: $29,170
- Median hourly wage: $14.02
- Total employment: 70 people (1.94 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paolo Bona // Shutterstock
24 / 50#27. Cooks, restaurant
- Median annual wage: $29,150
- Median hourly wage: $14.01
- Total employment: 360 people (9.77 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Drazen Zigic // Shutterstock
25 / 50#26. Cooks, institution and cafeteria
- Median annual wage: $28,990
- Median hourly wage: $13.94
- Total employment: 260 people (7.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Pearl PhotoPix // Shutterstock
26 / 50#25. Hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists
- Median annual wage: $28,970
- Median hourly wage: $13.93
- Total employment: 140 people (3.76 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
27 / 50#24. Preschool teachers, except special education
- Median annual wage: $28,950
- Median hourly wage: $13.92
- Total employment: 90 people (2.33 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
UfaBizPhoto // Shutterstock
28 / 50#23. Parts salespersons
- Median annual wage: $28,680
- Median hourly wage: $13.79
- Total employment: 60 people (1.5 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Paul.J.West // Shutterstock
29 / 50#22. Teaching assistants, except postsecondary
- Median annual wage: $28,650
- Median hourly wage: Not available
- Total employment: 290 people (7.84 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
santypan // Shutterstock
30 / 50#21. Bartenders
- Median annual wage: $28,600
- Median hourly wage: $13.75
- Total employment: 270 people (7.21 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Pressmaster // Shutterstock
31 / 50#20. Animal caretakers
- Median annual wage: $28,580
- Median hourly wage: $13.74
- Total employment: 50 people (1.44 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Jason Person // Shutterstock
32 / 50#19. Cooks, short order
- Median annual wage: $28,170
- Median hourly wage: $13.55
- Total employment: 50 people (1.45 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
33 / 50#18. Retail salespersons
- Median annual wage: $28,040
- Median hourly wage: $13.48
- Total employment: 920 people (24.9 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Africa Studio // Shutterstock
34 / 50#17. Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs
- Median annual wage: $27,970
- Median hourly wage: $13.45
- Total employment: 100 people (2.67 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
35 / 50#16. Food preparation workers
- Median annual wage: $27,590
- Median hourly wage: $13.27
- Total employment: 170 people (4.57 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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Dmitry Kalinovsky // Shutterstock
36 / 50#15. Laundry and dry-cleaning workers
- Median annual wage: $27,520
- Median hourly wage: $13.23
- Total employment: 50 people (1.36 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A // Shutterstock
37 / 50#14. Home health and personal care aides
- Median annual wage: $27,510
- Median hourly wage: $13.23
- Total employment: 620 people (16.73 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
VGstockstudio // Shutterstock
38 / 50#13. Food servers, nonrestaurant
- Median annual wage: $27,230
- Median hourly wage: $13.09
- Total employment: 50 people (1.27 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Gabriel Georgescu // Shutterstock
39 / 50#12. Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks
- Median annual wage: $27,210
- Median hourly wage: $13.08
- Total employment: 30 people (0.89 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Nejron Photo // Shutterstock
40 / 50#11. Cleaners of vehicles and equipment
- Median annual wage: $26,940
- Median hourly wage: $12.95
- Total employment: 40 people (1.11 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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aboutsung // Shutterstock
41 / 50#10. Dining room and cafeteria attendants and bartender helpers
- Median annual wage: $26,850
- Median hourly wage: $12.91
- Total employment: 50 people (1.25 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
BlueSkyImage // Shutterstock
42 / 50#9. Fast food and counter workers
- Median annual wage: $26,750
- Median hourly wage: $12.86
- Total employment: 760 people (20.51 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Rawpixel.com // Shutterstock
43 / 50#8. Maids and housekeeping cleaners
- Median annual wage: $26,690
- Median hourly wage: $12.83
- Total employment: 220 people (5.93 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dean Drobot // Shutterstock
44 / 50#7. Cashiers
- Median annual wage: $25,880
- Median hourly wage: $12.44
- Total employment: 1,000 people (27.03 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
45 / 50#6. Driver/sales workers
- Median annual wage: $25,650
- Median hourly wage: $12.33
- Total employment: 130 people (3.55 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
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wavebreakmedia // Shutterstock
46 / 50#5. Dishwashers
- Median annual wage: $24,670
- Median hourly wage: $11.86
- Total employment: 110 people (3.08 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alena Veasey // Shutterstock
47 / 50#4. Cooks, fast food
- Median annual wage: $23,960
- Median hourly wage: $11.52
- Total employment: 500 people (13.65 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Dragon Images // Shutterstock
48 / 50#3. Hosts and hostesses, restaurant, lounge, and coffee shop
- Median annual wage: $23,710
- Median hourly wage: $11.40
- Total employment: 90 people (2.46 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
Alexander Oganezov // Shutterstock
49 / 50#2. Amusement and recreation attendants
- Median annual wage: $22,390
- Median hourly wage: $10.77
- Total employment: 50 people (1.42 of every 1,000 jobs in the area)
grivet // Shutterstock
50 / 50#1. Gambling change persons and booth cashiers
- Median annual wage: $21,730
- Median hourly wage: $10.45
- Total employment: 140 people (3.88 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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