Dispatchers, Except Police, Fire, and Ambulance

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025

$50,340

Half earn more, half earn less

Middle half earn

$42,750 – $62,450

25th to 75th percentile

People employed, May 2025

202,810

Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)

Projected change, 2025–35

-0.7%

Shrinking (below 0%)

Openings a year (projected)

16,000

New jobs plus replacing people who leave

Typical education to enter

High school diploma or equivalent

BLS

• All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
• Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
• Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Schedule and dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles for conveyance of materials, freight, or passengers, or for normal installation, service, or emergency repairs rendered outside the place of business. Duties may include using radio, telephone, or computer to transmit assignments and compiling statistics and reports on work progress.

Main tasks

• Schedule or dispatch workers, work crews, equipment, or service vehicles to appropriate locations, according to customer requests, specifications, or needs, using radios or telephones.
• Prepare daily work and run schedules.
• Confer with customers or supervising personnel to address questions, problems, or requests for service or equipment.
• Relay work orders, messages, or information to or from work crews, supervisors, or field inspectors, using telephones or two-way radios.
• Receive or prepare work orders.
• Record and maintain files or records of customer requests, work or services performed, charges, expenses, inventory, or other dispatch information.
• Arrange for necessary repairs to restore service and schedules.
• Monitor personnel or equipment locations and utilization to coordinate service and schedules.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)

High school diploma or equivalent

Training once hired: moderate-term on-the-job training

O*NET Job Zone 1–2

Little to some preparation

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 1 programme to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

• First-Line Supervisors of Passenger Attendants

  $62,890 median · +3% projected

• First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators

  $62,890 median · +3% projected

• Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters

  $78,000 median · +0.9% projected

• Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks

  $59,650 median · -1.3% projected

• First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers

  $79,860 median · +4.1% projected

• Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers

  $107,230 median · +6.1% projected