Five Clallam County industries recorded average annual pay ranging from about $66,600 to $90,300, leading the county’s private-sector industries with publicly available wage figures.
The 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the latest complete calendar year available, show that higher-paying work takes several forms on the North Olympic Peninsula.
Construction made the list, professional services finished higher, and the industry at the top averaged about $40,600 more than the county’s overall private-sector figure.
That countywide average was $49,697. Four industries have withheld figures, so this countdown compares published wages rather than claiming to settle the order across every sector.
Construction — Average Annual Pay: $66,590
Construction opens the countdown with average annual pay of $66,590 across 1,177 Clallam County private-sector jobs in 2025.
It had the largest employment base of the five featured sectors. Its average pay increased 4.8% from 2024, while annual average employment edged down 0.9%.
More Than New Houses
The construction industry includes building work, infrastructure projects and specialty trades. Locally, that means more than the new homes residents see taking shape.
Hoch Construction in Port Angeles lists work ranging from residential remodels to medical and dental offices, retail spaces, warehouses and commercial tenant improvements. That variety offers a useful picture of the projects a local construction business can undertake.
Construction also narrowly cleared manufacturing’s $66,135 average, finishing just $455 ahead in the published figures.
A Local Place to Learn the Tools
Peninsula College offers construction technology training, while its workforce education programs list certificates in carpentry, cabinetry and finish carpentry, construction leadership and facilities maintenance.
Those choices point toward different kinds of work. Someone interested in finish carpentry is making a different training decision from someone aiming to coordinate construction projects.
The college’s offerings give prospective students several ways to explore the field locally. The practical comparison is between the skills taught and the work an employer needs—not simply the word “construction” on a program page.
Management of Companies and Enterprises — Average Annual Pay: $76,498
Management of companies and enterprises averaged $76,498 in 2025. Its local private-sector employment base was just 76 jobs, spread across five establishments.
This is a small corner of the county’s economy, even by the standards of this countdown.
A Category for Corporate Oversight
The federal industry definition covers establishments that oversee companies or hold controlling ownership interests, including operations responsible for strategic planning and organizational decisions.
It does not collect everyone with “manager” on a business card. A manager working at a retail establishment generally remains in retail’s industry figures; the classification follows the establishment’s business activity.
Locally, average annual pay declined 1.5% from 2024, while annual average employment fell 11.6%. Its comparatively high average therefore came alongside a shrinking employment base.
Management Study Without Leaving the Peninsula
Peninsula College’s Bachelor of Applied Science in Management builds on an existing two-year degree, adding upper-division coursework toward a bachelor’s degree.
The college offers online study and two- or three-year tracks. The program also includes a five-credit internship after the first 45 credits, developed with an employer partner.
That structure could matter to someone building on an associate degree while remaining in the area. Coursework includes budgeting, organizational decision-making and management information systems.
Those skills apply across many workplaces. The local education route is considerably broader than this narrowly defined industry.
Professional, Scientific and Technical Services — Average Annual Pay: $77,462
Professional, scientific and technical services averaged $77,462 across 718 Clallam County private-sector jobs in 2025.
Average annual pay increased 5.9% from the previous year, while annual average employment declined 2.2%.
Expertise Behind Everyday Projects
The industry category includes engineering, architecture, legal services, accounting, computer systems design, consulting, research and veterinary services.
It is a broad collection of specialized work, much of it happening behind the businesses and projects residents encounter every day.
A local example is Zenovic & Associates, an engineering firm based in Port Angeles. The company lists services including structural design, land surveying, mapping, construction inspection, materials testing and stormwater management.
That makes the category more tangible: work involving buildings, boundaries, water systems and the technical decisions behind physical development.
Different Specialties, Different Preparation
The variety within the sector matters for anyone considering it as a career destination. Engineering design, bookkeeping and computer consulting involve different responsibilities and preparation, despite sharing one industry heading.
Zenovic’s range of services illustrates that variety even within a single business. Surveying a site, testing materials and designing a water system are connected activities, but they are distinct types of work.
For readers drawn to technical problem-solving, this sector offers several directions to investigate. The useful starting point is the specialty itself: the tasks involved, the credentials required and whether the work happens mainly at a desk, in the field or across both.
Information — Average Annual Pay: $79,241
Information finished second among the county’s published private-sector figures, averaging $79,241 across 176 jobs in 2025.
Annual average employment increased 7.3%, while average annual pay declined 2.7%. More covered jobs did not translate into a higher sector average.
Yes, Local News Belongs in This Conversation
The information sector includes publishing, broadcasting, telecommunications, software publishing and data-related services.
That makes it broader than the shorthand “tech industry” suggests. Local publishing connections include the Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum, which appear in Carpenter Media Group’s publication directory.
Those are recognizable examples of information businesses serving the area. The sector average combines all covered activities within the category; it is not a reported salary for a local journalist.
Technical Training Has Wider Applications
For readers interested in the technology side, Peninsula College offers information technology systems administration and cybersecurity programs.
Its offerings include associate degrees in systems administration and cybersecurity and computer forensics, plus a short-term cybersecurity certificate.
Those skills can be used in workplaces outside the information industry, including businesses in health care, manufacturing or finance. The occupation and the employer’s industry are separate pieces of the employment picture.
That distinction is useful when searching: an interest in networks or computer security can take someone well beyond companies labeled as information businesses. The relevant skills may travel farther than the industry name suggests.
Finance and Insurance — Average Annual Pay: $90,264
Finance and insurance led Clallam County’s published private-sector industry wages at $90,264 in 2025.
The figure covered 355 jobs. Average annual pay increased 10% from 2024, while annual average employment declined 3.3%.
Banking Has Deep Local Roots
The sector covers banking, lending, insurance and investment-related activities. Its work ranges from everyday customer transactions to financing businesses and managing financial risk.
One established local connection is First Fed, whose history traces its beginnings to Port Angeles in 1923. The bank’s published location list identifies corporate administration and branches in Clallam County, including Port Angeles and Forks.
That gives the industry a local presence extending beyond a distant financial center. It also brings together different types of banking work within the county.
Business Skills Can Start Locally
Peninsula College’s business administration programs include accounting degrees and an economics and finance short-term certificate, alongside other business options.
The college says its business administration degrees can be completed online, giving students a way to study without relocating.
Clallam County’s finance and insurance average remained below the comparable $146,352 statewide private-sector figure in BLS’s Washington data. Leading the local published figures therefore does not mean matching the state average.
For a prospective applicant, the meaningful next comparison is the actual role. Customer banking, lending and insurance involve different work—and a broad industry average cannot price each position.
Clallam County’s Biggest Employment Sectors Tell a Different Story
Together, the five featured industries averaged 2,502 jobs, or approximately 15.6% of Clallam County’s 16,039 private-sector jobs, calculated from the same federal dataset.
Accommodation and food services alone accounted for 2,676 jobs, slightly more than all five wage leaders combined. Its average annual pay was $29,066.
Retail trade supplied 3,318 jobs, averaging $41,823, while private-sector health care and social assistance accounted for 2,997 jobs at an average of $50,082.
Those figures show why a list of wage leaders looks different from a list of the industries employing the most people. Some comparatively small sectors have high averages, while much larger parts of the economy contain a broader mix of occupations and work schedules.
Public employment is also outside this comparison. The private-sector figures should not be treated as a complete picture of opportunities with government agencies or publicly operated institutions.
For readers weighing a career change, pay and employment scale answer different questions. Both belong in the conversation.
What Could Your Next Move Look Like?
If one of these fields has you thinking about a change, start with the actual work: its advertised pay, qualifications, schedule and location.
A construction certificate presents a different commitment from completing a management degree or studying computer security. Existing experience may also change how much preparation you need—and which opportunities are realistic without leaving the Peninsula.
The numbers offer a useful place to start looking. The next move comes down to something more personal: work you can prepare for, a paycheck that works for you and a life you want to keep.
