As the year wound to a close, you couldn't swing a financial analyst around your head without hitting a news story about the derailing economy, dwindling retirement stocks, and the climbing unemployment rate. There were endless comparisons to recessions and stock market crashes of days gone by, and lots of hand-wringing about the future.
Such times call for cheap, voyeuristic distractions. Like, say, peeking into the pockets of your neighbors. Who can resist? Clearly, not us. We pestered people, picked through public filings, and scoured salary surveys to compile our latest list of what people are earning in the greater Baltimore area.
What we learned: People get really, really uncomfortable when you ask them what they make. As in foot-shuffling, eye-lowering, would-rather-wax-my-back-hair-than-reveal-what-I-earn kind of uncomfortable. Oh yeah, and also, Michael Phelps is extremely wealthy. There's more, too. Read on…
Politicos
Governor
Martin O'Malley
$150,000
Lt. Governor
Anthony G. Brown
$125,000
U.S. Senator
Barbara Mikulski
$169,300
U.S. House of Representatives
John P. Sarbanes
$169,300
Anne Arundel County Executive
John Robinson Leopold
$125,000
Baltimore City Mayor
Sheila Dixon
$151,700
Baltimore County Executive
Jim Smith
$150,000
Harford County Executive
David R. Craig
$99,317
Baltimore City Comptroller
Joan Pratt
$100,450
Baltimore City
Council President
Stephanie Rawlings-Blake
$100,450
Baltimore County Council Chair (part-time)
Kevin Kamenetz (outgoing)
$60,000
Harford County Council Member
James "Capt'n Jim" McMahan
$34,205
Carroll County Commissioner (part-time)
Julia W. Gouge
$45,000
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Average Personal Annual Earnings All of U.S.: $49,527 Source: Watson Wyatt analysis of BLS' 2008 Current Population Survey |
Fire, Police, and Law
Superintendent, Maryland State Police
Terrence Sheridan
$166,082
Maryland State
Fire Marshal
William E. Barnard
$96,501
Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, Secretary
Gary D. Maynard
$166,082
Anne Arundel County Sheriff
Ron Bateman
$128,064
Harford County Sheriff
L. Jesse Bane
$104,042
Baltimore Police Commissioner
Frederick H. Bealefeld III
$193,900
Baltimore City State's Attorney
Patricia C. Jessamy
$229,500
Baltimore County State's Attorney
Scott D. Shellenberger
$194,276
Harford County State's Attorney
Joseph I. Cassilly
$104,032
Public Defender for State of Maryland
$52,950 (to $85,017)
Maryland judge, District Court
$127,252
Maryland judge, Circuit Court
$140,352
Maryland Chief Judge, Court of Appeals
Robert M. Bell
$181,352
State Gigs
Maryland Public Television President and CEO
Robert J. Shuman
$198,048
Maryland Secretary of the Office of Housing and Community Development
Raymond A. Skinner
$148,778
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Corporate Bigwigs Black & Decker Constellation Energy T. Rowe Price Group JoS. A. Bank Clothiers Under Armour McCormick & Co. |
Public Education
State Schools Superintendent
Nancy S. Grasmick
$195,000
Higher Education
Johns Hopkins University, President
William R. Brody (outgoing)
$614,805
Incoming President of Johns Hopkins University
Ronald J. Daniels
Estimated $800,000 to $1.1 million*
*Exact salary not released until late 2009. Estimate by ERI Economic Research Institute
Loyola College, president
Fr. Brian Linnane, S.J.
$0
University of Baltimore, president
Robert L. Bogomolny
$278,700
Towson University, president
Robert Caret
$369,300
Coppin State, president
Reginald Avery
$233,000
MICA, president
Fred Lazarus IV
$310,000
UMBC, president
Freeman A. Hrabowski III
$420,400
University of Maryland, president
Dan Mote
$464,600
Morgan State, president
Earl S. Richardson
$389,258
Baltimore City Community College, president
Carolane Williams
$220,088
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At Your Service |
Medicine
If there is such a thing as a recession-proof field, health care may well be it, thanks in no small part to the ballooning elderly population and our ability and desire to better manage our health. Add it all up and you get lots of demand for people with medical know-how.
In some cases that demand leads to shortages, which can translate to better pay—one example is nursing.
Those with skills in allied health occupations—physicians' assistants and occupational, speech, and respiratory therapists to name a few—are also in high demand. And, of course, there are a host of other healthcare occupations to consider. A look
at what they pay…
Harbor Hospital Center, president
Joseph Oddis
$614,392
Mercy Medical Center, president
Thomas Mullen
$932,420 + $101,054
contributions to employee benefit plan and deferred compensation plan
Franklin Square Hospital Center
Carl Schindelar, president
$746,731
The Good Samaritan Hospital of Maryland
Lawrence Beck, president
$842,568
(includes a $135,993 payment relating to prior years of service)
Union Memorial Hospital
Harrison Rider, president
$828,016
(includes an $11,810 payment relating to prior years of service)
Secretary, Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
John M. Colmers
$166,082
Maryland Board of Physicians, BPQA executive director
C. Irving Pinder, Jr.
$106,086
Maryland Chief Medical Examiner
David R. Fowler
$227,660
Nonprofit Types
National Aquarium executive director
David M. Pittenger
$297,674
Abell Foundation president
Robert C. Embry Jr.
$280,070
The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, president
Shale Stiller
$599,305
Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland, executive director
A. Thomas Grazio
$93,000
Baltimore Opera Company, general director
Michael Harrison
$220,040*
* before BOC declared bankruptcy
Baltimore Museum of Art, director
Doreen Bolger
$238,968
Maryland Science Center president and CEO
Van Reimer
$168,257
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Out of Options When stocks soar, options—which give the holder the right to buy at a set price—can be a goldmine. But when a company's stock tanks, not so much. Options aren't money in the bank, but they do give you an idea of what might have been—and what clearly wasn't. Mayo A. Shattuck III Robert J. Lawless James A.C. Kennedy Methodology Note: Total stock option holdings data is based on the company's most recent proxy filing and includes all outstanding options held by the executive, but does not include actual gains. Actual gains for 2008 won't be available until early 2009. Source: Equilar, Inc., an executive compensation research |
Sports
Here's a get-rich-quick scheme: Invest a decade in perfecting a sport, break records, win medals, then sit back and count your ducats. Easy, right? Well, not exactly.
"The athletes who are making seven figures and above are few and far between," says Howe Burch, a Baltimore-based executive vice president with TBC Advertising who has been involved in sports marketing for much of his career. "You'd be surprised at how little some athletes make considering who they are and what they've accomplished."
You'll sweat less if you just sit back and marvel at what Phelps and other athletes rake in each year…
Michael Phelps
Swimmer
Estimated $25 to $35 million over the next five years
Katie Hoff
Swimmer
Estimated endorsements in the low 6 figures in 2009
Ray Lewis
Ravens linebacker
Ending $50 million, 7-year contract
Brendon Ayanbadejo
Ravens linebacker
$4.9 million over 4 years
Terrell Suggs
Ravens linebacker
$8.5 million (one year)
Joe Flacco
Ravens quarterback
Reportedly worth up to $30 million, with $8.75 million guaranteed (five-year contract)
Brian Matusz
Baltimore Orioles pitcher
Signed a four-year deal worth at minimum $3.47 million (signed in August 2008)
Cesar Izturis
Baltimore Orioles infielder
$6 million (new two-year contract)
Average Joes
Photographer, college instructor
Sam Holden
$59,000
Professional Resume Writer/Outplacement Expert
Beth Colley
$101,000
Real Estate Agent, Long and Foster, Columbia, Baltimore area
R. Scott Swingler
$90,000
Bartender
Rose Kaspar
$4 per hour + tips ($120 to $150 on an average night, $300 to $500 on a really good night)
Valet, Jays Valet Services
Mark DiPietro
$8/hour + tips ($80 on an average night, $150 on a good night)
Wellness Therapist, Radiant Light Center For Integrative Healing
Devakant Kupetz
$29,000
Au pair
Zsuzsanna Solymar
$176.85 per week plus room and board, plus $500 annually for tuition
Pretty Pots, Florist, owner
Joan Rief
$15,000 to $20,000
Home health aide for the elderly
Johnny Price
$18/hour
Freelance makeup artist
Tamika "Meekeyo" Pinckney
$250 for half day, $500 full day
CEO/Producer/director
Frank Marchant, Marchant Media
$120,000-180,000
Owner, Luv My Pet
Jeff Rothschild
$150,000
Owner, BizEbodies Errand Service
Mandy Marie Leeuwen
$80,000
Professional Organizer and owner, Absolutely Organized Professional Organizing Service
Katherine Trezise
$36,000
Baltimore County Fire Dept., fire apparatus driver/operator with 20 years of service
Lawrence Lamon
$73,126
Certified Personal Chef, Owner, Just A Matter Of Thyme
Constance Breeden
$36,000 to $42,000
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Inside the cubicle: Hot Skills If nobody has told you you're hot lately, you're probably just in the wrong job. Turns out, even with the economy in a bonafide slump—or maybe especially because of that—some skills are expected to remain in demand. And in-demand often translates to in-the-money. So, what's hot? The war for talent is still well under way in healthcare, IT, and engineering and sales, according to Jennifer Grasz, senior career advisor with Careerbuilder.com. Even in other fields, companies generally are willing to pay for anyone with the skills to either generate revenue or cut costs, says Renee Whalen, district president for global staffing giant Robert Half. In the technology sector—Whalen's specialty—network administrators and people with skills in voice-over IP and Microsoft.net "are really hot," she says. Healthcare organizations, schools, and high-tech companies are likely to be particularly on the hunt for techie types. Some positions within finance and accounting are also expected to remain in demand, says Joe Gonzales, a Robert Half regional vice president. What employers most want: staff and senior accountants with a CPA and at least three years of experience, tax accountants, and public accountants, says Gonzales. Still, an economic downturn is likely to affect pay even in some of the hot fields. In finance and accounting, "we're looking at probably a 3.4 percent increase in salaries over the next year," says Gonzales. In technology, "we're not expecting big raises in 2009—anywhere from 3.5 percent to 4.8 percent," says Whalen. A look at what office jockeys are making, from the cubicle to the corner office: Finance and Accounting Technology Office Staff Source: The Robert Half International 2009 Salary guide, adjusted for the Baltimore metropolitan area. |
We shuffled through local and state government records, independent compensation research, occupational association data, and many other sources to find out what Baltimoreans are making in several dozen fields. Some are local industry averages and some are exact salaries as established by government compensation boards.
Medicine
Family medicine doctor
$172,000
Ob-Gyn
$255,000
Emergency
medicine doctor
$240,000
Cardiologist
$392,000
Dentist
$126,920
First-year Resident
University of Maryland School of Medicine, internal medicine
$43,919
Media/Arts
Fine artist
$39,640
Graphic designer
$45,960
Choreographer
$52,360
Reporter
$64,910
Web designer
$52,242
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra musician
$76,700
Police/Fire
Police officer
Baltimore City
$41,058 (starting)
Police officer
Baltimore County
$45,783 (starting)
Correctional officer
Maryland Division of Corrections
$35,700 (starting)
Helicopter pilot
Baltimore County
$44,735 (starting)
Firefighter
Baltimore City
$32,999 (starting)
Captain
Baltimore City Fire Dept.
$67,826 (starting)
Public Schools
Public school teacher
Baltimore City
$41,128 (starting)
School principal
$94,614
Public school teacher with master's degree Baltimore City
$46,188 (starting)
Kindergarten teacher
$49,850
School clinician
with master's and 15 years experience
$66,689 (starting)
Librarian
$53,680
Trades
Carpenter
$42,300
Electrician
$45,360
Locksmith
$44,350
Tailor
$26,420
Plumber
$48,810
Security and fire alarm installer
$38,630
Professionals
Architect
$72,130
Starting lawyer
$92,550
Aerospace engineer
$90,270
Marriage and family therapist
$42,570
Veterinarian
$93,980
Real estate broker
$53,730
Local Government
Executive secretary
Baltimore County
$38,889 (starting)
Accountant
Baltimore City
$32,303 (starting)
Construction building inspector
Baltimore City
$28,630 (starting)
Dock master
Baltimore City
$31,009
Social worker
Baltimore City
$33,657 (starting)
911 operator
Baltimore City
$26,702 (starting)
Services/Sales
Customer Care Associate for debt-counseling firm Ascend One
Columbia headquarters
$32,660
Call Center Technical Support
Verizon Wireless,
Baltimore area
mid-$30,000's (starting)
Nordstrom salesperson
$39,000
Private investigator
Absolute Investigative Services
$20 to $30 (hourly)
U.S. Postal Service letter carrier
$42,000
(based on average hourly wage)
United Parcel Service driver
$70,000
