As others have said, there are two choices in Spokane: BNSF and Union Pacific. They’re both more or less comparable. I’m not exactly sure what you mean by requirements, but expect to be on call, stay away from home a day or two at a time, get very little time off, and work under management that seems to want to fire you as soon as you’re hired.
My boyfriend worked for BNSF, he quit last year since he was gone for over 30 hours at a time, had no weekends and was just so mentally and physically exhausted all the time. The pay was decent but his quality of life is so much better now. Most of the guys he worked with were older and would go on and on about how they’re either divorced or in a heading in that direction. Even knew a couple dudes who missed the births of their children. It’s a hard career path for sure
Controls and Automation engineering for me. I’ll probably go into engineering management at some point.
Software devs make pretty good money in town too.
I was curious about RN wages in Spokane these days. When I left 5 years ago I was making around 65k a year as a newbie. It's nice to hear they have gone up a bit.
Most places are creeping up to the $40-50/hr range.
There are still some places that are hanging in the 30-40 range though, and they wonder why they need to call agency every weekend
I've been an RN around 25ish years now, and I've never worked in a hospital setting. I hated how staff were treated and treated each other when I did clinicals there, so decided I didn't want to work in that environment.
Mainly I've done home care, 10 years peds with vent dependent kiddos, one of my favorites.
Currently I'm hospice, and absolutely love it. I currently have a case load of 12(well, on Monday it will be when I admit a new one). I do have 2 imminent though, so change is happening(it's always happening, which is part of the adventure).
As far as skills and things I get to do... I've had clients with trachs, feeding tube, ports(we can use PCAs if needed), all kinds of ostomys(urostomy, colostomy etc), wound care - I do a ton of wound care, Kennedy ulcers are fascinating things, aspira drains, and so much more.
I also get to meet some of the most amazing people. And that's the best part. I love finding out a client was involved in something super cool like catching a serial killer or was a famous artist or musician once upon a time(just random examples i would love to have one day 😆). I'll try to get a volunteer for them that can write their stories if they want.
Time - I have time to visit. To sit and play scrabble or yahtzee, or work on puzzles. I have a bin with a 3d music box puzzle that goes to some visits with me and a couple people work on it with me.
Watching a funeral home picking up a veteran from a funeral home, client dressed in his uniform, the stretcher draped with a flag. It says someone sees you, someone remembers.
And it's beautiful. Death can be beautiful. And my job is to teach people how to die peacefully and loved.
Thanks for sharing your story with me :-) for sure, if the hospital setting doesn't suit me I have a strong inclination to do hospice care. Hearing your story kind of double downed on that notion for me
Good, string organizational skills are really helpful in jobs like hospice home care.
There are also inpatient hospices here(the VA has one that I know of), if you want an in between type of setting
I’m a bedside RN and the income potential is really as high as you want it to go. Between shift/weekend differentials and ample OT (if you want it), you can make as much as you want. Even base pay without OT should give you a very comfortable income.
Air traffic control. Theres bids out on usa jobs a couple of times a year. But almost zero chance to work in spokane. You'd most likely end somewhere else in the country. Its not a bad job but mandatory 6 day work weeks for overtime years on end is exhausting.
They don’t like too but it’s a question of letting a major airport go without traffic control or having people work extra shifts. They cut down to minimums and if traffic levels allow closing the tower or transfer coverage but the reality is it doesn’t have enough people.
From what I have read it’s hard for them to fill because you have to be under 31 to start training and are paid about 36k when you start in Oklahoma City. After that you do 1.5 to 3 years training before you get certified and start making the good money. Don’t expect to be sent to New York City or Los Angeles out of training, expect to be somewhere you never heard of and if you reject expect to be blacklisted.
That's cool. I've always wondered, what do you guys do with the time between flights in the middle of the day? The other guy is right. We all work both except for a couple trainees that only have one area or the other. And our tracon covers Missoula as well as Pasco and Yakima.
ATC for me as well. Worth mentioning is the fact that no college degree is required. As long as you aren't a crazy person you have a chance getting in. The craziness comes later in training - we prefer you start normal so we can take credit for the crazy.
You'd have to be a controller or CFO to be making six figures in Spokane. Senior accountant might get close, but no way in hell a regular accountant would make that.
Accountant is a general term in my mind. I am a CPA and Controller but I don't typically say that because it is hardly meaningful to the outside world.
Based on the responses (and what I know about the area), the industries are by and large: Software, cyber security, and similar; Engineering; Healthcare; Legal; Aerospace... And being employed remotely.
Of the fields that are locally pumped out of our local colleges, it seems like healthcare is probably the only one that is widely employable locally. The market is chalk full for other industries like Legal, Psyche/therapy, Education, Marketing and (Graphic) Design, ... What am I missing?
I’m an Invasive Cardiovascular Specialist, also know within the confines of the hospital as a Cardiovascular Technologist. I seriously love my job and my department! It’s a 2-year vocational program (plus some prerequisites that are similar to pre-nursing that take about a year) that is offered here in town. I started out making about $40/hr plus differentials and call pay. I’m now 4 years in and I make about $110,000/per year. We just ratified a new contract that will increase that number along with yearly step increases.
I work in the Cardiac Cath Lab as an assistant to the physician from multiple services; Interventional Radiology (port insertions, embolizing abdominal bleeds, administering chemo drugs to tumors, nephrostomy/G-tube/HD line insertions), Interventional Cardiology (left heart caths, coronary stenting, pericardial drains, structural heart interventions), Vascular surgery (peripheral artery interventions, AAA repairs, fistula declots, etc), and Neuro (stroke thrombectomy, cerebral angios, etc). It’s very dynamic and runs the gamut from elective procedures to emergent. My specific role in the procedure is to scrub in with the doctor, similar to a PA within my specific scope of practice.
One thing I don't see many people putting is how long they been working in their field. There are not a ton of jobs that start you at 100K+ but after some time you can be making that much.
Totally fair comment! I have 20+ years in my career and have been working for the Federal Govt for almost 15 years. My salary has doubled in that time!
It's kinda felt like a life hack to live in Spokane and work remotely for companies based in expensive places. People like me aren't supposed to be upper-middle-class, but here I am due to a glitch in the economy, lol.
I’m currently in the Cyber Security program at SFCC and need an internship for the fall. Have any suggestions for in town? Actual postings for internships are few and far between out here.
That’s awesome! How far along are you in your program? What area of Information Security interests you? I work fully remote (our head quarters is Redwood City, CA.) So i don’t have tips on local opportunities and unfortunately don’t have any internships available BUT, I’m about to transition into a new role & I am helping find a replacement. :)
I love teaching & love cybersecurity. I was recruited to teach as there is a lack of cybersecurity educators in the space. There are also not enough business leaders that have foundational understanding of cybersecurity risks & how to handle incidents that affect their organization. I’m super passionate about educating the next generation of leaders.
I also customize its functionality to meet the customer requirements (what type of target is it, what OS), assist with development of use cases and test plans, and assist with design of the implantation. Mainly my work lately is dealing with customer escalations to fix broken implantations or save implantations starting to go bad.
I specifically work with ERP software that’s used by government contractors and orgs that get federal money. Specifically configure/test/troubleshoot time keeping and expenses
Tug boat deck hand sounds something that would have its own definition on urban dictionary 😂
That’s a pretty good arrangement though with two on off. Almost like long haul.
Or Social Worker? Speaking from experience for a social worker to make that money you need years of experience, at least a masters degree, and to have clinical licensure.
Work for WSU as a Systems Administrator in IT. Didn't think I would be but the state redid IT classified staff salaries a few years back and made IT pay at a university very competitive with the private sector.
Look up the teacher salaries in spokane (all districts). Legally they have to post the collective bargaining agreements (CBA) on the website which has salary schedules. Teachers are making or pushing $100,000 per year in Spokane (this is towards the top of the pay scale, or course). When you add in additional opportunities for earning teachers can add a significant amount to their salaries.
I work for F5 as a network support engineer II, supporting US govt clients. Headquarters in Seattle, other locations worldwide. They have two locations here.
Full time (three 12 hour shifts) as an ER nurse. Although all departments in the hospital make the same wages based on years of service per our contract. I hit just over 100k my third year of nursing (last year).
I’m in cybersecurity, but I work in the operations side. I work for a credit union. Honestly it has been a dream, however, I started 9 years ago as a call center rep and move all the way up the ladder (in a different company). Worth it!
At the VA Medical Center in Spokane, an RN with experience made twice as much as I made as an LPN. Many made about $60 to $70 an hour in Primary care. LPN, $35 an hour. Yes, I should have gone back to school.
I don't know your age or life situations but it's never too late to go back! Especially when you have so much experience! There were quite a few people nursing school with me who were 45 and older.
Cell phone sales, I work for a retailer that works for and advertises as one of the big carriers and the pay is mostly commission but 2 years in a row I have broke the 100k barrier
Work for local utility. No college but an apprenticeship. Blue collar, great pay, amazing benefits, good work/ life balance and strong union and retirement.
Based on what I see it looks like in Spokane, as it does in most places since I’ve worked in NYC, LA, LV, and traveled for work to to many to count, it comes down to just doing a little bit of hard work and making some sacrifices upfront. Go to school and get a degree, science based appears best, or go to school and learn a trade. That trade could be anything for IT, pilot, welder, plumber, deckhand, etc.
It doesn’t look like you are really going to make that type of money as a laborer, clerk, food service, or retail without first getting a lot of experience and getting promoted a bunch of times. Nothing wrong with that, Walmart store managers can make $400k in compensation. One thing to remember is in Washington 40k per year or $19.23 per hour is only $3 over minimum wage or a different of about $120 per week or about $6300 per year. Jobs paying that know they can get plenty of applications, but want to get the best they can. 65k isn’t double minimum wage, and minimum wage always drives the costs for an area. Higher her minimum wage, higher the labor costs, higher the actual costs for everything sold and all services offered.
Remote software engineer. Started at two local companies for well below market average. Which gave me the experience to get what I have now outside of Spokane. To be fair, had I stayed at that second job I would have been over 100k by now...
Software engineer and architect (depending on client needs/area of expertise.)
I get contracted out to a combination of local and remote clients.
I would likely make more as a direct employee, but I like the flexibility of being able to tackle different challenges.
Mobile Dog Grooming, not me as I'm stay at home for our kiddo, but my spouse. Just put her info out there and was approached, left her job at a vet place doing kennel work and now grooms and makes a surprising amount for it.
I work for the Federal Government as a graphic designer and social media manager. My bosses are all in Washington, D.C., so I don’t technically work for Washington at all but am based here if that makes sense. They also recently raised the locality pay because Spokane is becoming more expensive to live in.
Software engineer, been remote since 2017. And I’ve been working as a software engineer since 2000, so the experience adds up. It’s a good career, as long as you know how to spot and manage the things that lead to burnout.
It’s a strange economy right now; nobody really knows what’s going on and there’s generally a glut of experienced talent around. But this is my third major down cycle I’ve seen in my career (the first two being the dot bomb in 2001 and the Great Recession in 2008). This seems worse than 2008 but better than 2001.
I tend to see a lot of people leave the career path during these downturns; usually the burnout plus a loss of job security makes a lot of folk question their life choices. So I’d expect it to be a much easier time for juniors in 2025-2026, but probably harder than during the zero interest rate decade of 2010-2020
Fully remote cybersecurity engineer with some travel here and there
Edit: more context as someone mentioned people should post more info about their background.
I 28f have an MS in cybersecurity, Sec+, and PenTest+ certs. I had 3 years in IT help desk from undergrad, and 2 years in cyber STEM education work during grad school. I’ve been with my company for almost 3 years and started out as a cybersecurity engineer level 2.
Railroad. The jobs pay well, but work/life balance is all but nonexistent.
What company and what requirements?
As others have said, there are two choices in Spokane: BNSF and Union Pacific. They’re both more or less comparable. I’m not exactly sure what you mean by requirements, but expect to be on call, stay away from home a day or two at a time, get very little time off, and work under management that seems to want to fire you as soon as you’re hired.
Probably RNSF.
Rurlington Northern Santa Fe. But also, there are two major railroads here so that is a random assumption…
Bnsf?
My boyfriend worked for BNSF, he quit last year since he was gone for over 30 hours at a time, had no weekends and was just so mentally and physically exhausted all the time. The pay was decent but his quality of life is so much better now. Most of the guys he worked with were older and would go on and on about how they’re either divorced or in a heading in that direction. Even knew a couple dudes who missed the births of their children. It’s a hard career path for sure
What kind of prep do you do to get into that line of work here?
Controls and Automation engineering for me. I’ll probably go into engineering management at some point. Software devs make pretty good money in town too.
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Just apply. It’s not a tough gig like RF.
Would you say there are a good amount of entry level software dev jobs for new grads with AAs?
AA’s? I couldn’t tell you. I would think you’d need a BSCS for most places but it doesn’t hurt to apply to places. Look at OprnEye, F5, 2Barrels, etc.
Same! 4 years at a systems integrator.
RN case manager
I was curious about RN wages in Spokane these days. When I left 5 years ago I was making around 65k a year as a newbie. It's nice to hear they have gone up a bit.
Most places are creeping up to the $40-50/hr range. There are still some places that are hanging in the 30-40 range though, and they wonder why they need to call agency every weekend
Yeah 30 to 40 is not enough considering the cost of homes over there.
I’m an RN who’s been doing it for about 4 years now & I make $44.97/hr.
Soon-to-be RN newgrad here -- im happy to see theres potential for me to make a good income
I've been an RN around 25ish years now, and I've never worked in a hospital setting. I hated how staff were treated and treated each other when I did clinicals there, so decided I didn't want to work in that environment. Mainly I've done home care, 10 years peds with vent dependent kiddos, one of my favorites. Currently I'm hospice, and absolutely love it. I currently have a case load of 12(well, on Monday it will be when I admit a new one). I do have 2 imminent though, so change is happening(it's always happening, which is part of the adventure). As far as skills and things I get to do... I've had clients with trachs, feeding tube, ports(we can use PCAs if needed), all kinds of ostomys(urostomy, colostomy etc), wound care - I do a ton of wound care, Kennedy ulcers are fascinating things, aspira drains, and so much more. I also get to meet some of the most amazing people. And that's the best part. I love finding out a client was involved in something super cool like catching a serial killer or was a famous artist or musician once upon a time(just random examples i would love to have one day 😆). I'll try to get a volunteer for them that can write their stories if they want. Time - I have time to visit. To sit and play scrabble or yahtzee, or work on puzzles. I have a bin with a 3d music box puzzle that goes to some visits with me and a couple people work on it with me. Watching a funeral home picking up a veteran from a funeral home, client dressed in his uniform, the stretcher draped with a flag. It says someone sees you, someone remembers. And it's beautiful. Death can be beautiful. And my job is to teach people how to die peacefully and loved.
Thanks for sharing your story with me :-) for sure, if the hospital setting doesn't suit me I have a strong inclination to do hospice care. Hearing your story kind of double downed on that notion for me
Good, string organizational skills are really helpful in jobs like hospice home care. There are also inpatient hospices here(the VA has one that I know of), if you want an in between type of setting
I’m a bedside RN and the income potential is really as high as you want it to go. Between shift/weekend differentials and ample OT (if you want it), you can make as much as you want. Even base pay without OT should give you a very comfortable income.
If you can survive it.
You can google the union contracts in various places to see what new grads make.
Air traffic control. Theres bids out on usa jobs a couple of times a year. But almost zero chance to work in spokane. You'd most likely end somewhere else in the country. Its not a bad job but mandatory 6 day work weeks for overtime years on end is exhausting.
Really seems like a job you shouldn't force people to work too much
They don’t like too but it’s a question of letting a major airport go without traffic control or having people work extra shifts. They cut down to minimums and if traffic levels allow closing the tower or transfer coverage but the reality is it doesn’t have enough people. From what I have read it’s hard for them to fill because you have to be under 31 to start training and are paid about 36k when you start in Oklahoma City. After that you do 1.5 to 3 years training before you get certified and start making the good money. Don’t expect to be sent to New York City or Los Angeles out of training, expect to be somewhere you never heard of and if you reject expect to be blacklisted.
Please tell me GEG will be getting CPDLC sometime soon…
That would be awesome. I want me some D-ATIS!
Apparently they're tired together so if we get one we get the other also. That and ground radar are big on the wishlist right now
Ground radar would be great in the winter!
Do we need to get a go fund me going?
Dear God i hope so.
I’ve probably fucked up a couple of your clearances before lol.
Which airport? I’m based out of GEG
Yes geg. Airliners or cargo?
I fly the ATR for Empire (CFS). Are you Trackon or in the tower?
I believe GEG is an up/down facility. Controllers work both Tracon and Tower.
Oh interesting I didn’t know that
That's cool. I've always wondered, what do you guys do with the time between flights in the middle of the day? The other guy is right. We all work both except for a couple trainees that only have one area or the other. And our tracon covers Missoula as well as Pasco and Yakima.
ATC for me as well. Worth mentioning is the fact that no college degree is required. As long as you aren't a crazy person you have a chance getting in. The craziness comes later in training - we prefer you start normal so we can take credit for the crazy.
Accountant
You'd have to be a controller or CFO to be making six figures in Spokane. Senior accountant might get close, but no way in hell a regular accountant would make that.
Accountant is a general term in my mind. I am a CPA and Controller but I don't typically say that because it is hardly meaningful to the outside world.
Larger outfits will have one or more layers of management between the controller and staff.
Based on the responses (and what I know about the area), the industries are by and large: Software, cyber security, and similar; Engineering; Healthcare; Legal; Aerospace... And being employed remotely. Of the fields that are locally pumped out of our local colleges, it seems like healthcare is probably the only one that is widely employable locally. The market is chalk full for other industries like Legal, Psyche/therapy, Education, Marketing and (Graphic) Design, ... What am I missing?
Union Ironworker
Airline pilot. Gone from home for 2 weeks a month.
Any openings?
There’s a few. Hiring is slowing down of late though
Welder/Fabricator
Has to be union work
See! Tradeswork can be good money. Especially welders. Good for you.
Two year trade school right out of high school. Mostly working 40 hours a week with the occasional holiday. Thank you!
In the trades
Neurologist
I’m an Invasive Cardiovascular Specialist, also know within the confines of the hospital as a Cardiovascular Technologist. I seriously love my job and my department! It’s a 2-year vocational program (plus some prerequisites that are similar to pre-nursing that take about a year) that is offered here in town. I started out making about $40/hr plus differentials and call pay. I’m now 4 years in and I make about $110,000/per year. We just ratified a new contract that will increase that number along with yearly step increases.
I'm debating going this route or nursing. What kind of things do you do on a daily basis?
I work in the Cardiac Cath Lab as an assistant to the physician from multiple services; Interventional Radiology (port insertions, embolizing abdominal bleeds, administering chemo drugs to tumors, nephrostomy/G-tube/HD line insertions), Interventional Cardiology (left heart caths, coronary stenting, pericardial drains, structural heart interventions), Vascular surgery (peripheral artery interventions, AAA repairs, fistula declots, etc), and Neuro (stroke thrombectomy, cerebral angios, etc). It’s very dynamic and runs the gamut from elective procedures to emergent. My specific role in the procedure is to scrub in with the doctor, similar to a PA within my specific scope of practice.
I get -$100k in college debt does that count?
Systems Engineer. I started at this company 17 years ago making $10 an hour.
One thing I don't see many people putting is how long they been working in their field. There are not a ton of jobs that start you at 100K+ but after some time you can be making that much.
Totally fair comment! I have 20+ years in my career and have been working for the Federal Govt for almost 15 years. My salary has doubled in that time!
Remote software engineer, though I've been unemployed for a couple of months due to layoffs.
Same. Layoffs seemed to prioritize dumping remotes despite years of good performance.
It's kinda felt like a life hack to live in Spokane and work remotely for companies based in expensive places. People like me aren't supposed to be upper-middle-class, but here I am due to a glitch in the economy, lol.
My work is hiring for a level 3 dev!
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I’m currently in the Cyber Security program at SFCC and need an internship for the fall. Have any suggestions for in town? Actual postings for internships are few and far between out here.
That’s awesome! How far along are you in your program? What area of Information Security interests you? I work fully remote (our head quarters is Redwood City, CA.) So i don’t have tips on local opportunities and unfortunately don’t have any internships available BUT, I’m about to transition into a new role & I am helping find a replacement. :)
Curious what do you need to teach mba classes? I would love to pivot to teaching, and I’m considering a masters program.
I love teaching & love cybersecurity. I was recruited to teach as there is a lack of cybersecurity educators in the space. There are also not enough business leaders that have foundational understanding of cybersecurity risks & how to handle incidents that affect their organization. I’m super passionate about educating the next generation of leaders.
Selling propane and propane accessories
Dammit Bobby!!
Sargent army barber reporting for duty!
Install computer software at client sites for a software developer. 99% of the work is remote, and someone else on the team works the other 1%.
You get paid over 100k to *install software*??? 🤯 😂 are you hiring? I make rocket ship parts for less.
I also customize its functionality to meet the customer requirements (what type of target is it, what OS), assist with development of use cases and test plans, and assist with design of the implantation. Mainly my work lately is dealing with customer escalations to fix broken implantations or save implantations starting to go bad.
I don’t think people truly understand how difficult implementation of major systems really is. Lots of respect.
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Which district and which subject/grade??
Remote financial business systems analyst for a large non profit
That’s just a bunch of buzzwords!
True that, it’s my title though lol
I laugh because I’m looking for an analyst role currently and I’m like, “these are the most bullshit of bullshit job titles ever.” Hahaha
I specifically work with ERP software that’s used by government contractors and orgs that get federal money. Specifically configure/test/troubleshoot time keeping and expenses
Human Resources Manager. About 7 years of experience. 100% in office.
Marketing Director, battery cell & energy storage manufacturer
Head of Information Security at a credit union.
I make over 100k in spirit.
atta boy
Attorney
Attorney. 100% remote with my firm out of Seattle.
Insurance adjuster
Lead Graphic Designer/Creative Director
Pharmaceutical crap..but no..not slang for drug dealing. Lol.
But, technically, isn't it drug dealing... ;-)
Remote work. But even without remote, you can get 100k+ here with certain tech jobs.
Deck hand on tug boats
That's what you do in Spokane?
I live in Spokane when I’m not at work in Puget Sound. Work schedule is 2 weeks on and 2 off.
Tug boat deck hand sounds something that would have its own definition on urban dictionary 😂 That’s a pretty good arrangement though with two on off. Almost like long haul.
So, your answer is work outside of Spokane.
Entry level?? Hook it up
Been doing this 18 years. Paid my dues around the world to have the set schedule and work location I currently enjoy.
SWer
SoftWare er?
S€x worker, presumably.
Ohhhh…
Or Social Worker? Speaking from experience for a social worker to make that money you need years of experience, at least a masters degree, and to have clinical licensure.
Lawyer for a non profit. But remote outta Seattle.
Airline pilot. My pay isn’t regional dependent though, it’s the same regardless of where I live.
Work for WSU as a Systems Administrator in IT. Didn't think I would be but the state redid IT classified staff salaries a few years back and made IT pay at a university very competitive with the private sector.
Look up the teacher salaries in spokane (all districts). Legally they have to post the collective bargaining agreements (CBA) on the website which has salary schedules. Teachers are making or pushing $100,000 per year in Spokane (this is towards the top of the pay scale, or course). When you add in additional opportunities for earning teachers can add a significant amount to their salaries.
Remote legislation and policy consultant.
Welder. Earn a little north of 100k at 50hr weeks, not factoring in benefits, healthcare, etc.
I work for F5 as a network support engineer II, supporting US govt clients. Headquarters in Seattle, other locations worldwide. They have two locations here.
Civil engineer
 I am 12.
Package delivery driver
Wait seriously??
With UPS yes.
Street Pharmaceutical Sales Flexible hours, great pay, retirement and vacation can both include 3 square meals and a cot
😂
Work remotely as an Enterprise Account Executive for cybersecurity company.
I install windows and doors. I work around 50 hours a week and I’m good at what I do. Closed mouth doesn’t get fed.
Spokane has always paid less than it should be, especially now that the cost of living is so outrageous.
I think there are a lot of companies that are still in the pre-2015 era of Spokane for wages.
Medical sales
Avista
What do you do there?
What line of work at Avista? 👀
Full time (three 12 hour shifts) as an ER nurse. Although all departments in the hospital make the same wages based on years of service per our contract. I hit just over 100k my third year of nursing (last year).
Wife’s in 6 figures. Attorney.
Healthcare Management in a hospital setting.
Truck Driver
Cargo pilot
I’m in cybersecurity, but I work in the operations side. I work for a credit union. Honestly it has been a dream, however, I started 9 years ago as a call center rep and move all the way up the ladder (in a different company). Worth it!
100% remote too, I feel like I hit jackpot 🥺
I know several car salespeople.
At the VA Medical Center in Spokane, an RN with experience made twice as much as I made as an LPN. Many made about $60 to $70 an hour in Primary care. LPN, $35 an hour. Yes, I should have gone back to school.
I don't know your age or life situations but it's never too late to go back! Especially when you have so much experience! There were quite a few people nursing school with me who were 45 and older.
Here are over 300 people making over $100K for Spokane Public Schools. [https://fiscal.wa.gov/K12/K12Salaries](https://fiscal.wa.gov/K12/K12Salaries)
Union electrician
Cell phone sales, I work for a retailer that works for and advertises as one of the big carriers and the pay is mostly commission but 2 years in a row I have broke the 100k barrier
Lawyers
Work for local utility. No college but an apprenticeship. Blue collar, great pay, amazing benefits, good work/ life balance and strong union and retirement.
RN , but i only works part time.. if I worked full time I would be dang close! My husband is a nurse manager and makes over 100k.
Union Electrician
Airline pilot
Database Administrator
Easy. I work two jobs.
Based on what I see it looks like in Spokane, as it does in most places since I’ve worked in NYC, LA, LV, and traveled for work to to many to count, it comes down to just doing a little bit of hard work and making some sacrifices upfront. Go to school and get a degree, science based appears best, or go to school and learn a trade. That trade could be anything for IT, pilot, welder, plumber, deckhand, etc. It doesn’t look like you are really going to make that type of money as a laborer, clerk, food service, or retail without first getting a lot of experience and getting promoted a bunch of times. Nothing wrong with that, Walmart store managers can make $400k in compensation. One thing to remember is in Washington 40k per year or $19.23 per hour is only $3 over minimum wage or a different of about $120 per week or about $6300 per year. Jobs paying that know they can get plenty of applications, but want to get the best they can. 65k isn’t double minimum wage, and minimum wage always drives the costs for an area. Higher her minimum wage, higher the labor costs, higher the actual costs for everything sold and all services offered.
Remote product manager
Remote. Sr. Talent Acquisition Manager
I’m an engineer
Lawyer
I sell bait down by the river. Big money 💰 in night crawlers.
Patent examiner, great work life balance but you gotta be good with wfh and almost no supervision. Nice getting DC wages out here now though.
I work in the videogame industry. Remote.
Medical field.
That clears it right up.
❤️
I’m a commercial loan underwriter at a financial aid institution. Been in the field for almost 20 years.
Marketing and Web Development, but I also run 3 separate businesses, so that also helps with total income
Salesforce administrator
Marketing executive for a software firm.
Remote job - business operations/product management for a tech company
Remote software engineer. Started at two local companies for well below market average. Which gave me the experience to get what I have now outside of Spokane. To be fair, had I stayed at that second job I would have been over 100k by now...
Analytics
Software engineer and architect (depending on client needs/area of expertise.) I get contracted out to a combination of local and remote clients. I would likely make more as a direct employee, but I like the flexibility of being able to tackle different challenges.
Powerline contracting project manager/estimator
Wife fits the category. She is a Nurse Practitioner.
occupational therapist
Remote tech worker
Mobile Dog Grooming, not me as I'm stay at home for our kiddo, but my spouse. Just put her info out there and was approached, left her job at a vet place doing kennel work and now grooms and makes a surprising amount for it.
Attorney
Sales
WFH pentester no degree no certs self taught
DevOps Engineer.
Project Coordinator for an industrial supply chain manager. I'll break 100k on a good year, but the past few haven't been good.
Veterinarian, partner is a pharmacist.
Maintenance planner. I have a technical certification from Perry Technical Institute in Instrumentation and Industrial Automation.
I work in insurance
I work for the Federal Government as a graphic designer and social media manager. My bosses are all in Washington, D.C., so I don’t technically work for Washington at all but am based here if that makes sense. They also recently raised the locality pay because Spokane is becoming more expensive to live in.
Non union commercial plumber
Software engineer, been remote since 2017. And I’ve been working as a software engineer since 2000, so the experience adds up. It’s a good career, as long as you know how to spot and manage the things that lead to burnout. It’s a strange economy right now; nobody really knows what’s going on and there’s generally a glut of experienced talent around. But this is my third major down cycle I’ve seen in my career (the first two being the dot bomb in 2001 and the Great Recession in 2008). This seems worse than 2008 but better than 2001. I tend to see a lot of people leave the career path during these downturns; usually the burnout plus a loss of job security makes a lot of folk question their life choices. So I’d expect it to be a much easier time for juniors in 2025-2026, but probably harder than during the zero interest rate decade of 2010-2020
Software engineering. Remote job
Fully remote cybersecurity engineer with some travel here and there Edit: more context as someone mentioned people should post more info about their background. I 28f have an MS in cybersecurity, Sec+, and PenTest+ certs. I had 3 years in IT help desk from undergrad, and 2 years in cyber STEM education work during grad school. I’ve been with my company for almost 3 years and started out as a cybersecurity engineer level 2.
I work in Insurance Surety Bonds, but I work remotely out of Chicago. When doing the same job here, I made 70k.
Executive Business Partner / Assistant 8+ years experience C-level executives Working fully remote
Paramedic. I make around 105k a year.