Construction Laborers in Louisiana
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,137
after federal, FICA and Louisiana tax
Tax takes
$6,093
15.9% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$36,377
Louisiana costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Louisiana — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$38,230
Kept after tax
$32,137
Worth in national money
$36,377
State rank
48
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Louisiana is among the lower-paying states for construction laborers. The middle earner takes $38,230, ranking 48 of 51 states — about 18.87% below the national middle. Costs here are often lower too, which the figures further down account for.
- Measured against other jobs in Louisiana, this one sits low: 368 of 484 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $38,230 you keep $32,137 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $36,377 at national prices. Averages run higher here, $42,250, since top earners drag the number up.
- Louisiana ranks 48 of 51 for construction laborers, with a median of $38,230 — about 18.87% below the national figure. A nominal shortfall is not by itself a real one: lower-paying states frequently carry lower tax and lower price levels, and the adjusted figures below are where that is settled rather than assumed.
- Construction laborers occupies position 368 of 484 in Louisiana's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay in Louisiana is $32,137 after the full tax stack, from $38,230. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $36,377 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $42,250 exceeds the median, so the upper tail is doing the work.
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Pay band: Construction Laborers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $29,650 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,230 |
| Top tenth earn over | $60,090 |
| This salary | $38,230 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Louisiana | $32,137 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,898 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$2,523 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $37,283 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$3,051 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 88 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $38,230 as a midpoint for Louisiana, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $29,650 and the ninetieth is $60,090 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Louisiana the take-home figure of $32,137, from $38,230, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 368 of 484 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $36,377 uses one figure for the whole of Louisiana. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 484 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 368.
- The Louisiana median of $38,230 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $29,650 to $60,090. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Louisiana is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $32,137 from $38,230. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 368 of 484 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $36,377, worked from $38,230, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Louisiana address, on work sitting at 368 of 484 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
No — it is the middle. Half of these workers earn more and half earn less. The average is $42,250, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
The label is broader than the work. From $29,650 at the bottom tenth to $60,090 at the top, the same title covers roles that share little beyond a name.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Louisiana is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $36,377 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Louisiana then takes its own share, leaving $32,137.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Louisiana is $42,250. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($29,650) and the ninetieth ($60,090) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Louisiana's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $36,377 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $32,137 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Louisiana income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.