Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in New York
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,201
after federal, FICA and New York tax
Tax takes
$6,389
17.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$28,061
New York costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in New York — 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
$36,590
Kept after tax
$30,201
Worth in national money
$28,061
State rank
7
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. New York pays this job a middle wage of $36,590, ranking 7 of 51 states and sitting about 8.96% above the national middle.
- Measured against other jobs in New York, this one sits low: 477 of 493 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $36,590 the take-home is $30,201. But New York costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $28,061 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $37,800, because the best-paid pull it up.
- New York's median for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers is $36,590, about 8.96% above the national figure and 7 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers occupies position 477 of 493 in New York'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 after federal, FICA and New York income tax is $30,201 for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers, from $36,590. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $28,061. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $37,800 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $32,240 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,590 |
| Top tenth earn over | $45,190 |
| This salary | $36,590 |
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 New York | $30,201 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,580 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$4,437 |
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 | $34,874 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$5,366 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 108 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers in New York earn under $36,590 and half over. The published range runs $32,240 at the tenth percentile to $45,190 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In New York the take-home figure of $30,201, from $36,590, 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 477 of 493 occupations here.
- Two cautions on $28,061, the adjusted value of that $36,590 median. It levels out prices with a single number for all of New York. No actual address matches that. The wage figures and price figures are also from different years. Each is published on its own timetable. This work sits at 477 of 493 locally.
- Figures are distribution medians for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers in New York, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $32,240 to $45,190; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for New York is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $30,201 from $36,590. 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 477 of 493 locally.
- This $28,061 adjusted figure, worked from $36,590, rests on a state-level price parity averaging over within-state dispersion larger than much of the between-state dispersion. Wage and price vintages differ by publication schedule. The result is directionally sound and not address-specific, for work at 477 of 493 in the state. The occupation ranks 477 of 493 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 $37,800, pulled upward by the top of the range, which is why the middle is the fairer number to plan against.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $32,240 and the top tenth $45,190, so most people doing this work in New York sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $28,061 of national purchasing power.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and New York's own levy, $30,201 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
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 New York is $37,800. 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 is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($32,240 to $45,190) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to New York rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
New York's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $28,061 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $30,201 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and New York 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.