Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs job market in North Carolina

Industry trends, wages and hiring signals.

The headline

North Carolina industry employment changed 1.2 percentage points above the U.S. benchmark

A data-driven view of the industries that employ Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in North Carolina.

Verified QCEW 2026 Q1January to March 2026 · State coverage 99.92% · BLS QCEWCitationEvidence record

Occupation pay

What Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs earn in North Carolina

BLS OEWS occupation-level pay estimates for this role — separate from the industry wage trends used elsewhere in this report.

BLS OEWS source

Median annual wage

$31,980North Carolina
Middle 50% of published wages
$28,350 – $37,470
U.S. median annual wage
$37,290
Reference period
May 2025

The middle 50% is the 25th-to-75th percentile wage range, not an experience-level band. Suppressed or unavailable BLS values remain unpublished rather than being estimated.

Pay around North Carolina

How median pay varies by metro area

Published BLS OEWS metro estimates for Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs, compared with the North Carolina median of $31,980.

North Carolina median$31,980
Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC$36,340+13.6% vs. state
Middle 50%$30,910 – $41,160Published employment970
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC$35,610+11.4% vs. state
Middle 50%$29,320 – $38,670Published employment340
Raleigh-Cary, NC$34,470+7.8% vs. state
Middle 50%$29,020 – $37,530Published employment780
Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC$33,500+4.8% vs. state
Middle 50%$28,420 – $41,390Published employment1,290
Goldsboro, NC$33,360+4.3% vs. state
Middle 50%$29,110 – $38,480Published employment30
Rocky Mount, NC$33,330+4.2% vs. state
Middle 50%$27,910 – $36,400Published employment30
View 10 more published metro areas
Jacksonville, NC$32,920+2.9% vs. state
Middle 50%$26,270 – $39,040Published employment70
Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC$32,160+0.6% vs. state
Middle 50%$26,850 – $36,850Published employment120
Pinehurst-Southern Pines, NC$31,770−0.7% vs. state
Middle 50%$26,620 – $35,750Published employment60
Winston-Salem, NC$31,400−1.8% vs. state
Middle 50%$27,010 – $38,050Published employment440
Greensboro-High Point, NC$31,310−2.1% vs. state
Middle 50%$28,410 – $40,230Published employment460
Wilmington, NC$31,270−2.2% vs. state
Middle 50%$27,940 – $36,120Published employment220
Asheville, NC$30,920−3.3% vs. state
Middle 50%$27,610 – $36,010Published employment260
Greenville, NC$30,310−5.2% vs. state
Middle 50%$28,080 – $36,260Published employment60
Burlington, NC$29,190−8.7% vs. state
Middle 50%$22,960 – $35,920Published employment40
Fayetteville, NC$28,050−12.3% vs. state
Middle 50%$26,790 – $34,780Published employment120

Areas are ordered by published median wage for readability, not as an overall job-market ranking. The vertical marker is the North Carolina median. Some BLS metropolitan areas cross state lines, so a metro estimate can cover workers in more than one state.

Verified snapshot

Market at a Glance

Key changes in North Carolina’s weighted industry mix.

+1.4%Industry employmentNorth Carolina industry employmentU.S. +0.2%vs. +0.2% U.S.
+6.4%Establishments in weighted industriesNorth Carolina establishments in weighted industriesU.S. +2.4%vs. +2.4% U.S.
+1.9%Avg. weekly industry wageNorth Carolina avg. weekly industry wageU.S. +2.8% · not occupation payvs. +2.8% U.S. · not occupation pay
+1.2 ppGap vs. U.S. industry employmentState minus U.S. industry employment change

Percentage-point gaps use the original published values and are rounded once; subtracting the rounded percentages can give a slightly different result.

Published coverage: 132,458 represented establishments, 84.12% of the published industry mix.

Local research

What the data shows for shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in North Carolina

Findings describe the published observation periods shown below. Research published Oct 11, 2026.

The highest-paying metro has a smaller employment market

The OEWS May 2025 comparison for North Carolina shows a pay premium alongside a smaller employment estimate. Durham-Chapel Hill, NC's median annual pay of $35,610 is 6.3% higher than Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC's $33,500, while their employment estimates are 340 and 1,290, respectively. Among 15 metros with both usable measures, the former has the highest median pay and the latter the largest employment estimate. These counts describe existing jobs, not available vacancies.

OEWS May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Some metro estimates cross state lines. Higher nominal pay does not establish better living standards or better chances of finding a job.

This occupation is less concentrated in the state

Using the national share of employment as the benchmark, shuttle drivers and chauffeurs have a published location quotient of 0.70 in North Carolina in OEWS May 2025. Their state employment share is 0.70 times the national share. The state estimate is 5,520 jobs, 2.2% of the national employment estimate for this occupation. It represents 1.12 jobs per thousand jobs in the state's OEWS employment universe. The comparison describes where existing employment is concentrated, not current hiring or future growth.

OEWS May 2025 · BLS OEWS

OEWS employment estimates describe covered wage-and-salary jobs and exclude self-employed workers; location quotients do not measure vacancies or worker demand.

Private education and health services has the largest positive weighted contribution

The positive weighted contributions in North Carolina are concentrated in Private education and health services: it accounts for 75.9% across the leading industry groups examined in January to March 2026, with its own employment changing +4.1% year over year. The calculation weights industry groups by their shares of this occupation's national industry mix; the examined groups cover 97.0% of the mix. This describes an employment-growth proxy, not occupation jobs created.

January to March 2026 · BLS QCEW

Published median pay is below the U.S. median

The OEWS May 2025 estimates put median annual pay for shuttle drivers and chauffeurs at $31,980 in North Carolina and $37,290 nationally. The state median is 14.2% lower. Living costs are not included in this comparison, and individual workers' pay varies.

OEWS May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Industry measures describe the industries associated with this occupation. They are not direct occupation employment, current openings or a state-level Job Market Health score. Findings describe published data and do not establish causes. Methodology

Employment trends

Year-over-year change in the weighted industries. The U.S. line is the latest-quarter benchmark because a comparable national quarterly history is not published here.

Latest published values
  • North Carolina · 2026 Q1+1.4%
  • U.S. · latest-quarter benchmark+0.2%

The chart will load automatically. Published values remain available in this report.

View every published value
Quarterly North Carolina industry employment changes and coverage
QuarterNorth CarolinaCoverage
2024 Q2+1.9%100%
2024 Q3+1.7%100%
2024 Q4+0.9%100%
2025 Q1+1.1%99.92%
2025 Q2+1.2%100%
2025 Q3+1.3%100%
2025 Q4+1.4%100%
2026 Q1+1.4%99.92%

How to read this chart

State trend and national reference

The solid line follows North Carolina’s published year-over-year industry employment changes by quarter. The dashed U.S. line is a latest-quarter reference, not a second time series.

Published quarters
8
Earliest quarter
2024 Q2
Latest quarter
2026 Q1
U.S. benchmark
+0.2%

Quarters with no published value are omitted rather than interpolated.

Industry context

Where Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs Work

The occupation mix determines which North Carolina industries are weighted into this view.

Industries weighted into the North Carolina Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs context
Industry groupOccupation mixEmployment changeEstablishmentsAvg. weekly industry wage
Trade, transportation, and utilities48.6%+0.2%60,190$1,200
Private education and health services27.4%+4.1%42,768$1,288
Other services8.1%+1.4%29,500$999
State and local5.7%-1.1%6,790$1,254
Leisure and hospitality3.9%+2.2%32,379$541
Professional and business services3.3%+1.1%90,970$2,041

Which industries are growing?

4 weighted industries are growing

Only weighted industries with a published positive North Carolina employment change are listed.

  • Private education and health services+4.1%
  • Leisure and hospitality+2.2%
  • Other services+1.4%
  • Professional and business services+1.1%

The remaining weighted industries published a flat or negative change in January to March 2026.

Current North Carolina context

Current North Carolina Market Signals

Statewide indicators for all occupations in North Carolina. They are not Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs demand and are not part of the Job Market Health score.

Statewide job postings

Indeed job postings · North Carolina

Recent hiring-demand context · separate from the health score

112.3Postings index · February 1, 2020 = 100Observation: Oct 23, 2026
+12.3%Versus the February 2020 baseline
-0.8%Change over about four weeksSep 25, 2026 to Oct 23, 2026

Total postings index (seasonally adjusted) by observation date · baseline 100

The chart will load automatically. Published values remain available in this report.

View values: Indeed postings index
Indeed postings index
Observation dateIndex (Feb 2020 = 100)
Jul 24, 2026109.12
Jul 31, 2026108.76
Aug 7, 2026108.45
Aug 14, 2026108.49
Aug 21, 2026108.83
Aug 28, 2026109.76
Sep 4, 2026110.96
Sep 11, 2026111.82
Sep 18, 2026112.35
Sep 25, 2026113.18
Oct 2, 2026113.24
Oct 9, 2026113.36
Oct 16, 2026112.22
Oct 23, 2026112.30

This is statewide demand across all occupations, not demand for this specific job. Postings are not a count of vacancies or hires, and Indeed does not cover the entire labor market.

Source: Indeed Hiring Lab · CC BY 4.0. Seven-day average, seasonally adjusted; publisher refreshes weekly and may revise history. Retrieved Nov 1, 2026 · saved source copy. JobMarketHealth calculates the displayed changes and samples weekly observations for the chart.

Explore states and career fields · Methodology and limits

Statewide layoff notices

Statewide WARN notices

North Carolina statewide

15 notices in this source

Notice dates from Aug 5, 2026 to Nov 2, 2026 (UTC), a rolling 90-calendar-day period.

What this means: This is the number of WARN notices with notice dates in this period in North Carolina’s official statewide list. It is a statewide count only, and does not identify any employer.

Notices describe planned workforce changes, not confirmed job losses. Notices may be amended or withdrawn. This statewide context is not occupation-specific and does not affect the Job Market Health score. WARN covers qualifying large layoffs and closures under applicable law, not all layoffs, and thresholds vary by state.

North Carolina Department of Commerce About WARN data

Source last checked

Career context

Related roles from the occupation’s published O*NET profile.

Questions answered by this release

Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in North Carolina FAQs

Each answer is limited to what QCEW 2026 Q1 actually publishes for this state.

Is employment growing for Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in North Carolina?

The available QCEW measure is not direct occupation employment. Employment across the North Carolina industries weighted to Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs changed +1.4% year over year in January to March 2026, compared with +0.2% nationwide.

Are wages for Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs rising in North Carolina?

QCEW does not publish pay for Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in this view. Average weekly wages across the weighted industries changed +1.9% year over year; that must not be read as an occupation salary change.

How complete is this North Carolina industry view?

The three core state trends each meet the site’s coverage floor; the minimum published coverage is 99.92% of the occupation’s industry mix.

Does this page show current Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs openings?

No. QCEW measures industry employment, establishments and wages. Any postings, news or WARN figures shown here are statewide context and are not occupation-specific openings.

Methodology & sourcesQCEW 2026 Q1 · coverage 99.92% · full evidence record

Methodology & Sources

Derived by JobMarketHealth from BLS QCEW + published occupation industry mix. This is occupation-weighted industry context, not direct occupation employment and not a count of current job openings.

Occupation
Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs
SOC code
53-3053
State
North Carolina
QCEW release label
QCEW 2026 Q1
Data period
2026 Q1
State industry employment, year over year
+1.4%State data coverage 99.92%
U.S. benchmark, year over year
+0.2%
Difference from U.S. benchmark
+1.2 percentage pointsPercentage-point gaps use the original published values and are rounded once; subtracting the rounded percentages can give a slightly different result.
Establishments, year over year
+6.4%State data coverage 99.92%
Average weekly industry wage, year over year
+1.9%State data coverage 99.92%
Industry mix vintage
EP-2025-2035
BLS publication date
Aug 28, 2026
Source verification
Verified against the committed source snapshotVerified Sep 17, 2026
Canonical record URL
https://jobmarkethealth.com/occupations/shuttle-drivers-and-chauffeurs/north-carolina#evidence-record
Derived by
JobMarketHealth from BLS QCEW + published occupation industry mix

Weighted industry conditions are not direct occupation employment, occupation wages, current openings or a state-level Job Market Health score. No causal explanation is inferred.

Shuttle drivers and chauffeurs in other states