The Nebraska Department of Labor provides salary data for the cosmetology field. While the 2013 median cosmetologist salary in Nebraska was $21,356, those with experience earned $29,442 a year on average. Professionals new to the workforce made an average of $17,067 a year.
Cosmetologist Salaries in Nebraska’s Economic Regions
Although the entry-level cosmetologist salaries were fairly similar throughout Nebraska, there was a $9,660 difference between the average salaries of experienced professionals in different economic regions of the state. Cosmetologists employed in the Omaha Consortium had the highest salaries at all levels of experience:
Since customers frequently leave tips of 10-25%, the actual take home pay of these professionals is typically greater than reported here.
Job Projections for the Cosmetology Field Throughout Nebraska
The field of cosmetology is expected to grow by 1.1% a year in Nebraska in the ten year period ending in 2020. This is 22.2% greater than the expected growth for occupations as a whole in this state. The growth of cosmetology in Nebraska includes hairdressers, hairstylists, and manicurists.
The number of jobs in the economic regions is expected to increase by 0.9% to 1.3% depending on the region. The highest level of job growth is expected in the Omaha Consortium.
Overall, 514 jobs will be created throughout Nebraska during this ten year period. Nearly 70% of them will be concentrated in two regions with the following growth:
- Omaha Consortium – 2%
- Central – 6%
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics provides a detailed analysis of cosmetology salary percentiles in Nebraska’s key regions as of 2013:
In addition, the Bureau of Labor Statistics provides a separate set of salary data for manicurists and pedicurists in Nebraska. Although cosmetologists are trained to function as hair and nail professionals, separate licensed professionals generally work as nail technicians in salons: