Career
Labor relations specialists
Work between employers and unions to settle how people work.
$95,420
Median pay
+2.1%
Job growth, 2025–35
4,800
Openings a year
Bachelor's degree
Typical education
4 years
Typical time after high school
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Negotiate collective bargaining agreements.
- Investigate and evaluate union complaints or arguments to determine viability.
- Propose resolutions for collective bargaining or other labor or contract negotiations.
- Draft contract proposals or counter-proposals for collective bargaining or other labor negotiations.
- Interpret contractual agreements for employers and employees engaged in collective bargaining or other labor relations processes.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on persuasion & leadership, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Negotiate collective bargaining agreements.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Active Listening, Speaking, Negotiation, Writing.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $95,420 a year and 4,800 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Human ResourcesSee the degree →
- Dispute ResolutionCIP 30.2801
- Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, GeneralCIP 52.1001
- Labor and Industrial RelationsCIP 52.1002
- Labor StudiesCIP 52.1004
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators$75,530 · +4.7%
- Equal Opportunity Representatives and Officers
- Human Resources Managers$149,280 · +5.5%
- Human Resources Specialists$75,940 · +6.4%
- Compensation, Benefits, and Job Analysis Specialists$78,210 · +6.0%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.