Best degree programs for Labor Relations Specialists, ranked by enrollment
4 college programs and 559 schools train Labor Relations Specialists. Compare graduates per year, cost and pay, $95,420 median wage, 64,810 U.S. jobs. Federal data.
4 college programs at 559 schools train labor relations specialists, graduating 20,135 people a year (IPEDS completions). The largest is Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, General. The job pays a median of $95,420 (BLS OEWS May 2025).
About labor relations specialists
Resolve disputes between workers and managers, negotiate collective bargaining agreements, or coordinate grievance procedures to handle employee complaints.
Fields of study that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level, the tier our program pages are built on. Numbers are graduates per year.
4 degree programs that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are College Scorecard figures for people who finished the program, reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. That is a different measurement from the occupation-wide wages further down this page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 52.1001 | 18,033 | 89.6% | 518 | $49,084 | $26,536 |
| 2 | CIP 52.1002 | 1,363 | 6.8% | 26 | $49,084 | $26,536 |
| 3 | Dispute Resolutionmain feeder CIP 30.2801 | 602 | 3.0% | 33 | $41,622 | $21,250 |
| 4 | CIP 52.1004 | 137 | 0.7% | 13 | $49,084 | $26,536 |
Top 50 schools by graduates into this job
Counting every feeder program a school offers, not just its largest one.
What labor relations specialists earn
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
Top-paying states
Top-paying metro areas
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Where the jobs are, state by state
Pick a state for in-state pay, the schools there, and the programs they run.
| State | Median pay | Jobs | Concentration | Schools | Graduates / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | $97,070 | 790 | 0.59× | 16 | 2,078 |
| Utah | $61,190 | 250 | 0.34× | 5 | 1,604 |
| Minnesota | $100,760 | 1,710 | 1.39× | 18 | 1,179 |
| New York | $100,500 | 6,860 | 1.70× | 37 | 1,086 |
| New Hampshiremoderate | $84,780 | 150 | 0.53× | 4 | 985 |
| Illinois | $104,180 | 3,670 | 1.44× | 31 | 912 |
| Pennsylvania | $91,320 | 3,470 | 1.37× | 35 | 861 |
| California | $105,810 | 8,830 | 1.16× | 21 | 773 |
| Ohio | $80,150 | 4,100 | 1.77× | 34 | 761 |
| Maryland | $94,030 | 890 | 0.77× | 7 | 727 |
| Texas | $79,640 | 2,590 | 0.44× | 26 | 685 |
| Georgia | $81,480 | 920 | 0.45× | 29 | 665 |
| Florida | $81,700 | 1,970 | 0.47× | 14 | 664 |
| West Virginia | $88,020 | 420 | 1.43× | 5 | 594 |
| Michigan | $73,760 | 2,430 | 1.33× | 21 | 590 |
| Indiana | $77,190 | 2,600 | 1.95× | 14 | 566 |
| New Jersey | $118,370 | 3,700 | 2.07× | 10 | 533 |
| Wisconsin | $95,750 | 1,690 | 1.38× | 26 | 436 |
| Alabama | $48,120 | 590 | 0.67× | 10 | 360 |
| Colorado | $87,150 | 470 | 0.39× | 9 | 347 |
| Iowa | $79,140 | 610 | 0.95× | 13 | 285 |
| Massachusetts | $111,260 | 1,660 | 1.10× | 14 | 273 |
| Missouri | $93,840 | 1,190 | 0.97× | 10 | 247 |
| District of Columbia | $115,600 | 160 | 0.55× | 7 | 237 |
| Idahomoderate | $93,110 | 190 | 0.53× | 3 | 203 |
| South Carolina | $78,050 | 340 | 0.36× | 7 | 188 |
| Virginia | $98,730 | 990 | 0.58× | 10 | 179 |
| Tennessee | $76,930 | 560 | 0.41× | 11 | 178 |
| North Carolina | $86,270 | 690 | 0.33× | 8 | 177 |
| Connecticut | $79,620 | 1,240 | 1.76× | 5 | 176 |
| Nebraskamoderate | $81,910 | 270 | 0.64× | 4 | 136 |
| Delawaremoderate | $97,390 | 280 | 1.36× | 3 | 133 |
| Washington | $104,100 | 2,760 | 1.86× | 9 | 129 |
| Kansas | $82,750 | 370 | 0.61× | 8 | 110 |
| Kentucky | $73,550 | 640 | 0.76× | 6 | 69 |
| Rhode Islandmoderate | $88,030 | 410 | 1.95× | 4 | 67 |
| Oregon | $80,490 | 1,210 | 1.48× | 5 | 65 |
| Oklahoma | $62,400 | 250 | 0.35× | 8 | 63 |
| Mississippimoderate | $79,360 | 200 | 0.41× | 3 | 51 |
| Louisianamoderate | $78,110 | 170 | 0.20× | 4 | 47 |
| Wyominglimited | $87,310 | 60 | 0.49× | 2 | 46 |
| Hawaiilimited | $77,310 | 510 | 1.94× | 2 | 39 |
| Vermontlimited | $85,870 | 120 | 0.94× | 1 | 31 |
| Alaskalimited | $77,870 | 380 | 2.77× | 1 | 18 |
| North Dakotamoderate | $101,220 | 90 | 0.51× | 4 | 18 |
| Mainemoderate | $96,680 | 210 | 0.80× | 4 | 17 |
| Arkansasmoderate | $62,070 | 180 | 0.34× | 4 | 15 |
| South Dakotamoderate | $57,900 | 100 | 0.53× | 3 | 12 |
| Montanalimited | $70,360 | 160 | 0.74× | 1 | 8 |
| Nevadalimited | $77,240 | 610 | 0.95× | 1 | 6 |
Skills and tools
From O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupational database. Importance is a 1 to 5 scale.
What they do day to day
- 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.
- Prepare evidence for disciplinary hearings, including preparing witnesses to testify.
- Mediate discussions between employer and employee representatives in attempt to reconcile differences.
- Review employer practices or employee data to ensure compliance with contracts on matters such as wages, hours, or conditions of employment.
Skills
- Active Listening4.4
- Speaking4.3
- Reading Comprehension4.0
- Critical Thinking4.0
- Writing4.0
- Active Learning3.5
- Monitoring3.4
- Learning Strategies3.0
Knowledge areas
- Personnel and Human Resources4.0
- English Language3.7
- Law and Government3.6
- Administration and Management3.1
- Education and Training2.9
- Customer and Personal Service2.7
Abilities
- Oral Expression4.3
- Oral Comprehension4.1
- Problem Sensitivity4.0
- Written Comprehension4.0
- Written Expression4.0
- Deductive Reasoning3.8
Core activities
- Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others4.5
- Getting Information4.5
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems4.3
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships4.3
- Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates4.1
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards4.0
Tools and technology
hotmarks an O*NET hot technologyHow to get in
How to become a Labor Relations Specialist
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- Work experience needed
- Less than 5 years
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 4 majors mapped to Labor Relations Specialists4 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 30.2801Dispute Resolution
- 52.1001Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, General
- 52.1002Labor and Industrial Relations
- 52.1004Labor Studies
Related careers
Jobs O*NET identifies as close to this one, with their own pay and outlook.
Common questions
What degree do you need to become a Labor Relations Specialist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Human Resources Management/Personnel Administration, General, which awarded 18,033 degrees in 2024-25, 89.6% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Labor Relations Specialist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Human Resources Management and Services, Dispute Resolution. Together they graduate about 20,135 people a year.
How much do labor relations specialists earn?+
The median is $95,420 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). The middle range runs from $50,490 at the 10th percentile to $156,180 at the 90th. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for labor relations specialists growing?+
BLS projects a -0.1% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, little or no change, with roughly 5,100 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career?+
559 institutions reported graduates from at least one of the 4 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do labor relations specialists work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Business Agent, Labor Specialist, Business Representative, Labor Relations Specialist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 13-1075.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024-25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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