Creative Occupation Wages in Buncombe County: 2020 Comparison Report

The Buncombe County Creative Occupations Earnings Table (2020) provides a comprehensive comparison of average hourly earnings (AHE) across more than 70 creative occupations. The report benchmarks local wages against both North Carolina and U.S. averages, highlighting disparities and strengths in Buncombe’s creative workforce.

Using EMSI labor market data, this table helps contextualize earnings for core creative roles—such as artists, musicians, designers, and media professionals—and evaluates how they stack up against the 2020 Buncombe County living wage:

• $15.50/hour without benefits
• $14.00/hour with employer-provided benefits

Key Insights:

Buncombe County’s creative AHEs lag behind:

• 14% lower than NC averages
• 22% lower than U.S. averages

Many core creative occupations (e.g., Craft Artists, Fine Artists, and Camera Operators) fell below the living wage threshold.

Some roles earned above average in Buncombe compared to state/nation:

• Web Developers, Public Relations Managers, and Musicians and Singers
• Others had significant wage gaps, including:
• Editors, Technical Writers, and Film/Video Editors (earning up to 50% less locally)

Context:

With Asheville’s Cost of Living Index at 106 (highest of all NC metros surveyed in 2020), these wage disparities raise important equity concerns—especially for creative workers in an increasingly unaffordable region.

This earnings table is a valuable tool for policymakers, workforce developers, and arts advocates aiming to improve pay equity and economic sustainability within the creative sector.

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