SOC 33-9092 · Protective Service Occupations · May 2025

How much do Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers make in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

In the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC is $27,890. The 10th percentile is $25,810 and the 90th percentile is $34,520. Employment is 2,060.

Median annual wage

$27,890

10th percentile
$25,810
25th percentile
$27,260
Median
$27,890
75th percentile
$32,440
90th percentile
$34,520
Mean
$29,920

Annual wage from the May 2025 OEWS estimates.

Portrait of a woman police officer in uniform
A police officer during a United Nations visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, May 2012. Photograph by Myriam Asmani, MONUSCO. Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0

Percentile spread

For Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers, the published 10th percentile is $25,810 and the 90th percentile is $34,520. The difference is $8,710, which is 31.2% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $27,260 to the 75th at $32,440, covers $5,180.

The mean annual wage is $29,920, which sits above the median of $27,890. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC median is 16.9% lower than the national median of $33,580 for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers. In 2024 national prices the local median is $28,476, which is 15.2% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 7.2% lower than the Virginia median of $30,070.

Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC covers more than one state. The state comparison uses Virginia, the primary state on the BLS area record.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC is 97.941, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $27,890 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers at $28,476 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

14 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers. Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC ranks 13th of 15 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

  • Richmond, VA is 70 miles away, with a median of $28,590. That median is 2.5% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $29,216, against $28,476 here.
  • Greenville, NC is 102 miles away, with a median of $28,930 and employment of 50. That median is 3.7% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $32,726, against $28,476 here.
  • Raleigh-Cary, NC is 137 miles away, with a median of $27,380 and employment of 990. That median is 1.8% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $27,894, against $28,476 here.

Employment share

Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers accounts for 0.27% of wage-and-salary employment in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC (2,060 of 763,060). Nationally the occupation is 0.10% of employment (157,550 of 155,495,730). The local share is 2.66 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.

Highest-paying jobs in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC · Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers by metro · How to read these percentiles · Median and mean · When a wage is not published · How the figures are made · Compare this wage after prices

Questions this page answers

How much do Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers make in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC?

In the May 2025 OEWS estimates, released May 15, 2026, the median annual wage for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC is $27,890. The 10th percentile is $25,810 and the 90th percentile is $34,520. Employment is 2,060.

How does that compare with the national median for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers?

The local median is 16.9% lower than the national median of $33,580.

What is Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers pay in Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC after local prices?

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC is 97.941, with the United States at 100. In those national prices, the May 2025 median of $27,890 is $28,476. The wage is May 2025 and the parity is 2024.

How does Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC compare with nearby metros for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers?

Richmond, VA is the closest metropolitan area within 200 miles with a published annual median, 70 miles away, at $28,590. Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, VA-NC ranks 13th of 15 metros within 200 miles on that median. Distances use Census Bureau internal points.