Reddit user u/BigPlunk asked the Reddit community: "What is your job, and how much do you get paid?"
Their responses were super informative, and honestly left me dumbfounded. I had no idea how much people earned for specific professions, and it's all pretty eye-opening.
So, here's the amount of money people earn at their jobs that just might surprise (or infuriate) you:
1. "I am a paraprofessional in an elementary school. I spend most of my time in a self-contained K-5 classroom of mostly 'non-verbal' autistic students. Occasionally, I float to other classrooms, and I make around $20,000 a year. I love my job, but the pay is insulting."
2. "I'm a nuclear plant electrician, and I make $50 an hour (roughly $130,000-$150,000 a year depending on the overtime and bonuses). I'm moving into an operations role in the plant soon."
3. "I'm a Wendy’s crew member. I make $9 normal hours, and $10 when I close. If I become an ambassador, I could make $12 an hour, but that’s a lot of work. I usually work the grill, and they say I’m the best at it (not including the managers and one of the ambassadors)."
4. "I'm an EMT/security guard for a casino and graveyard — I make $18 an hour. I've seen things you wouldn't believe."
5. "I work in New York City as a roll-off dumpster driver. I make $40 an hour in January, and I get medical and pension paid 100% by my employer. There’s guaranteed overtime, too, so I gross around $130,000 including other perks."
6. "I do research with brain cells, HIV, cocaine, and fentanyl. I make $29,500 a year, aka $14 an hour. Yes, I'm sad that this is what a master's degree got me."
7. "I just started a new job as a software engineer with $384,000 total comp. To be honest, I don’t really know what to do with most of my money besides caring for my aging parents and saving it. I feel very lucky and privileged."
8. "I'm a street magician. It depends on the location and season — those are the two biggest factors. I can make anywhere from $300-$3,000 a week."
9. "I’m a line cook and manager for a busy restaurant, and I get paid $19 an hour (plus tip share and profit share from two recipes of mine on the menu)."
—Anonymous
10. "I'm a senior hardware engineer for a tech company. Everything said and done, I make about $270,000 a year (including benefits)."
11. "I work in a steel mill that heats steel bars to a certain hardness. I get paid $18 an hour, and so far, we haven’t had anyone die for a year (that’s a record)."
12. "I'm a nightclub director in Las Vegas. I make $100,000 base, $100,000 tip pool, and a $150,000 performance bonus (there are other perks, too)."
13. "I'm an aircraft cleaner. I make $17 an hour, plus free flights :D. It’s a pretty fun job — I enjoy it."
14. "I make sliding wardrobe doors. I measure and cut all of the aluminum and wood-panelling, and assemble them (some are mirrored). I make $26 an hour."
15. "I'm a freelance video editor, and make $500-$600 a day. During a 'bad' year, I make $40,000 to $50,000 a year. During a 'great' year, I make $95,000 to $110,000."
16. "I'm a licensed nursing assistant for a home care agency, and make $13.50 an hour. It's embarrassingly underpaid, but the girl I take care of is so incredibly sweet (18F with cerebral palsy, non-verbal). Being able to help her and her family out means more to me than my actual paycheck."
17. "I make $22 an hour as a massage therapist/esthetician, and $100 an hour working for myself."
18. "I'm a teacher in Zimbabwe. I make $150 (USD) per month. $150 is not enough — we’re just living day by day."
19. "I'm a medical coder — I make $31 an hour, which is about $65,000 annually."
20. "I'm a custodian and make $24 an hour (a government/union job with benefits and pension)."
21. "I'm a professional video game bug tester/finder. I get paid depending on the amount and size of bugs I find (usually, it's $2,000 per bug). Last year, I made around $360,000."
22. "I'm an officer on a container ship. I work about six months out of the year, and I make about $120,000. For the most part, my job is looking out a window at some waves."
23. "I sell ads for Google. My base salary is $185,000, and I made $415,000 last year after my quarterly bonuses."
24. "I'm a construction manager, and make $120,000 a year plus bonuses and stock options. The total compensation package is pushing $200,000 a year, but a lot of that is in retirement savings."
25. "I fix iPhones and other Apple devices, and earn $16 an hour plus some commissions."
26. "I'm an ER tech — I basically perform moderately invasive procedures (including getting trained to insert midlines). I keep the ED cleaned and stocked, and make $15.43 an hour (and that's with a recent raise). It does not increase with additional education — I'll be looking elsewhere as soon as I finish my current classes."
27. "I'm a state marine biologist, and make $16.75 an hour (USD). It's not much, but I got stabbed by a stingray the other day, and that was neat."
28. And: "I'm a toddler-lead teacher — I just got a raise from $9.65 (minimum wage) to $10.50, but not because I’m valued. It's because we’re so severely under-staffed, and everyone who walks through walks right back out once they learn how low the wage is. I don’t blame them one bit."
Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.