Is Administrative & Office Support a Good Job Market in Salt Lake City-Murray, UT?

Executive Verdict

Market rating: competitive | Confidence: High

Salt Lake City-Murray is still a workable market for Administrative & Office Support, but it is not an easy one. The metro unemployment rate was 3.6% in June 2026, total nonfarm employment was up 2.7291% year over year, and professional and business services employment was up 6.0668% year over year, so the local economy is still generating office-related demand around growing employers.[20][33][19] But Utah-wide Administrative & Office Support employment was essentially flat year over year and active postings were down 5.3% in July 2026, which points to selective hiring rather than broad category expansion.[2][3] There were more than 300 postings across more than 150 companies over the last 90 days, yet most sampled openings skew entry-level and on-site.[4][10][9]

Best positioned: An on-site candidate who can show customer-facing admin support, strong computer literacy, and fast workflow handling has the best odds right now, especially with larger employers and institutions.[23][9][11]

Main caution: Do not mistake a healthy local economy for easy hiring in this category; Utah openings are down 5.3% year over year and the long-term outlook for basic administrative support is little or no growth, with many openings driven by replacement needs.[3][34]

What Changed Recently

• Salt Lake professional and business services employment reached 155.6 thousand in June 2026 and was up 6.0668% year over year, faster than the metro's 2.7291% total nonfarm growth.[19][33]: More office work is being created around expanding employers, but job seekers still need role-specific fit because category-level admin growth is flatter than the broader business backdrop.[2][3]
• Utah Administrative & Office Support employment was essentially flat year over year in July 2026, and active postings were down 5.3% year over year.[2][3]: This is the clearest sign that the market is still hiring, but not widening. You are competing for replacement openings more than expansion openings.
• The recent local sample shows more than 300 postings across more than 150 companies, and hiring is fragmented rather than dominated by one employer.[4][6]: A broad search strategy works better than waiting for one marquee company. Volume exists, but it is spread across many employers and role types.
• Nationally, the job-openings rate was 4.4% in June 2026, while the quits rate was 2% and down 4.7619% year over year.[18][38]: Employers are still posting jobs, but workers are switching less often, which usually means fewer easy backfill openings and more competition for stable support roles.
• Early-August local postings from Perry Homes Utah, Mount Vernon Academy, and the University of Utah show the market did not shut off after July closed.[30][31]: If you are applying now, there is still live demand beyond the month-end snapshot, especially in education, institutional administration, and office coordination.

What This Means for You

Entry-Level Candidates

Difficulty: Moderate. There are real openings, but many applicants can meet the baseline requirements.

Best target: Front-desk, coordinator, and general administrative roles where service, follow-through, and organization matter as much as exact prior title match.

Biggest mistake: Applying with a generic resume that reads like pure clerical support when the role is really customer-facing and workflow-heavy.

Next step: Build one resume version for front-desk/service roles and one for back-office admin, then apply to both tracks in parallel.

Mid-Career Candidates

Difficulty: Moderate to high. Pay improves, but the number of stronger roles is thinner than the number of basic admin openings.

Best target: Executive assistant, office coordinator, higher-ed administration, and team-lead paths where discretion and process ownership matter.

Biggest mistake: Competing for entry-level jobs on experience alone instead of repositioning yourself as someone who improves workflow, communication, and reporting.

Next step: Package your experience around calendar ownership, reporting, vendor coordination, meeting operations, and confidential support.

Career Switchers

Difficulty: Moderate if you come from retail, hospitality, education support, or customer service.

Best target: Client-facing coordination, front-office administration, and structured support roles where your service background transfers cleanly.

Biggest mistake: Assuming hiring managers will connect the dots for you between service work and administrative work.

Next step: Translate your past work into admin language: scheduling, documentation, intake, issue resolution, multitasking, and system use.

Salary Reality

stable pay slow advancement

Observed pay data for the metro is decent but not rich. BLS put the Salt Lake City-Murray office and administrative support occupational mean at $23.53 an hour in May 2024, while Murray City's public pay schedule showed Office Administrator I starting at $18.99 an hour and Office Administrator II topping out at $30.59 an hour.[1][39] More current directional signals are mixed: the recent local posting sample centers on about $17 to $20 / hour for hourly jobs and about $55k to $68k for salaried roles, Robert Half puts Administrative Assistants at $45,360 to $56,970 with a $50,220 midpoint locally, and MIT estimates a typical annual salary of $48,930 for the metro.[22][8][14][16]

In a metro with a cost-of-living index of 105.0, this is workable pay but not lavish, especially for entry-level candidates starting in the high teens per hour.[40][39]

The tradeoff is access versus upside: most openings skew entry-level and on-site, and the long-run category outlook is more replacement-driven than growth-driven.[10][9][34]

Best-paying path: The strongest pay signals sit in executive assistant and supervisory tracks. Robert Half lists local Executive Assistant midpoint pay at $75,870, and Utah's First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers show a median of $66,900 with a $44,720 to $105,990 range.[14][28]

Caution: Do not overread the top end. High figures usually reflect executive assistant or supervisory slots, while general Administrative Assistant estimates still range from $37.5K to $60K on one salary aggregator and $45,360 to $56,970 in Robert Half's local guide.[15][14]

Where the Opportunities Are Concentrated

Real opportunities are not evenly distributed across classic corporate assistant roles. In the recent local posting sample, food & beverage accounts for about 45% of Administrative & Office Support ads, healthcare about 20%, hospitality about 15%, education about 5%, and construction about 5%.[7] That means many local "admin" jobs are really customer-facing, transaction-heavy, or site-based support roles rather than pure calendar-and-travel assistant work. Recent postings back that up. Murray and Salt Lake openings included Perry Homes Utah, Mount Vernon Academy, the University of Utah, and a Murray healthcare office, which points to demand in institutional administration, front-desk communication, and office coordination more than in a narrow executive-support lane.[30][31][37] Higher-paying executive assistant or supervisor paths do exist, but they are a smaller slice of the market because the recent sample is heavily entry-level.[10][14][28]

• Large-employer, on-site clerical support (high): About 40% of sampled postings come from large employers, about 85% are on-site, and about 75% are entry-level, so the highest-volume path is structured, in-person support work rather than remote executive support.[23][9][10]
• Healthcare and education admin coordination (moderate): Healthcare makes up about 20% of the local posting mix and education about 5%; recent openings included a Murray healthcare office, Mount Vernon Academy, and the University of Utah.[7][37][30][31]
• Executive assistant and supervisory track (limited): This is where pay improves, but it is thinner. Local Executive Assistant midpoint pay is $75,870 and Utah office-support supervisors show a $66,900 median, yet senior openings are scarce in the recent sample.[14][28][10]

Where to focus: Start with on-site coordinator, administrative assistant, and front-desk roles inside larger employers and institutions, then use that base to move toward executive assistant or supervisor work.

Skills and Credentials Worth Pursuing

• Customer service (table stakes): Customer service appears in about 25% of local postings, and a recent Murray school role centered on answering calls, giving tours, and being the main point of contact.[11][30]
• Computer literacy and digital fluency (table stakes): Computer literacy appears in about 20% of local postings, and Robert Half says employers value administrative candidates who combine service excellence with digital fluency.[11][24]
• Front-desk communication and stakeholder coordination (differentiator): Recent local hiring in education and higher education points to roles that sit at the center of calls, visitors, scheduling, and internal coordination rather than isolated clerical work.[30][31]
• Spreadsheet, database, and reporting skills (premium): Administrative analyst-style work is emerging as a bridge role that combines support duties with spreadsheets, databases, and analysis tasks.[27]
• Time management and workflow ownership (differentiator): Time management appears in about 20% of local postings, and broader admin role design is shifting toward workflow ownership and judgment-heavy coordination.[11][29]
• Certified Administrative Professional (CAP) (differentiator): Robert Half highlights the IAAP Certified Administrative Professional credential as a more relevant way to validate modern software mastery and organizational skill.[25]
• AI and technology certifications (premium): AI and technology certifications are becoming more relevant for administrative professionals, and broader research points to a 56% wage premium for workers with AI skills.[25][32]

Adjacent Roles to Consider

• Client Relations Coordinator (both): A recent Murray posting shows employers value coordination plus customer contact, which overlaps strongly with many administrative resumes.[13]
• Healthcare front-office coordinator (both): A Murray healthcare opening blended receptionist, front office, and administrative assistant duties, showing a real local bridge into healthcare-support administration.[12]
• Administrative Analyst (pivot): Administrative analyst-style roles combine support work with spreadsheets, databases, and reporting, making them a natural next step for strong admins.[27]
• First-Line Supervisor of Office and Administrative Support Workers (pivot): This is the clearest pay-up path for experienced admins who already coach others or run office workflows; Utah's median is $66,900.[28]

30 / 60 / 90-Day Plan

First 30 Days

• Build three resume versions: front-desk/customer service, general administrative support, and executive/coordinator support. Mirror the local skill language around customer service, computer literacy, and time management.[11]
• Prioritize in-person roles first. About 85% of sampled openings are on-site, versus about 10% remote.[9]
• Set a realistic pay floor before you apply. Hourly roles center on about $17 to $20 / hour, and Robert Half's local Administrative Assistant range runs from $45,360 to $56,970.[22][14]
• Aim wide, not narrow. The market is fragmented across employers, and about 40% of sampled postings come from large employers.[6][23]

Days 31-60

• Create proof of digital fluency: one spreadsheet tracker, one scheduling workflow, and one AI-assisted document or meeting-prep example. That lines up with local computer-literacy demand and broader employer emphasis on digital fluency.[11][24]
• If you want to move above basic admin, start CAP prep or a short AI/productivity certification rather than another generic office course.[25]
• Write sector-specific cover letter language for healthcare, education, hospitality, and food-service environments, since those sectors account for most of the local mix.[7]
• Refresh your search every week. The typical active posting has been open around 31 days, so stale applications age out quickly.[26]

Days 61-90

• If your admin assistant search stalls, expand into Client Relations Coordinator, healthcare front-office, Administrative Analyst, and office-support supervisor tracks.[13][12][27][28]
• Shift your story from task support to workflow ownership: meeting operations, intake systems, reporting, and cross-team coordination. That is where stronger mid-career roles are moving.[29]
• Push for salaried coordinator or executive-support tracks once you have traction; recent local salaried postings center on about $55k to $68k, above the typical hourly admin band.[8][22]
• Build references around reliability, discretion, and follow-through, because those traits matter more in a selective market than another generic skills list.

Methodology and Confidence

This July 2026 report was generated on August 10, 2026. Latest direct national data: August 2026. Latest direct Salt Lake City-Murray, UT data: August 2026.

Confidence: Overall confidence: High. Based on 15 direct local occupation data points and 25 total local evidence items with recent coverage.

Limitations

• The strongest metro-wide wage anchor for the broad office-support group is still the May 2024 BLS occupation estimate, so current pay should be read as a range built from several sources rather than one fresh government figure.[1]
• Where monthly metro-by-occupation data was not available, statewide Administrative & Office Support data from Revelio Public Labor Statistics was used as a proxy for Salt Lake City-Murray, so it may miss metro-specific swings.[2][3]
• The Callings.ai job database is a partial, deduplicated sample of online postings, so direction of demand, leading employer names, and skill patterns are more reliable here than exact counts or exact shares.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]
• Some local postings blur into healthcare front office or customer-coordination work, while medical billing and coding, payroll, warehouse clerks, and HR assistants belong in neighboring categories rather than this one.[12][13]
• Several pay references come from salary guides and aggregators rather than government wage surveys, so they are best used as directional benchmarks instead of a single market-clearing salary.[14][15][16]

References

1. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wages in Salt Lake City-Murray — May 2024 · 2025-07 · bls.gov
2. Reveliolabs. Employment — Revelio Public Labor Statistics (RPLS) · 2026-07 · reveliolabs.com
3. Reveliolabs. Job Openings — Revelio Public Labor Statistics (RPLS) · 2026-07 · reveliolabs.com
4. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
5. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
6. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
7. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
8. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
9. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
10. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
11. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
12. Jobs. Search Jobs in Utah | KSL.com · 2026-07 · jobs.ksl.com
13. Jobs. Search "Computer Jobs" | KSL.com · 2026-08 · jobs.ksl.com
14. Robert Half. Staffing, Recruitment & Job Search · 2026-01 · roberthalf.com
15. Levels. Levels - median_wage_annual · 2026-08 · levels.fyi
16. Livingwage. Living Wage Calculator - Living Wage Calculation for Salt Lake City-Murray, UT · 2026-08 · livingwage.mit.edu
17. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-07 · data.bls.gov
18. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-06 · data.bls.gov
19. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-06 · data.bls.gov
20. Stlouisfed. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis · 2026-07 · stlouisfed.org
21. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-04 · data.bls.gov
22. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
23. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
24. Robert Half. 2026 Administrative and Customer Support Salary Trends: The Skills and Roles Driving Growth · 2025-11 · roberthalf.com
25. Robert Half. Should you get an administrative certification? Here’s what you need to know · 2026-04 · roberthalf.com
26. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
27. Wowremoteteams. Data Analysts vs Administrative Analysts: Key Differences · 2026-07 · wowremoteteams.com
28. Rateorchard. First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers Salary in Utah (2025): $67k Median · 2025-12 · rateorchard.com
29. Northwestcareercollege. Will Artificial Intelligence Replace Business Administrative Assistants' Work | NCC · 2026-02 · northwestcareercollege.edu
30. Jobs. Search Jobs in Murray, Utah | KSL.com · 2026-08 · jobs.ksl.com
31. Jobs. Search Administrative Jobs | KSL.com · 2026-08 · jobs.ksl.com
32. Canaistealmyjob. 10 Administrative Tasks AI Is Replacing in 2026 – What's Gone for Good - Can AI Steal My Job · 2026-05 · canaistealmyjob.com
33. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-06 · data.bls.gov
34. Utah. Home | Utah.gov · 2025-08 · utah.gov
35. Reveliolabs. Mass-layoff Notices — Revelio Public Labor Statistics (RPLS) · 2026-07 · reveliolabs.com
36. Callings.ai. Callings.ai job-market aggregation · 2026-07 · callings.ai
37. Utahprofessionalgroup. Utah Professional Group · 2026-07 · utahprofessionalgroup.com
38. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Bureau of Labor Statistics Data · 2026-06 · data.bls.gov
39. Murray. Murray - entry_level_wage_hourly · 2025-07 · murray.utah.gov
40. Jobs. Cost of Living - Comparisons · 2026-08 · jobs.utah.gov

Live Openings in This Market

This report is published monthly; its companion page tracks the active Administrative & Office Support openings in Salt Lake City-Murray, UT from the live Callings.ai job index. Browse current Administrative & Office Support openings in Salt Lake City-Murray, UT.