A Tale of Two Jobs

I found the following job comparison in October's issue of Bicycling magazine:

• Minimum starting salary for a Protour rider: $33,163
• Typical starting salary for an NBA mascot: $45,163

A few thoughts:

1. Seems a bit like apples and oranges to compare these two -- one is a minimum while the other sounds like an average.

2. I'm surprised that the Protour amount is so low. These guys are at the peak of their sport and all they get is $33k! Yikes! Then again, they probably get all the gear free. And I'm sure much of their food and housing expenses are covered -- at least if they live in a team house for any time of the year.

3. $45k to start as an NBA mascot, huh? Not bad. I wonder what the top level is -- maybe $70k or $80k? There are worse ways to make a living.

4. And, I'm sure, neither of these requires a college education. If you wanted to do either of them, you could start right out of high school (or before), adding a few extra years of income to your career (and avoiding some costly education bills.)

5. That said, there are VERY FEW of these spots available, so I wouldn't forego school in hopes that I was going to be the next mascot for the Pistons. ;-)

Comments

[Shayan]

Keep in mind that the Protour riders can (and most likely do) supplement their salaries with sponsorships. I'm not sure how many NBA mascots get sponsors ;)

[Minimum Wage]

Is this a great country or what?