Skip to content
TryHired.
Role hub · Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators

Arbitrator: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Nov 2, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of arbitrators earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$75,530
Hourly
$36.31
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Arbitrators facilitate negotiation and conflict resolution through dialogue. The median pay is $75,530 a year ($36.31 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is a first professional degree (37% of workers surveyed by O*NET).

Median pay
$75,530
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
9,210
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 5 of 5
extensive preparation
Most common education
First Professional Degree - awarded for completion of a program that: requires at least 2 years of college work before entrance into the program, includes a total of at least 6 academic years of work to complete, and provides all remaining academic requirements to begin practice in a profession.
37% of workers

Data Government data groups this job as Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators (O*NET-SOC 23-1022.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

Key facts

Arbitrators at a glance

  • Workers in the BLS occupation “Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators” in the United States earned a median annual wage of $75,530 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

  • In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for workers in the BLS occupation “Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators” in the United States.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS projects employment of workers in the BLS occupation “Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators” in the United States to grow 4.7% from 2025 to 2035, with about 300 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS estimated that 9,210 people were employed in the BLS occupation “Arbitrators, Mediators, and Conciliators” in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

Explore the role

Every page for Arbitrators

How to becomeArbitrator how to become

Education, training and the skills to build first.

Open →Free toolCheck your resume

Parsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.

Open →
The work

What arbitrators do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Prepare written opinions or decisions regarding cases.
  2. Apply relevant laws, regulations, policies, or precedents to reach conclusions.
  3. Conduct hearings to obtain information or evidence relative to disposition of claims.
  4. Determine extent of liability according to evidence, laws, or administrative or judicial precedents.
  5. Rule on exceptions, motions, or admissibility of evidence.
  6. Confer with disputants to clarify issues, identify underlying concerns, and develop an understanding of their respective needs and interests.
  7. Use mediation techniques to facilitate communication between disputants, to further parties' understanding of different perspectives, and to guide parties toward mutual agreement.
  8. Conduct initial meetings with disputants to outline the arbitration process, settle procedural matters, such as fees, or determine details, such as witness numbers or time requirements.
Where this career works

Industries that employ it

Data Share of all arbitrator jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).

  1. Professional, scientific, and technical services42.8% of all jobs in this occupation · +5.4% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $92,620
  2. Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals29.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +2.6% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $98,530
  3. Religious, grantmaking, civic, professional, and similar organizations4.0% of all jobs in this occupation · +8.3% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $57,290
  4. Social assistance3.7% of all jobs in this occupation · +14.1% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $68,460
  5. Educational services; state, local, and private3.2% of all jobs in this occupation · +1.3% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $118,000
  6. Insurance carriers and related activities2.5% of all jobs in this occupation · +7.9% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $70,720

Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.

Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

NegotiationcoreActive ListeningcoreWritingcoreReading ComprehensionSpeakingCritical ThinkingActive LearningSocial PerceptivenessPersuasion

Knowledge areas: English Language, Law and Government, Personnel and Human Resources, Administration and Management.

Tools and technology

Software arbitrators use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • Microsoft ExcelSpreadsheet softwareIn demand
  • Microsoft Office softwareOffice suite softwareIn demand
  • Microsoft OutlookElectronic mail softwareIn demand
  • Microsoft WordWord processing softwareIn demand
  • Microsoft AccessData base user interface and query softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft PowerPointPresentation softwareHot technology
  • Microsoft SharePointDocument management softwareHot technology
  • Oracle PeopleSoftEnterprise resource planning ERP softwareHot technology
  • SAP softwareEnterprise resource planning ERP softwareHot technology
  • Salesforce softwareCustomer relationship management CRM softwareHot technology
  • Scheduling softwareCalendar and scheduling software
  • Web browser softwareInternet browser software

Also called: Alternative Dispute Resolution Coordinator (ADR Coordinator), Arbiter, Divorce Mediator, Family Mediator, Federal Mediator.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).

How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.