Compared with the local labor market
Security Guard 2 pay vs. Tennessee
Across all employers in Tennessee, the median wage for Security Guards — about 27,690 people — is $36,000. Environment and Conservation pays a median base salary of $34,752 for this role, 3% below that figure — about the 44th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where Environment and Conservation sits in the local pay range
$29,310
$30,850
$36,000
$40,620
$51,680
Environment and Conservation median · $34,752
The bar is the range of annual wages for Security Guards across every employer in Tennessee, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Environment and Conservation’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Security Guards — about 1,283,470 people — is $38,020. Environment and Conservation’s median base salary is 9% below that national figure, about the 24th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
$30,210
$35,210
$38,020
$46,200
$58,840
Environment and Conservation median · $34,752
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Tennessee range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Environment and Conservation is $34,752, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare departments
This role across Tennessee
Security Guard 2 is held in 3 Tennessee departments. In Environment and Conservation, the median of $34,752 ranks #3 of 3.
Highest-paying departments for this role
Median total compensation for the Security Guard 2 role in other Tennesseedepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.
Compare jurisdictions
Security Guard beyond Tennessee
This role is reported in 15 jurisdictions. In Tennessee, the median of $36,264 ranks #8 of 15. See Security Guard across all of Tennessee →
Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role
Median total compensation for comparable Security Guardroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.