What does it cost to hire a social and community service manager in Worcester?

Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $77,500 median wage in the Worcester, MA area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $15,500 to $23,250 on the first year salary alone.

Is the talent for this role already in Worcester?

This is a job zone 4 occupation, which usually calls for a bachelor's degree, and 34.1% of Worcester adults hold one or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501). That is a workable pool, though the search will reach beyond the city line.

Hiring a social and community service manager in Worcester, MA

Employers in the Worcester, MA area pay social and community service managers a median of $77,500 a year, with the middle half of the market between $63,360 and $96,510 (BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 11-9151). Filling it through recruitlocalpros runs Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role rather than by salary or location, and our vetted recruiting partner handles sourcing, screening and placement end to end.

Do Worcester residents in management work earn more than employers in the Worcester, MA area pay?

Worcester residents working in management occupations earn a median of $77,664 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $129,790 as the median of the 30 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Worcester, MA area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 40%, with the employers figure the higher of the two.

Both sides of that figure describe the whole management group, not this one role. In the Worcester, MA area the group covers 30 occupations BLS publishes a wage for, from education and childcare administrators, preschool and daycare at $70,560 to natural sciences managers at $212,600 (BLS OEWS, May 2025), with social and community service managers at $77,500 inside it.

That comparison is between two different measures, not a pay gap. The two weight the same occupation group differently: the Census figure is the midpoint across the people who actually hold those jobs, so a group carrying a few very well paid occupations is pulled toward them, while the BLS figure is the midpoint across the 30 published occupation wages, which counts each of those occupations once whatever its headcount. Census also counts where people live and BLS counts where the jobs are, and the two cover different populations, Census the civilian employed population 16 and over, BLS wage-and-salary jobs only. Read the number against other cities, where the same definitional difference applies on both sides, rather than as a shortfall.

Published wages across this group in the metro run above what Worcester residents in it earn, which usually means employers here draw this talent from beyond the city line rather than from inside it.

What does a social and community service manager earn here?

Place of work

What employers pay

Annual wages paid to social and community service managers by employers in the Worcester, MA area. BLS OEWS, May 2025, SOC 11-9151.
25th percentile	$63,360
Median	$77,500
75th percentile	$96,510

Half of social and community service managers in this area earn between $63,360 and $96,510 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $63,360 competes for the bottom quarter of the market. Occupation detail for SOC 11-9151 at O*NET OnLine.

Place of residence

What Worcester residents earn

$77,664

Median annual earnings of Worcester residents working in management occupations, 9,924 people (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011). An occupation group rather than this one role, and where people live rather than where they work, so it is not the same measurement as the wages beside it.

What does the role actually involve?

Core tasks

Establish and oversee administrative procedures to meet objectives set by boards of directors or senior management.
Direct activities of professional and technical staff members and volunteers.
Evaluate the work of staff and volunteers to ensure that programs are of appropriate quality and that resources are used effectively.
Participate in the determination of organizational policies regarding such issues as participant eligibility, program requirements, and program benefits.
Prepare and maintain records and reports, such as budgets, personnel records, or training manuals.

Task statements for SOC 11-9151, O*NET OnLine 29.1.

Tools and technologies in demand

Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Access, Microsoft Dynamics, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Word.

Flagged in demand or hot for SOC 11-9151 by O*NET OnLine 29.1. Useful as a screen, not as a checklist.

Is the talent actually in Worcester?

This is a job zone four: considerable preparation needed occupation. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not. O*NET OnLine, SOC 11-9151.

That matters here, because 34.1% of Worcester adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher. That is a workable pool, but the search will reach beyond the city line. Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501, residents of Worcester aged 25 and over.

The average Worcester commute runs 25.1 minutes, which is roughly how far your catchment reaches before candidates start saying no. 10.7% of Worcester workers already work from home, so a fully onsite requirement here is competing against that. Census ACS 5-year 2023, place-level commuting characteristics for Worcester.

How often do these jobs turn over?

In Worcester County, management of companies and enterprises employs 4,001 and turns over 7.0% a quarter, with 413 hires against 436 separations. Average earnings in that industry run $9,490 a month. Census LEHD Quarterly Workforce Indicators, 2024 Q1, NAICS 55.

That figure covers every occupation in the industry, not this role alone, so read it as the local churn rate rather than as a number about social and community service managers. It still tells you what you are hiring into: a normal churn rate, where a well-run search closes on schedule.

What does the search cost?

The fee is set by the seniority of the role, never by salary and never by location. Across all six tiers it runs $6,240 to $54,340 per search. A contingency firm hiring at this role's $77,500 median in the Worcester, MA area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would bill roughly $15,500 to $23,250 on the first year salary alone.

One owner runs the search from market map to signed offer. Searches typically fill in 23 to 35 days, which is a typical window rather than a promise, and the replacement guarantee runs 45 days at 50% off.

Questions employers ask about hiring a social and community service manager in Worcester

What does it cost to hire a social and community service manager in Worcester?: Tier I to Tier VI, $6,240 to $54,340 per search, set by the seniority of the role and never by salary or location. A contingency firm billing 20 to 30% of this role's $77,500 median wage in the Worcester, MA area (BLS OEWS, May 2025) would charge roughly $15,500 to $23,250 on the first year salary alone.
What should an offer for a social and community service manager in Worcester look like?: Employers in the Worcester, MA area pay social and community service managers a median of $77,500, with the middle half of the market between $63,360 and $96,510 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). A band set below $63,360 competes for the bottom quarter of that market.
Do Worcester residents in management work earn more than employers in the Worcester, MA area pay?: Worcester residents working in management occupations earn a median of $77,664 (Census ACS 5-year 2023, tables S2401 and B24011), against $129,790 as the median of the 30 wages BLS publishes for that same occupation group in the Worcester, MA area (BLS OEWS, May 2025), a difference of 40%. Both figures cover the whole occupation group rather than this one role, and one counts where people live while the other counts where the jobs are, so the percentage is not a pay gap.
Is the talent for this role already in Worcester?: This is a job zone 4 occupation, which usually calls for a bachelor's degree, and 34.1% of Worcester adults hold one or higher (Census ACS 5-year 2023, table S1501). That is a workable pool, though the search will reach beyond the city line.

Price this search

Eight questions about the role. Your tier range appears on screen.

Hiring a social and community service manager somewhere else?

Same role, different market. The wage band moves with the metro.

Other management roles in Worcester

Worcester is the 2nd largest of 2 Massachusetts cities in this dataset.