Occupation 7111 · Sales and customer service occupations
Sales and retail assistants demonstrate and sell a variety of goods and services in shops, stores, showrooms and similar establishments.
No minimum academic qualifications are required although some employers may require GCSEs/S grades. Training is typically provided on-the-job. Vocational qualifications in Retail Operations and relevant apprenticeships are available at various levels.
Retail assistant · Sales adviser · Sales assistant · Sales consultant (retail trade) · Shop assistant
| Measure | Hours | Basis | Period | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 678,000.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 721,000.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 793,400.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 38,400.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 72,400.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 831,800.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
| 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | None | 2026-03 | 43,100.00 | ONS, Annual Population Survey - employment by occupation (SOC 2020) |
ONS does not publish occupational pay below region. Cells the survey could not support are shown as withheld, with its reason — adding a region split to a specific occupation leaves roughly a tenth of cells publishable.
| Region | Measure | Hours | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 81,900.00 | 2026-03 |
| East Midlands | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 60,900.00 | 2026-03 |
| London | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 92,100.00 | 2026-03 |
| North East | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 35,000.00 | 2026-03 |
| North West | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 80,800.00 | 2026-03 |
| Northern Ireland | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 38,400.00 | 2026-03 |
| Scotland | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 72,400.00 | 2026-03 |
| South East | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 109,700.00 | 2026-03 |
| South West | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 75,000.00 | 2026-03 |
| Wales | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 43,100.00 | 2026-03 |
| West Midlands | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 72,800.00 | 2026-03 |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 7111 : Sales and retail assistants | None | 69,800.00 | 2026-03 |
ONS publishes regional pay for this occupation where the survey sample supports it — 12 of 12 cells on this page. The rest are withheld by ONS, and are shown as withheld with the reason, rather than left out.
The Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, published by the Office for National Statistics. Figures are shown exactly as ONS publishes them — we do not adjust, model or fill them in, and every number on this page carries the series and period it came from.
Pharmacy and optical dispensing assistants · Retail cashiers and check-out operators · Telephone salespersons · Vehicle and parts salespersons and advisers