Your work. Your records.
Psychiatric Technician Workplace Records
Psychiatric technicians support individuals through assigned care and therapeutic activities under clinical direction. A workplace concern may involve staffing, an unexpected duty or a report to supervising staff. Describe your employment experience without reproducing a person’s psychiatric history or treating an incident as proof of a clinical conclusion.
Call now(800) 800-5555Free initial case evaluation. Representation depends on work state and case eligibility. This guide explains record preparation; it does not determine whether a legal claim exists.
A record map for your role
What to organize first
Duty sequence
Identify your assigned activity, changed instruction and supervising role using nonidentifying descriptions.
Assistance request
Record when you sought support, the response received and any change in assignment that followed.
Own documentation
Gather your personal training and employment records without patient material or institutional incident attachments.
Start with the work you actually do
Care for individuals with mental or emotional conditions or disabilities, following the instructions of physicians or other health practitioners. Monitor patients' physical and emotional well-being and report to medical staff. May participate in rehabilitation and treatment programs, help with personal hygiene, and administer oral or injectable medications.
O*NET classifies this occupation as Psychiatric Technicians (29-2053.00). Its description covers a typical occupation, not every workplace or individual job. It does not establish employee status, overtime eligibility or employer misconduct.
- Provide nursing, psychiatric, or personal care to patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities.Source task 6945 · updated 08/2023
- Encourage patients to develop work skills and to participate in social, recreational, or other therapeutic activities that enhance interpersonal skills or develop social relationships.Source task 6948 · updated 08/2023
- Restrain violent, potentially violent, or suicidal patients by verbal or physical means as required.Source task 6951 · updated 08/2023
- Lead prescribed individual or group therapy sessions as part of specific therapeutic procedures.Source task 6956 · updated 08/2023
A reference point for your pay records
May 2025 wage estimates by state
Compare your pay records with published BLS estimates for Psychiatric Technicians (SOC 29-2053). These describe an occupation across employers. They are not a required pay rate, an overtime calculation, or evidence of discrimination or unpaid wages.
Select your work state to see its published pay range. No personal pay information is requested or sent.
The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half of the estimated wage distribution; the median is its midpoint. Actual pay can differ with experience, employer, location and duties. Hourly and annual figures are shown as published, without converting one into the other.
All published state estimates for this occupation
| State | Hourly 25th | Hourly median | Hourly 75th | Annual median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $14.92 | $17.63 | $18.53 | $36,680 |
| Alaska | $23.62 | $24.83 | $31.88 | $51,650 |
| Arizona | $19.01 | $21.94 | $23.06 | $45,640 |
| Arkansas | $15.03 | $17.27 | $18.14 | $35,930 |
| Connecticut | $23.10 | $26.68 | $33.65 | $55,500 |
| Delaware | $17.89 | $18.47 | $21.18 | $38,410 |
| Florida | $18.11 | $20.95 | $24.12 | $43,570 |
| Georgia | $19.86 | $22.24 | $24.37 | $46,250 |
| Hawaii | $24.23 | $26.51 | $28.79 | $55,150 |
| Idaho | $19.25 | $19.95 | $21.87 | $41,490 |
| Indiana | $18.24 | $19.67 | $22.38 | $40,910 |
| Iowa | $18.00 | $20.63 | $21.46 | $42,910 |
| Kansas | $18.54 | $21.05 | $21.78 | $43,780 |
| Kentucky | $17.50 | $19.41 | $23.02 | $40,370 |
| Louisiana | $14.28 | $15.12 | $16.93 | $31,440 |
| Maine | $21.18 | $21.79 | $23.39 | $45,320 |
| Michigan | $18.05 | $20.74 | $25.00 | $43,140 |
| Minnesota | $18.33 | $19.37 | $24.75 | $40,300 |
| Mississippi | $14.79 | $16.98 | $18.85 | $35,320 |
| Missouri | $18.19 | $22.04 | $22.68 | $45,840 |
| Montana | $16.84 | $18.84 | $24.05 | $39,190 |
| Nebraska | $21.91 | $27.58 | $29.64 | $57,370 |
| New Hampshire | $21.47 | $21.47 | $24.16 | $44,660 |
| New Mexico | $17.73 | $18.76 | $23.07 | $39,020 |
| New York | $22.42 | $27.92 | $34.86 | $58,080 |
| North Carolina | $18.06 | $19.54 | $22.06 | $40,630 |
| North Dakota | $18.90 | $19.21 | $22.39 | $39,960 |
| Ohio | $17.55 | $18.82 | $22.38 | $39,140 |
| Oklahoma | $17.40 | $18.78 | $21.47 | $39,060 |
| Pennsylvania | $18.91 | $21.12 | $22.95 | $43,930 |
| Rhode Island | $21.70 | $23.33 | $24.83 | $48,520 |
| Tennessee | $17.02 | $19.13 | $23.23 | $39,800 |
| Texas | $17.77 | $19.22 | $21.90 | $39,970 |
| Utah | $18.53 | $19.60 | $21.98 | $40,770 |
| Vermont | $21.88 | $22.87 | $24.09 | $47,560 |
| Virginia | $19.61 | $23.23 | $24.80 | $48,320 |
| West Virginia | $15.09 | $16.39 | $17.11 | $34,100 |
| Wisconsin | $16.84 | $19.37 | $24.99 | $40,290 |
“Not published” preserves unavailable or suppressed source cells. “Above reporting limit” preserves a top-coded source value without inventing a number. A missing state estimate does not establish service eligibility. The data describe wage and salary employment; they do not measure self-employment income.
Source: BLS May 2025 state workbook · OEWS tables · BLS technical notes. Use your own schedule, pay statement and compensation terms to identify the question you want reviewed.
Identify assignment and training
Record the general setting, assigned activity and supervising role. Note relevant training from your own authorized records and any request for help or clarification. Do not infer that an occupational task listing authorizes a particular intervention or establishes the standard for your facility.
Separate the incident from later feedback
Describe the instruction you received and what you personally did, omitting patient-identifying details. Record a later warning or reassignment as a separate dated event with its stated explanation. Do not speculate about motives, diagnoses or the cause of another person’s behavior.
Keep care and incident files controlled
Do not copy treatment plans, group-session records, patient images or sensitive institutional incident reports. Identify the kind of record and its custodian for appropriate review. Keep your own employment correspondence and schedule separately, without accessing a care file solely to investigate your dispute.
Choose your next step
Review the workplace retaliation guide, unpaid wages guide, or discrimination guide if those concerns fit your experience. A job title alone does not establish a claim.
Call now(800) 800-5555Current service-state coverage
AK, AL, AR, AZ, CT, DE, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, IN, KS, KY, LA, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NM, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WI, WV, WY. Eligibility is evaluated individually; this list does not promise representation.
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