by Tisa Silver, Investopedia

Who says hard work doesn't pay? These 10 blue-collar jobs show that the color of your collar doesn't necessarily dictate the level of your income.

Rachel Zupek, CareerBuilder.com writer

Salaries are always a hot topic in the office -- most often, as an area of complaint. In today's economy, most are simply grateful to earn a salary of any size, but you still hear things like, "I don't earn enough to survive or pay the bills" or "So-and-so is making X amount, I should be, too." Or -- my personal favorite -- "I deserve more."

Well, we all deserve more, but the reality is that right now, not many of us will get it. And, in looking at the national average salary, some of you may be surprised how you compare.

Anthony Balderrama, CareerBuilder.com writer

Who hasn't looked at his or her paycheck and imagined how much better life would be with a lot more numbers after that dollar sign?

Inevitably, a wise soul -- usually a parent -- tells you that no amount of money will solve your problems. Of course, you respond, "Let me find out for myself."

Shanon Lyon

According to the Economic Policy Institute, a Washington-based research group, in 2005, the average CEO in the United States earned 262 times the pay of the average worker, the second-highest level in the 40 years for which data exist. In 2005, a CEO earned more in one workday (there are 260 in a year) than an average worker earned in 52 weeks, the EPI says. Though it seems unfair, many would argue that a good CEO is worth the price tag. Take John A. Thain, the CEO of Merrill Lynch. Thain was offered a $50 million paycheck with pay options worth up to $120 million to revive the ailing Wall Street firm, 'The New York Times' reported last fall. The story dubbed him "Wall Street's richest mop-up man, at least for now."

Meg Donohue, CareerBuilder.com writer

As we each search for our personal pot of gold, many of us wonder whether the rainbow leading us to a six-figure paycheck has to be so long. We want financially rewarding jobs, but not everyone is eager to commit the time and money necessary to complete a medical or law degree. The good news is that, even though statistics have shown that more education translates to higher earnings, there are still plenty of six-figure salary jobs for those of us who have decided not to take the seven-years-and-a-stethoscope route.

The following is a list of seven lucrative fields in which the top-earning 25 percent of workers take home more than $100,000 annually, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That percentage proves there is real potential for sizeable salaries within these fields, even if your résumé doesn't boast a lengthy list of alma maters. Though some of these positions are filled by people with graduate degrees