Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
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Overview
Operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement. May repair and maintain equipment in addition to other duties.
Explore Pathways
Titles for this career often contain these words
OperatorEngineerGraderMachineEquipmentRoadShovelOperatingRunnerHeavySteamHoeDitchingBladeBulldozerDriverConstructionCraneLandfillSlabPowerRollerStabilizerAngleDozerBackBackhoeBushHogCableCarCatshovelClamshellDerrickDiggingDitcherDraglineDumpAttendantElevatingEngineeringEOForkliftFormGangMowerGradallGradingHeaterPlanerMachineryHoistingHotMixAsphaltHydraulicHammerLandLevelerLiftLocomotiveMaintainerMaintenanceMotorMuckMuckerMuckingHoggerRooterRotarySoilSanderSanitaryScarifierScrapDropScraperLiftingStreetTrack
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Responsibilities and activities

Construction equipment operators typically do the following:

  • Clean and maintain equipment, making basic repairs as necessary
  • Report malfunctioning equipment to supervisors
  • Move levers, push pedals, or turn valves to drive and maneuver equipment
  • Coordinate machine actions with crew members using hand or audio signals

Construction equipment operators use machinery to move building supplies, earth, and other heavy materials at construction sites and mines. They operate equipment that clears and grades land to prepare it for the construction of roads, bridges, buildings, aircraft runways, dams, and other structures.

The following are examples of types of construction equipment operators:

Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators work with one or several types of power construction equipment. They may operate excavation and loading machines equipped with scoops, shovels, or buckets that dig sand, gravel, earth, or similar materials. They also operate bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, and similar equipment. Sometimes, they drive and control industrial trucks or tractors equipped with forklifts or booms for lifting materials. They may also operate and maintain air compressors, pumps, and other power equipment at construction sites.

Paving and surfacing equipment operators control the machines that spread and level asphalt or spread and smooth concrete for roadways or other structures. Tamping equipment operators use machines that compact earth and other fill materials for roadbeds and other construction sites or that break up old pavement and drive guardrail posts into the ground.

Pile driver operators use large machines mounted on skids, barges, or cranes to hammer piles into the ground. Piles are long, heavy beams of concrete, wood, or steel driven into the ground to support retaining walls, bridges, piers, or building foundations. Some pile driver operators work on offshore oil rigs.

Workers who operate cranes are covered in the material moving machine operators profile.

Salary
Median salary: $49,770 annually
Half of those employed in this career earn between $39,150 and $65,640.
$50K$0$20K$40K$60K$80K$100K
Context: Median Salary
How do salaries for this career compare to other jobs' salaries?
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Salary growth for construction equipment operators
Is this job likely to reward you for sticking with it through pay raises and promotions? The higher a job’s “experience quotient,” the more you are likely to get as you stay there.
Experience quotient percentile
Take a minute to look at how much you might expect your salary to increase with each five years' experience, as well as how the numbers working at each age change. Does this seem to be a job for the young or the old, or could it be a career offering steady salary growth for many years?
Salary distribution
$48K$50K$50K$51K$49K$50K$42K$33K$41K$0$20K$40K$60K$80K$100K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
Number employed
010K20K30K40K50K20-2425-2930-3435-3940-4445-4950-5455-5960-64
About Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
How do benefits for this career compare to other jobs? The availability of health care, especially employer provided health care, and pension plans can add significantly to the value of compensation you receive in a career. These charts compare how this career compares to other careers with regard to health care and pension plans.
Employee has health insurance
Employer is providing health insurance
Employer-provided pension plan is available
Worker concerns
Some jobs are more stressful than others, and some are just plain dangerous. The following list gives the percentages of operating engineers and other construction equipment operators who report hazardous or difficult situations typically occurring at least once a week.
  • Exposed to Contaminants (100%)
  • Hazardous Equipment (96%)
  • Consequence of Error (95%)
  • Responsible for Others' Health (84%)
  • Time Pressure (68%)
  • Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites (52%)
  • Exposed to Whole Body Vibration (50%)
  • Hazardous Conditions (36%)
  • High Conflict Frequency (31%)
SOURCES:
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Personality and skills
Can you see yourself in the ranks of Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators? Here are the skills and traits that could lead to success.
Ability to work at heights
Construction equipment operators may need to service pulleys or other devices located at the top of structures, which may be several stories tall.
Hand-eye-foot coordination
Construction equipment operators should have steady hands and feet to guide and control heavy machinery precisely, sometimes in tight spaces.
Mechanical skills
Construction equipment operators often perform basic maintenance on the equipment they operate. As a result, they should be familiar with hand and power tools and standard equipment care.
Physical stamina
Construction equipment operators may be required to frequently push, carry, or move heavy objects. 
Physical strength
Construction equipment operators may be required to lift more than 50 pounds as part of their duties.
Injury and Illness
About 108 operating engineers and other construction equipment operators become injured or ill for every 10,000 workers, making this job more dangerous than 83% of other careers. The most common specific illnesses or injuries are detailed following.
Amputations
All multiple traumatic injuries
Heat (thermal) burns
Education pathways to this career
Education attained by operating engineers and other construction equipment operators
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), operating engineers and other construction equipment operators typically hold a high school diploma or equivalent.
Sometimes the typical education identified by the BLS differs a bit from the reality of the how much education current workers actually have. The donut shows the education level held by people currently working as construction equipment operators as reported in responses to the American Community Survey.
Details: Education and training recommended for operating engineers and other construction equipment operators

A high school diploma or equivalent is typically required to become a construction equipment operator. Vocational training and math courses are useful, and a course in automotive mechanics may be helpful because workers often maintain their equipment.

Learning at vocational schools may be beneficial in finding a job. Schools may specialize in a particular brand or type of construction equipment.

Some schools incorporate sophisticated simulator training into their courses, allowing beginners to familiarize themselves with the equipment in a virtual environment before operating real machines.

Details: Licensing and certification recommended for operating engineers and other construction equipment operators

Construction equipment operators often need a commercial driver’s license (CDL) to haul their equipment to various jobsites. State laws governing CDLs vary.

A few states have special licenses for operators of backhoes, loaders, and bulldozers.

Some states and cities require pile driver operators to have a crane license, because similar operational concerns apply to both pile drivers and cranes. Requirements vary by state. For more information, contact your local or state licensing board.

Education level of Construction equipment operators
Only 3% of construction equipment operators have a bachelor's degree or higher.
Education attained by construction equipment operators
None
High School
Some College
Associate's Degree
Bachelor's Degree
Master's Degree
Professional Degree
Doctorate
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Programs recommended by the Department of Education
The Department of Education recommends the following college degree programs as preparation for this career. You can click the program row to learn more about the program and explore a list of schools that offer the program.
Number of degrees awarded in 2018
Education
Education level of awarded degrees
Assoc./Cert.
Bachelor's
Graduate
Gender
Gender of graduates
Men
Women
Race/Origin
Race/origin of graduates
White
Minority
International
Where are the jobs
State-by-state employment numbers
Some careers tend to be centered in specific parts of the country. For example, most jobs in fashion are in New York or California. Let's see if your dream job is easy to find in your dream location! We have a few choices for viewing the data that can help you get a full employment picture.
Select a state to see local area details
Number of Construction equipment operators per 1,000 workers (ACS)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
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Job density versus job count
Which states hire the most operating engineers and other construction equipment operators? We wonder if that's a fair question since states come in all sizes, so instead let's start with the question of which states have the highest density of people working as operating engineers and other construction equipment operators. You can choose to view the number of jobs per state if you prefer.
Salaries by state
Let's get a feel for where operating engineers and other construction equipment operators earn the highest salaries. There are several choices for which data we consider and how we view that data, and each can lead to different conclusions, so please read on...
Median salary versus state ratio
We use two methods to compare salaries across states:
  • In-state comparisons: the ratio of median (middle) salaries for construction equipment operators compared to the median salary for all people working in each state, or
  • Median salary: the unaltered median salaries for construction equipment operators.
We hope the ratio allows perspective about how salaries may compare to the regional cost-of-living.
The darkest shading corresponds to states in which construction equipment operators earn the highest salary when compared to other jobs in the state. We think this figure might be a better indicator than the actual salary for your buying power as a state resident.
Select a state to see local area details
Location-adjusted median salary for Construction equipment operators (ACS for all specialties)
AKMEWIVTNHWAIDMTNDMNILMINYMAORUTWYSDIAINOHPANJCTRICANVCONEMOKYWVVAMDDEAZNMKSARTNNCSCDCOKLAMSALGAHITXFLPR
Employment
4% of Construction equipment operators are working part time.
We’ve found that some jobs have a huge number of part-time workers, and typically that is because they are unable to find full-time work or the job itself can’t provide full-time hours. With 4% part-time workers, this occupation has a lower percentage of part-time workers than 83% of careers.
4%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Employer types
This donut shares the break-down of workers by employer type, giving us a picture of what employers most typically hire for this career.
Employers of undefined (ACS)
Private for-profit
Private not-for-profit
Local government
State government
Federal government
Self-employed incorporated
Self-employed not incorporated
Working without pay
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Distribution: Salaries of construction equipment operators by type of employer
Here are the salary distributions based on employer type.
$46K$48K$42K$42K$52K$41K$37K$54K$41K$0$20,000$40,000$60,000$80,000$100,000Working without paySelf-employed not incorporatedSelf-employed incorporatedFederal governmentState governmentLocal governmentPrivate not-for-profitPrivate for-profitAll
Gender
Construction equipment operators and gender
With 2% women, this occupation has a lower percentage of women than 94% of careers.
Gender of Construction equipment operators
Men (98%)
Women (2%)
Distribution: salaries by gender
Does gender greatly influence your salary in this career? The closer the bars are, the less discrepancy there is.
$42K$46K$0$100K$200K$300KWomenMen
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.
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Context: Women in the workforce
How does this career compare to other careers with regard to the percentage of women in the career.
2%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Context: Salary inequity
The median salary for all full-time male workers in the US exceeds the full-time median salary for women by 19%. The situation is a little better for construction equipment operators, with the median salary for men 10% higher than the median salary for women.
10%0%20%40%60%80%100%
Race/Origin
Race and origin of Construction equipment operators
This donut shows the distribution of race and origin among those employed as Construction equipment operators.
Race/origin of construction equipment operators
White (84% )
Black (6% )
Other (4% )
American Indian (2% )
Multiracial (2% )
Hispanic (1% )
Asian (1% )
Pacific Islander (0% )
Distribution: salaries by race/origin
Some careers might have a pay disparity based on race or origin, the closer the below bars are the less of a discrepancy is present.
$37K$42K$42K$43K$45K$47K$49K$0$20K$40K$60K$80K$100KBlackOtherAmerican IndianMultiracialHispanicWhiteAsian
We only include salary data when the survey error is less than 20%, so you may see only partial information for some categories.