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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2018

51-8031 Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators

Operate or control an entire process or system of machines, often through the use of control boards, to transfer or treat water or wastewater.


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
123,650 1.0 % $23.79 $49,490 0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $13.60 $17.30 $22.49 $28.88 $36.64
Annual Wage (2) $28,300 $35,980 $46,780 $60,080 $76,200


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 95,220 1.74 $23.91 $49,720
Water, Sewage and Other Systems 13,740 26.68 $22.21 $46,190
Waste Treatment and Disposal 2,700 2.76 $26.07 $54,230
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 860 0.17 $18.30 $38,060
State Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 810 0.04 $28.83 $59,960

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Water, Sewage and Other Systems 13,740 26.68 $22.21 $46,190
Waste Treatment and Disposal 2,700 2.76 $26.07 $54,230
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 95,220 1.74 $23.91 $49,720
Metal Ore Mining 120 0.31 $29.78 $61,930
Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Mills 270 0.30 $24.97 $51,930

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Nonresidential Building Construction (8) (8) $41.02 $85,320
Management of Companies and Enterprises (8) (8) $36.83 $76,610
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing 110 0.02 $34.13 $70,980
Nonmetallic Mineral Mining and Quarrying 30 0.03 $31.30 $65,110
Metal Ore Mining 120 0.31 $29.78 $61,930


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Texas 12,100 1.00 1.17 $18.92 $39,360
California 11,980 0.70 0.82 $34.93 $72,650
Florida 6,340 0.74 0.86 $23.42 $48,710
Pennsylvania 5,340 0.91 1.07 $23.95 $49,810
New York 4,720 0.50 0.59 $28.46 $59,190




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Arkansas 2,600 2.15 2.52 $17.01 $35,380
South Dakota 880 2.09 2.45 $20.47 $42,580
West Virginia 1,410 2.02 2.36 $17.54 $36,480
Idaho 1,330 1.88 2.20 $21.62 $44,970
Alaska 570 1.82 2.13 $30.36 $63,160




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 11,980 0.70 0.82 $34.93 $72,650
Connecticut 1,000 0.60 0.70 $32.00 $66,560
Washington 2,850 0.87 1.02 $30.54 $63,520
Alaska 570 1.82 2.13 $30.36 $63,160
Nevada (8) (8) (8) $30.34 $63,110





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 3,680 0.39 0.45 $32.23 $67,050
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 2,630 0.43 0.50 $37.02 $77,000
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 2,180 0.47 0.55 $31.07 $64,630
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 2,000 0.67 0.78 $21.54 $44,810
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 1,990 0.56 0.65 $20.38 $42,390
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 1,820 0.58 0.68 $26.99 $56,150
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 1,680 0.59 0.69 $26.56 $55,250
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 1,580 0.59 0.69 $21.30 $44,310
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 1,520 1.01 1.19 $33.39 $69,460
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 1,360 0.70 0.81 $28.45 $59,170