Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023
47-4061 Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
Lay, repair, and maintain track for standard or narrow-gauge railroad equipment used in regular railroad service or in plant yards, quarries, sand and gravel pits, and mines. Includes ballast cleaning machine operators and railroad bed tamping machine operators.
National estimates for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
Industry profile for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
Geographic profile for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
National estimates for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 18,770 |
1.2 % |
$ 32.37 |
$ 67,330 |
0.5 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 22.28 |
$ 28.54 |
$ 32.21 |
$ 38.69 |
$ 39.59 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 46,350 |
$ 59,350 |
$ 67,000 |
$ 80,480 |
$ 82,340 |
Industry profile for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Rail Transportation |
9,280 |
5.12 |
$ 31.53 |
$ 65,590 |
| Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
6,710 |
0.12 |
$ 35.61 |
$ 74,070 |
| Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction |
1,300 |
1.03 |
$ 27.05 |
$ 56,260 |
| Support Activities for Rail Transportation |
860 |
2.34 |
$ 24.74 |
$ 51,450 |
| State Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation) |
230 |
0.01 |
$ 37.02 |
$ 77,000 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
Top paying industries for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
Geographic profile for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York |
6,630 |
0.71 |
5.71 |
$ 35.80 |
$ 74,470 |
| Texas |
1,170 |
0.09 |
0.70 |
$ 25.73 |
$ 53,510 |
| Pennsylvania |
880 |
0.15 |
1.19 |
$ 33.39 |
$ 69,450 |
| Illinois |
860 |
0.14 |
1.15 |
$ 33.35 |
$ 69,370 |
| California |
840 |
0.05 |
0.38 |
$ 35.04 |
$ 72,880 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York |
6,630 |
0.71 |
5.71 |
$ 35.80 |
$ 74,470 |
| Wyoming |
180 |
0.65 |
5.28 |
$ 29.79 |
$ 61,960 |
| West Virginia |
230 |
0.34 |
2.72 |
$ 24.88 |
$ 51,750 |
| Montana |
150 |
0.29 |
2.35 |
$ 31.80 |
$ 66,140 |
| Kansas |
340 |
0.24 |
1.95 |
$ 27.62 |
$ 57,440 |
Top paying states for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Massachusetts |
430 |
0.12 |
0.95 |
$ 36.74 |
$ 76,430 |
| Delaware |
90 |
0.19 |
1.52 |
$ 36.12 |
$ 75,120 |
| New York |
6,630 |
0.71 |
5.71 |
$ 35.80 |
$ 74,470 |
| California |
840 |
0.05 |
0.38 |
$ 35.04 |
$ 72,880 |
| Indiana |
630 |
0.20 |
1.62 |
$ 34.41 |
$ 71,580 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
260 |
0.08 |
0.65 |
$ 22.56 |
$ 46,920 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
210 |
0.03 |
0.28 |
$ 39.97 |
$ 83,140 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
210 |
0.10 |
0.80 |
$ 35.50 |
$ 73,850 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
180 |
0.04 |
0.36 |
$ 23.69 |
$ 49,280 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
80 |
0.05 |
0.41 |
$ 37.51 |
$ 78,020 |
| Salt Lake City, UT |
50 |
0.06 |
0.46 |
$ 25.82 |
$ 53,710 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD |
40 |
0.03 |
0.27 |
$ 33.15 |
$ 68,950 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
210 |
0.10 |
0.80 |
$ 35.50 |
$ 73,850 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
260 |
0.08 |
0.65 |
$ 22.56 |
$ 46,920 |
| Salt Lake City, UT |
50 |
0.06 |
0.46 |
$ 25.82 |
$ 53,710 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
80 |
0.05 |
0.41 |
$ 37.51 |
$ 78,020 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
180 |
0.04 |
0.36 |
$ 23.69 |
$ 49,280 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
210 |
0.03 |
0.28 |
$ 39.97 |
$ 83,140 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD |
40 |
0.03 |
0.27 |
$ 33.15 |
$ 68,950 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
210 |
0.03 |
0.28 |
$ 39.97 |
$ 83,140 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
80 |
0.05 |
0.41 |
$ 37.51 |
$ 78,020 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
$ 35.82 |
$ 74,500 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
210 |
0.10 |
0.80 |
$ 35.50 |
$ 73,850 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD |
40 |
0.03 |
0.27 |
$ 33.15 |
$ 68,950 |
| Salt Lake City, UT |
50 |
0.06 |
0.46 |
$ 25.82 |
$ 53,710 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
180 |
0.04 |
0.36 |
$ 23.69 |
$ 49,280 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
260 |
0.08 |
0.65 |
$ 22.56 |
$ 46,920 |
About May 2023 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2023 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2023 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: April 3, 2024
United States Department of Labor
