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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2016

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:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3) 		Mean hourly
wage		 Mean annual
wage (2) 		Wage RSE (3)
115,840 1.1 % $23.04 $47,930 0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $13.25 $16.96 $22.00 $28.09 $35.15
Annual Wage (2) $27,550 $35,270 $45,760 $58,420 $73,120

Industry profile for this occupation:

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 (OES Designation) 89,020 1.65 $23.05 $47,940
Water, Sewage and Other Systems 13,500 27.36 $22.55 $46,900
Waste Treatment and Disposal 2,490 2.63 $22.69 $47,200
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 730 0.15 $17.86 $37,150
State Government (OES Designation) 670 0.03 $26.56 $55,250

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 13,500 27.36 $22.55 $46,900
Waste Treatment and Disposal 2,490 2.63 $22.69 $47,200
Local Government (OES Designation) 89,020 1.65 $23.05 $47,940
Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Mills 620 0.62 $24.97 $51,930
Metal Ore Mining 110 0.28 $28.01 $58,270

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing 120 0.02 $33.99 $70,700
Resin, Synthetic Rubber, and Artificial Synthetic Fibers and Filaments Manufacturing 40 0.04 $29.58 $61,520
Oil and Gas Extraction (8) (8) $28.96 $60,240
Miscellaneous Durable Goods Merchant Wholesalers (8) (8) $28.49 $59,250
Amusement Parks and Arcades (8) (8) $28.47 $59,220

Geographic profile for this occupation:

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)
California 11,280 0.71 0.86 $33.30 $69,250
Texas 10,030 0.85 1.03 $18.39 $38,240
Florida 5,800 0.71 0.85 $22.72 $47,250
Pennsylvania 5,500 0.96 1.16 $23.55 $48,990
Ohio 4,770 0.89 1.08 $22.49 $46,790




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)
South Dakota 880 2.10 2.54 $19.69 $40,950
Alaska 680 2.10 2.55 $29.60 $61,570
West Virginia 1,240 1.78 2.16 $17.21 $35,800
Arkansas 1,950 1.64 1.99 $16.62 $34,570
South Carolina 3,200 1.61 1.96 $21.02 $43,730




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 11,280 0.71 0.86 $33.30 $69,250
Nevada 580 0.46 0.56 $30.69 $63,840
Connecticut 1,100 0.66 0.80 $30.16 $62,730
Washington 2,450 0.80 0.97 $29.71 $61,790
Alaska 680 2.10 2.55 $29.60 $61,570





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)
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 2,180 0.52 0.63 $36.89 $76,720
New York-Jersey City-White Plains, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 2,020 0.31 0.37 $31.21 $64,910
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 1,460 0.50 0.60 $19.78 $41,140
Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, IL Metropolitan Division 1,330 0.37 0.44 $32.21 $66,990
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 1,330 0.53 0.65 $25.52 $53,090
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 1,240 0.51 0.62 $18.92 $39,350
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 1,190 0.87 1.06 $31.56 $65,650
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA 1,130 0.44 0.54 $20.25 $42,120
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 1,080 0.78 0.94 $31.74 $66,030
Pittsburgh, PA 1,080 0.95 1.15 $25.76 $53,580