Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
51-8091 Chemical Plant and System Operators
Control or operate entire chemical processes or system of machines.
National estimates for Chemical Plant and System Operators
Industry profile for Chemical Plant and System Operators
Geographic profile for Chemical Plant and System Operators
National estimates for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 21,740 |
3.4 % |
$ 33.18 |
$ 69,020 |
1.0 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 18.44 |
$ 23.52 |
$ 33.75 |
$ 39.06 |
$ 48.06 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 38,340 |
$ 48,920 |
$ 70,200 |
$ 81,250 |
$ 99,960 |
Industry profile for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Chemical Plant and System Operators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Chemical Plant and System Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only) |
13,330 |
3.80 |
$ 34.71 |
$ 72,210 |
| Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing |
3,250 |
3.15 |
$ 39.47 |
$ 82,100 |
| Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing |
2,370 |
0.75 |
$ 23.44 |
$ 48,750 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3255 and 3256 only) |
660 |
0.38 |
$ 27.97 |
$ 58,170 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods (4242 and 4246 only) |
550 |
0.15 |
$ 27.83 |
$ 57,890 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only) |
13,330 |
3.80 |
$ 34.71 |
$ 72,210 |
| Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing |
3,250 |
3.15 |
$ 39.47 |
$ 82,100 |
| Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing |
2,370 |
0.75 |
$ 23.44 |
$ 48,750 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3255 and 3256 only) |
660 |
0.38 |
$ 27.97 |
$ 58,170 |
| Waste Treatment and Disposal |
270 |
0.28 |
$ 36.67 |
$ 76,270 |
Top paying industries for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing |
3,250 |
3.15 |
$ 39.47 |
$ 82,100 |
| Waste Treatment and Disposal |
270 |
0.28 |
$ 36.67 |
$ 76,270 |
| Nonmetallic Mineral Product Manufacturing |
80 |
0.02 |
$ 35.11 |
$ 73,030 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only) |
13,330 |
3.80 |
$ 34.71 |
$ 72,210 |
| Nonferrous Metal (except Aluminum) Production and Processing |
40 |
0.08 |
$ 31.44 |
$ 65,400 |
Geographic profile for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Chemical Plant and System Operators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Chemical Plant and System Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
6,740 |
0.55 |
3.57 |
$ 37.80 |
$ 78,620 |
| Louisiana |
2,870 |
1.60 |
10.37 |
$ 35.05 |
$ 72,900 |
| South Carolina |
870 |
0.42 |
2.74 |
$ 26.11 |
$ 54,310 |
| Minnesota |
860 |
0.31 |
2.04 |
$ 25.31 |
$ 52,650 |
| California |
820 |
0.05 |
0.32 |
(8) |
(8) |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Louisiana |
2,870 |
1.60 |
10.37 |
$ 35.05 |
$ 72,900 |
| Texas |
6,740 |
0.55 |
3.57 |
$ 37.80 |
$ 78,620 |
| South Carolina |
870 |
0.42 |
2.74 |
$ 26.11 |
$ 54,310 |
| Alabama |
810 |
0.42 |
2.71 |
$ 36.43 |
$ 75,770 |
| Wyoming |
100 |
0.37 |
2.39 |
(8) |
(8) |
Top paying states for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New Jersey |
460 |
0.12 |
0.78 |
$ 42.64 |
$ 88,700 |
| Texas |
6,740 |
0.55 |
3.57 |
$ 37.80 |
$ 78,620 |
| Montana |
70 |
0.14 |
0.93 |
$ 36.75 |
$ 76,440 |
| Alabama |
810 |
0.42 |
2.71 |
$ 36.43 |
$ 75,770 |
| West Virginia |
240 |
0.36 |
2.35 |
$ 35.34 |
$ 73,520 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Chemical Plant and System 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 |
3,960 |
1.37 |
8.86 |
$ 39.62 |
$ 82,410 |
| New Orleans-Metairie, LA |
1,070 |
2.11 |
13.70 |
$ 32.05 |
$ 66,670 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
980 |
2.66 |
17.21 |
$ 41.61 |
$ 86,550 |
| Mobile, AL |
580 |
3.56 |
23.05 |
$ 37.13 |
$ 77,230 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI |
550 |
0.30 |
1.94 |
$ 26.39 |
$ 54,900 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
530 |
0.15 |
0.96 |
$ 27.63 |
$ 57,460 |
| Corpus Christi, TX |
470 |
2.70 |
17.47 |
$ 42.36 |
$ 88,120 |
| Lake Charles, LA |
430 |
4.76 |
30.85 |
$ 35.30 |
$ 73,420 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
370 |
0.04 |
0.28 |
$ 43.35 |
$ 90,170 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
360 |
0.16 |
1.05 |
$ 43.85 |
$ 91,210 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Lake Charles, LA |
430 |
4.76 |
30.85 |
$ 35.30 |
$ 73,420 |
| Mobile, AL |
580 |
3.56 |
23.05 |
$ 37.13 |
$ 77,230 |
| Corpus Christi, TX |
470 |
2.70 |
17.47 |
$ 42.36 |
$ 88,120 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
980 |
2.66 |
17.21 |
$ 41.61 |
$ 86,550 |
| New Orleans-Metairie, LA |
1,070 |
2.11 |
13.70 |
$ 32.05 |
$ 66,670 |
| Lima, OH |
90 |
1.92 |
12.43 |
$ 44.45 |
$ 92,450 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
3,960 |
1.37 |
8.86 |
$ 39.62 |
$ 82,410 |
| Spartanburg, SC |
190 |
1.18 |
7.66 |
$ 23.97 |
$ 49,850 |
| Boulder, CO |
180 |
1.01 |
6.55 |
$ 31.23 |
$ 64,970 |
| Shreveport-Bossier City, LA |
140 |
0.86 |
5.59 |
$ 27.53 |
$ 57,270 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Lima, OH |
90 |
1.92 |
12.43 |
$ 44.45 |
$ 92,450 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
360 |
0.16 |
1.05 |
$ 43.85 |
$ 91,210 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
370 |
0.04 |
0.28 |
$ 43.35 |
$ 90,170 |
| Corpus Christi, TX |
470 |
2.70 |
17.47 |
$ 42.36 |
$ 88,120 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
980 |
2.66 |
17.21 |
$ 41.61 |
$ 86,550 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
200 |
0.07 |
0.48 |
$ 39.71 |
$ 82,600 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
3,960 |
1.37 |
8.86 |
$ 39.62 |
$ 82,410 |
| Charleston, WV |
60 |
0.63 |
4.07 |
$ 39.48 |
$ 82,110 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY |
110 |
0.27 |
1.72 |
$ 38.22 |
$ 79,490 |
| Mobile, AL |
580 |
3.56 |
23.05 |
$ 37.13 |
$ 77,230 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Chemical Plant and System Operators:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Chemical Plant and System Operators:
About May 2021 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 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
