Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
53-7021 Crane and Tower Operators
Operate mechanical boom and cable or tower and cable equipment to lift and move materials, machines, or products in many directions.
National estimates for Crane and Tower Operators
Industry profile for Crane and Tower Operators
Geographic profile for Crane and Tower Operators
National estimates for Crane and Tower Operators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Crane and Tower Operators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 43,400 |
3.7 % |
$ 31.38 |
$ 65,270 |
1.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Crane and Tower Operators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 18.02 |
$ 23.15 |
$ 29.92 |
$ 37.47 |
$ 47.35 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 37,490 |
$ 48,140 |
$ 62,240 |
$ 77,930 |
$ 98,490 |
Industry profile for Crane and Tower Operators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Crane and Tower Operators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Crane and Tower Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Crane and Tower Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Other Specialty Trade Contractors |
11,310 |
1.58 |
$ 39.80 |
$ 82,790 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Durable Goods (4232, 4233, 4235, 4236, 4237, and 4239 only) |
4,080 |
0.30 |
$ 20.78 |
$ 43,220 |
| Iron and Steel Mills and Ferroalloy Manufacturing |
3,120 |
3.98 |
$ 25.48 |
$ 53,000 |
| Support Activities for Water Transportation |
2,140 |
2.38 |
$ 30.26 |
$ 62,930 |
| Rental and leasing services (5322, 5323, and 5324 only) |
1,910 |
0.66 |
$ 37.67 |
$ 78,360 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Crane and Tower Operators:
Top paying industries for Crane and Tower Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution |
80 |
0.02 |
$ 42.70 |
$ 88,810 |
| Other Specialty Trade Contractors |
11,310 |
1.58 |
$ 39.80 |
$ 82,790 |
| Machine Shops; Turned Product; and Screw, Nut, and Bolt Manufacturing |
80 |
0.03 |
$ 39.57 |
$ 82,300 |
| Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only) |
50 |
0.02 |
$ 37.80 |
$ 78,620 |
| Other Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction |
1,020 |
0.85 |
$ 37.69 |
$ 78,400 |
Geographic profile for Crane and Tower Operators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Crane and Tower Operators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Crane and Tower Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Crane and Tower Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Texas |
7,110 |
0.58 |
1.89 |
$ 29.76 |
$ 61,890 |
| California |
3,710 |
0.22 |
0.73 |
$ 38.97 |
$ 81,070 |
| Florida |
3,100 |
0.36 |
1.17 |
$ 30.10 |
$ 62,610 |
| Indiana |
2,120 |
0.71 |
2.31 |
$ 27.79 |
$ 57,810 |
| Louisiana |
2,090 |
1.16 |
3.78 |
$ 27.14 |
$ 56,440 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Crane and Tower Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Louisiana |
2,090 |
1.16 |
3.78 |
$ 27.14 |
$ 56,440 |
| North Dakota |
300 |
0.75 |
2.44 |
$ 39.32 |
$ 81,790 |
| Indiana |
2,120 |
0.71 |
2.31 |
$ 27.79 |
$ 57,810 |
| West Virginia |
420 |
0.63 |
2.06 |
$ 23.87 |
$ 49,650 |
| Maine |
340 |
0.58 |
1.89 |
$ 27.72 |
$ 57,650 |
Top paying states for Crane and Tower Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| New York |
980 |
0.11 |
0.37 |
$ 60.31 |
$ 125,450 |
| New Jersey |
1,110 |
0.29 |
0.93 |
$ 49.44 |
$ 102,840 |
| Nevada |
440 |
0.34 |
1.11 |
$ 46.47 |
$ 96,650 |
| Hawaii |
90 |
0.16 |
0.53 |
$ 44.55 |
$ 92,660 |
| Washington |
740 |
0.23 |
0.75 |
$ 40.36 |
$ 83,950 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Crane and Tower 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 |
3,000 |
1.04 |
3.36 |
$ 30.77 |
$ 64,000 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
1,600 |
0.38 |
1.23 |
$ 30.12 |
$ 62,650 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,420 |
0.40 |
1.29 |
$ 29.16 |
$ 60,640 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
1,370 |
0.24 |
0.78 |
$ 39.28 |
$ 81,710 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
1,290 |
0.15 |
0.48 |
$ 63.06 |
$ 131,160 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
740 |
0.28 |
0.91 |
$ 33.64 |
$ 69,970 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
720 |
0.29 |
0.95 |
$ 31.56 |
$ 65,650 |
| Pittsburgh, PA |
610 |
0.58 |
1.90 |
$ 27.86 |
$ 57,960 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
570 |
1.54 |
5.00 |
$ 27.29 |
$ 56,770 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
540 |
0.19 |
0.60 |
$ 35.19 |
$ 73,200 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Crane and Tower Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Houma-Thibodaux, LA |
250 |
3.15 |
10.21 |
$ 30.01 |
$ 62,430 |
| Lake Charles, LA |
210 |
2.32 |
7.52 |
$ 29.75 |
$ 61,880 |
| Mobile, AL |
270 |
1.66 |
5.40 |
$ 25.56 |
$ 53,160 |
| Decatur, AL |
90 |
1.65 |
5.35 |
$ 20.77 |
$ 43,200 |
| Corpus Christi, TX |
280 |
1.62 |
5.26 |
$ 30.84 |
$ 64,140 |
| Baton Rouge, LA |
570 |
1.54 |
5.00 |
$ 27.29 |
$ 56,770 |
| Odessa, TX |
90 |
1.40 |
4.53 |
$ 32.85 |
$ 68,330 |
| Mansfield, OH |
70 |
1.38 |
4.48 |
$ 21.16 |
$ 44,000 |
| Pueblo, CO |
80 |
1.37 |
4.46 |
$ 26.89 |
$ 55,940 |
| Reading, PA |
200 |
1.26 |
4.09 |
$ 27.31 |
$ 56,810 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Crane and Tower Operators:
| 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 |
1,290 |
0.15 |
0.48 |
$ 63.06 |
$ 131,160 |
| Syracuse, NY |
30 |
0.11 |
0.36 |
$ 49.69 |
$ 103,350 |
| Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
$ 48.07 |
$ 99,990 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
360 |
0.16 |
0.53 |
$ 45.08 |
$ 93,760 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY |
80 |
0.20 |
0.65 |
$ 44.50 |
$ 92,550 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
130 |
0.12 |
0.40 |
$ 43.91 |
$ 91,320 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA |
450 |
0.24 |
0.77 |
$ 43.20 |
$ 89,850 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI |
70 |
0.17 |
0.54 |
$ 43.09 |
$ 89,620 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA |
60 |
0.20 |
0.67 |
$ 42.57 |
$ 88,550 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
40 |
0.23 |
0.74 |
$ 42.03 |
$ 87,430 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Crane and Tower Operators:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Crane and Tower Operators:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Crane and Tower 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
