Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators

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Total Workforce

89.9k

Average Age

44.6

Average Salary

$51,199

Average Male Salary

$51,381

Average Female Salary

$48,140

About

Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are most often employed by the Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems industry. The average yearly wage for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators was $51,199 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators by wage are Loan interviewers & clerks, Avionics technicians, and Construction equipment operators.

Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are part of the Production Occupations, along with Firstline supervisors of production & operating workers, Electrical, electronics, & electromechanical assemblers, Engine & other machine assemblers, Structural metal fabricators & fitters, Other assemblers and fabricators, and 55 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are Jacksonville City PUMA, NC, Weakley, Henry, Carroll, Humphreys, Benton & Houston Counties PUMA, TN, and Chatham County (West Central)Savannah City PUMA, GA. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are Weakley, Henry, Carroll, Humphreys, Benton & Houston Counties PUMA, TN, Jacksonville City PUMA, NC, and Chatham County (West Central)Savannah City PUMA, GA.

Production Occupations Production Occupations Production, Transportation, & Material Moving Occupations

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators and on wages and locations for those in the field. Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems is the industry that employs the most Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators, by average wage, is National security & international affairs. Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are paid most in Skagit, Island & San Juan Counties PUMA, WA but are relatively concentrated in Weakley, Henry, Carroll, Humphreys, Benton & Houston Counties PUMA, TN.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$51,199

AVERAGE SALARY

± $2,028

In 2018, Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators earned an average of $51,199, $2,689 less than than the average national salary of $53,888.

Loan interviewers & clerks make somewhat more than Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators while Avionics technicians make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators as measured by average annual salary in the US.

Wage Distribution

0.252

WAGE GINI

In 2018, Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.252, which is lower than than the national average of 0.479. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators, by number of employees, are Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems, Sewage treatment facilities, and Executive offices & legislative bodies.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators, by average wage, are Architectural, engineering & related services, National security & international affairs, Pulp, paper, & paperboard mills , Architectural, engineering & related services, Iron & steel mills & steel product manufacturing, and Electric power generation, transmission & distribution.

Industries by Share

89.9k

2018 Workforce

± 7,359

-1.77%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 11.7%

The number of people employed as Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators has been declining at a rate of -1.77%, from 91,518 people in 2017 to 89,898 people in 2018.

This graphic shows the share of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators employed by various industries. Water, steam, air-conditioning, & irrigation systems employs the largest share of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators at 48.3%, followed by Sewage treatment facilities with 30.7% and Executive offices & legislative bodies with 2.58%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators in the US. The average age of male Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators in the workforce is 44.7 and of female Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators is 42.9, and the most common race/ethnicity for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators is White (Non-Hispanic).

Gender Composition

84.9k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 7,150

5.03k

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 1,740

94.4% of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are Male, making them the more common gender in the occupation. This chart shows the gender breakdown of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
White (Hispanic)

81.7% of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 7.69% of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators.

Age by Gender

44.7

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 1.1

42.9

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 4.17

The median age of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators is 44.6, and Male employees are generally 1.76 years older than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators is Engineering but a relatively high number of Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators hold a major in Natural Resources & Conservation.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degree-majorss. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree-majors obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators need many skills, but most especially Operation Monitoring, Monitoring, and Operation and Control. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Water & wastewater treatment plant & system operators need more than the average amount of Repairing, Equipment Maintenance, and Equipment Selection.