A New Survey on Construction Labor Wages

The No. 1 top-earning construction job may surprise you. (It's not a plumber or an electrician.)

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This story was originally published in Builder.

A new analysis of construction wages across the U.S. finds that incomes vary widely by occupation, and the No. 1 top-paying construction job may surprise many in the industry.

Using survey data from the 2016 American Community Survey, the study finds a wide range of median incomes by job, with elevator technicians making the most ($80,000), followed by supervisors ($58,000). Closing the list is the lowest paid occupation of construction trade helpers ($22,000). Here are the top 15 highest-paying jobs:

The study from home renovation startup firm BuildZoom finds that pay tends to be similar across U.S. cities. “Occupations that require more training or technical expertise consistently pay higher than those with lower barriers to entry,” says BuildZoom’s chief economist, Issi Romem. “Wages are also consistently higher across all construction occupations in certain cities, in line with the cost of living.”

The full story can be found on the blog here, with occupation rankings by metro area and city comparisons to the national median available for download.

This story was originally published in Builder.

About the Author

Jennifer Goodman

Jennifer Goodman is a former editor for BUILDER. She lives in the walkable urban neighborhood of Silver Spring, Md.

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