Waste Management and Remediation Services: NAICS 562

About the Waste Management and Remediation Services subsector

The waste management and remediation services subsector is part of the administrative and support and waste management and remediation services sector.

The waste management and remediation services subsector consists of these industry groups:

• Waste Collection: NAICS 5621
• Waste Treatment and Disposal: NAICS 5622
• Remediation and Other Waste Management Services: NAICS 5629

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in waste management and remediation services. While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment, Unemployment, and Layoffs

Data series	Back data	Oct. 2011	Nov. 2011	Dec. 2011	Jan. 2012
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)		369.4	366.9	(P) 367.8	(P) 370.8
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees		299.2	294.5	(P) 292.8
Unemployment
Unemployment rate		7.9%	9.2%	11.3%	9.6%
Layoffs
Mass layoff events		4	-	4
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits		454	-	271
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs

Data series	Back data	1st quarter 2011	2nd quarter 2011	3rd quarter 2011	4th quarter 2011
Extended mass layoff events		4	3	(P) 6	(P) 4
Separations		685	264	(P) 1,063	(P) 514
Initial claimants		326	276	(P) 1,147	(P) 491
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series	Employment, 2010
Hazardous materials removal workers	29,650
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	18,610
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	71,480
Septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners	13,260
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer	41,990

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for waste management and remediation services.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in waste management and remediation services.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees

Data series	Back data	Sep. 2011	Oct. 2011	Nov. 2011	Dec. 2011
Average hourly earnings		$23.34	$23.50	$23.35	(P) $23.47
Average weekly hours		42.6	42.3	42.1	(P) 41.8
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees

Data series	Back data	Sep. 2011	Oct. 2011	Nov. 2011	Dec. 2011
Average hourly earnings		$20.01	$19.90	$19.85	(P) $19.81
Average weekly hours		43.1	42.5	42.1	(P) 42.0
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series	Wages, 2010
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Hazardous materials removal workers	$17.86	$19.40	$37,160	$40,350
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	$11.34	$12.26	$23,580	$25,500
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	$16.30	$16.66	$33,900	$34,660
Septic tank servicers and sewer pipe cleaners	$15.24	$15.96	$31,700	$33,190
Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer	$16.91	$17.87	$35,160	$37,160

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in waste management and remediation services. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.

Data series	2007	2008	2009	2010
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	80	88	54	(P) 61
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	6.4	5.5	5.2	4.5
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	4.1	3.2	3.3	3.0
Cases involving days away from work	2.4	2.0	1.8	1.9
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	1.7	1.2	1.4	1.1
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in waste management and remediation services.

Establishments

Data series	Back data	3rd quarter 2010	4th quarter 2010	1st quarter 2011	2nd quarter 2011
Number of establishments
Private industry		24,589	24,670	(P) 24,715	(P) 24,977
Local government		1,151	1,152	(P) 1,159	(P) 1,160
State government		3	3	(P) 3	(P) 4
Federal government		23	24	(P) 23	(P) 23
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

To learn about careers from an industry perspective, see the Career Guide to Industries.

 

Data extracted on: February 10, 2012