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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

47-2152 Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

Assemble, install, alter, and repair pipelines or pipe systems that carry water, steam, air, or other liquids or gases. May install heating and cooling equipment and mechanical control systems. Includes sprinkler fitters.


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
442,870 1.1 % $28.75 $59,800 0.6 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $15.71 $19.82 $26.52 $35.28 $46.72
Annual Wage (2) $32,690 $41,230 $55,160 $73,380 $97,170


Industry profile for this occupation:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Building Equipment Contractors 321,710 14.45 $28.95 $60,220
Utility System Construction 17,800 3.12 $26.86 $55,880
Nonresidential Building Construction 14,960 1.79 $30.59 $63,620
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OES Designation) 10,540 0.19 $29.08 $60,480
Employment Services 7,250 0.20 $24.51 $50,980

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Building Equipment Contractors 321,710 14.45 $28.95 $60,220
Ship and Boat Building 6,070 4.31 $25.23 $52,490
Natural Gas Distribution 4,430 4.05 $33.13 $68,910
Utility System Construction 17,800 3.12 $26.86 $55,880
Pipeline Transportation of Natural Gas 900 3.02 $30.79 $64,050

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Communications Equipment Manufacturing 50 0.06 $38.66 $80,410
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution 860 0.22 $37.78 $78,590
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing 470 0.09 $37.46 $77,920
Spectator Sports 90 0.06 $37.24 $77,470
Scientific Research and Development Services 250 0.04 $35.90 $74,670


Geographic profile for this occupation:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 47,360 2.72 0.90 $31.13 $64,740
Texas 43,240 3.48 1.15 $24.19 $50,320
New York 29,630 3.11 1.03 $35.06 $72,910
Florida 26,280 2.99 0.99 $21.68 $45,080
Illinois 17,570 2.92 0.97 $41.40 $86,120




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Louisiana 9,830 5.12 1.70 $26.75 $55,650
North Dakota 2,130 5.03 1.67 $26.24 $54,580
Montana 2,310 4.93 1.64 $28.11 $58,460
Oklahoma 6,410 3.96 1.31 $24.07 $50,070
Colorado 10,440 3.90 1.29 $26.14 $54,380




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Illinois 17,570 2.92 0.97 $41.40 $86,120
Alaska 1,060 3.36 1.11 $38.28 $79,610
Minnesota 9,950 3.45 1.15 $35.91 $74,700
New Jersey 8,780 2.15 0.71 $35.75 $74,360
Massachusetts 12,970 3.58 1.19 $35.56 $73,970





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

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 28,350 2.94 0.97 $36.25 $75,410
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 15,550 2.49 0.83 $27.24 $56,650
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 14,260 3.05 1.01 $43.02 $89,470
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 11,720 3.84 1.27 $26.43 $54,980
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 10,740 2.94 0.97 $24.57 $51,100
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 9,330 3.33 1.11 $36.80 $76,540
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 9,070 2.85 0.95 $28.23 $58,710
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 8,010 3.24 1.07 $41.94 $87,230
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 7,310 2.77 0.92 $21.99 $45,750
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 7,310 3.44 1.14 $24.71 $51,400




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Bremerton-Silverdale, WA 1,140 12.76 4.23 $29.92 $62,240
Odessa, TX 810 9.96 3.30 $21.36 $44,440
Baton Rouge, LA 3,660 9.28 3.08 $27.42 $57,030
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX 1,480 9.19 3.05 $28.93 $60,180
Barnstable Town, MA 840 8.12 2.69 $30.66 $63,780
Midland, TX 870 7.87 2.61 $21.40 $44,520
Kennewick-Richland, WA 930 7.87 2.61 $36.41 $75,730
Manhattan, KS 290 7.57 2.51 $22.73 $47,280
Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC 5,590 7.36 2.44 $23.45 $48,770
Billings, MT 630 7.26 2.41 $32.22 $67,020




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 14,260 3.05 1.01 $43.02 $89,470
Kankakee, IL (8) (8) (8) $42.69 $88,790
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 8,010 3.24 1.07 $41.94 $87,230
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 2,260 1.99 0.66 $41.36 $86,030
Fairbanks, AK 200 6.11 2.03 $41.21 $85,710
Pittsfield, MA 130 3.19 1.06 $41.06 $85,400
Rockford, IL 510 3.43 1.14 $40.43 $84,100
Trenton, NJ 410 1.69 0.56 $40.19 $83,590
Springfield, IL 250 2.38 0.79 $39.57 $82,300
Santa Rosa, CA 520 2.49 0.83 $39.05 $81,220

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Hill Country Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 1,720 8.73 2.90 $19.13 $39,790
North Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 880 3.19 1.06 $26.42 $54,960
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 830 6.77 2.24 $22.65 $47,110
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 810 3.12 1.03 $18.02 $37,480
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 760 1.92 0.64 $22.10 $45,980

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Hill Country Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area 1,720 8.73 2.90 $19.13 $39,790
Southwest Louisiana nonmetropolitan area 500 7.08 2.35 $25.49 $53,020
Northwest Colorado nonmetropolitan area 830 6.77 2.24 $22.65 $47,110
Northwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 520 5.30 1.76 $23.63 $49,160
Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 340 5.25 1.74 $18.49 $38,470

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
South Illinois nonmetropolitan area 150 1.69 0.56 $40.19 $83,600
West Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area 490 2.81 0.93 $38.13 $79,300
Alaska nonmetropolitan area 260 2.38 0.79 $34.92 $72,640
Massachusetts nonmetropolitan area 200 3.30 1.09 $34.55 $71,860
Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area 280 2.72 0.90 $34.32 $71,380


About May 2019 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 OES estimates and related information:

May 2019 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2019 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: July 6, 2020