Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023

47-5011 Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas

Rig derrick equipment and operate pumps to circulate mud or fluid through drill hole.

National estimates for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas
Industry profile for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas
Geographic profile for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas

National estimates for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
11,510	5.2 %	$ 28.04	$ 58,330	1.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 20.31	$ 22.80	$ 27.99	$ 32.11	$ 36.42
Annual Wage (2)	$ 42,230	$ 47,420	$ 58,210	$ 66,800	$ 75,750

Industry profile for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

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

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Support Activities for Mining	9,960	3.57	$ 27.50	$ 57,190
Oil and Gas Extraction	1,040	0.96	$ 33.90	$ 70,520
Utility System Construction	140	0.02	$ 27.68	$ 57,580

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Support Activities for Mining	9,960	3.57	$ 27.50	$ 57,190
Oil and Gas Extraction	1,040	0.96	$ 33.90	$ 70,520
Utility System Construction	140	0.02	$ 27.68	$ 57,580

Top paying industries for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Oil and Gas Extraction	1,040	0.96	$ 33.90	$ 70,520
Utility System Construction	140	0.02	$ 27.68	$ 57,580
Support Activities for Mining	9,960	3.57	$ 27.50	$ 57,190
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	(8)	(8)	$ 22.32	$ 46,420

Geographic profile for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

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

Map of employment of derrick operators, oil and gas by state, May 2023

States with the highest employment level in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Texas	6,390	0.47	6.22	$ 27.59	$ 57,400
New Mexico	1,070	1.26	16.63	$ 28.38	$ 59,020
Oklahoma	910	0.54	7.18	$ 26.59	$ 55,310
North Dakota	730	1.76	23.18	$ 32.62	$ 67,850
California	490	0.03	0.36	$ 27.66	$ 57,530

Map of location quotient of derrick operators, oil and gas by state, May 2023

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
North Dakota	730	1.76	23.18	$ 32.62	$ 67,850
New Mexico	1,070	1.26	16.63	$ 28.38	$ 59,020
Wyoming	210	0.75	9.90	$ 29.57	$ 61,510
Alaska	220	0.71	9.38	$ 36.57	$ 76,070
Oklahoma	910	0.54	7.18	$ 26.59	$ 55,310

Map of annual mean wages of derrick operators, oil and gas by state, May 2023

Top paying states for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska	220	0.71	9.38	$ 36.57	$ 76,070
Pennsylvania	(8)	(8)	(8)	$ 36.19	$ 75,280
North Dakota	730	1.76	23.18	$ 32.62	$ 67,850
Wyoming	210	0.75	9.90	$ 29.57	$ 61,510
West Virginia	130	0.19	2.51	$ 29.05	$ 60,430

Map of employment of derrick operators, oil and gas by area, May 2023

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	1,810	0.57	7.51	$ 30.08	$ 62,570
Midland, TX	1,040	9.08	119.85	$ 25.87	$ 53,800
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	540	0.14	1.81	$ 28.41	$ 59,090
Odessa, TX	360	4.66	61.45	$ 22.56	$ 46,930
Oklahoma City, OK	260	0.39	5.16	$ 27.33	$ 56,840
Farmington, NM	200	4.47	58.95	$ 25.43	$ 52,890
Greeley, CO	170	1.49	19.72	$ 26.13	$ 54,350
San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX	160	0.15	1.97	$ 23.18	$ 48,210
San Angelo, TX	80	1.65	21.77	$ 27.03	$ 56,220
Grand Junction, CO	70	1.06	13.93	$ 27.88	$ 57,990

Map of location quotient of derrick operators, oil and gas by area, May 2023

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Midland, TX	1,040	9.08	119.85	$ 25.87	$ 53,800
Odessa, TX	360	4.66	61.45	$ 22.56	$ 46,930
Farmington, NM	200	4.47	58.95	$ 25.43	$ 52,890
San Angelo, TX	80	1.65	21.77	$ 27.03	$ 56,220
Greeley, CO	170	1.49	19.72	$ 26.13	$ 54,350
Grand Junction, CO	70	1.06	13.93	$ 27.88	$ 57,990
Abilene, TX	40	0.61	8.03	$ 22.50	$ 46,800
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	1,810	0.57	7.51	$ 30.08	$ 62,570
Oklahoma City, OK	260	0.39	5.16	$ 27.33	$ 56,840
Shreveport-Bossier City, LA	60	0.33	4.33	$ 24.06	$ 50,040

Map of annual mean wages of derrick operators, oil and gas by area, May 2023

Top paying metropolitan areas for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Pittsburgh, PA	(8)	(8)	(8)	$ 36.78	$ 76,510
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	1,810	0.57	7.51	$ 30.08	$ 62,570
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	540	0.14	1.81	$ 28.41	$ 59,090
Grand Junction, CO	70	1.06	13.93	$ 27.88	$ 57,990
College Station-Bryan, TX	40	0.29	3.83	$ 27.63	$ 57,460
Oklahoma City, OK	260	0.39	5.16	$ 27.33	$ 56,840
San Angelo, TX	80	1.65	21.77	$ 27.03	$ 56,220
Bakersfield, CA	(8)	(8)	(8)	$ 26.17	$ 54,440
Greeley, CO	170	1.49	19.72	$ 26.13	$ 54,350
Midland, TX	1,040	9.08	119.85	$ 25.87	$ 53,800

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area	720	6.34	83.64	$ 32.63	$ 67,860
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	630	4.00	52.78	$ 27.95	$ 58,140
West Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area	480	2.45	32.31	$ 26.47	$ 55,050
Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area	280	4.45	58.70	$ 27.27	$ 56,720
Coastal Plains Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area	240	1.58	20.89	$ 24.25	$ 50,440

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area	720	6.34	83.64	$ 32.63	$ 67,860
Southwest Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area	280	4.45	58.70	$ 27.27	$ 56,720
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	630	4.00	52.78	$ 27.95	$ 58,140
West Texas Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area	480	2.45	32.31	$ 26.47	$ 55,050
Alaska nonmetropolitan area	200	1.94	25.57	$ 36.60	$ 76,120

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Derrick Operators, Oil and Gas:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska nonmetropolitan area	200	1.94	25.57	$ 36.60	$ 76,120
West North Dakota nonmetropolitan area	720	6.34	83.64	$ 32.63	$ 67,860
Eastern Wyoming nonmetropolitan area	90	1.04	13.74	$ 29.40	$ 61,140
Western Wyoming nonmetropolitan area	40	0.37	4.82	$ 28.47	$ 59,220
Hill Country Region of Texas nonmetropolitan area	140	0.70	9.18	$ 28.16	$ 58,570

About May 2023 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 2023 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2023 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

Last Modified Date: April 3, 2024