DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA
47-4061 Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
Occupational Description:
Lay, repair, and maintain track for standard or narrow-gauge railroad equipment used in regular railroad service or in plant yards, quarries, sand and gravel pits, and mines. Includes ballast cleaning machine operators and railroad bed tamping machine operators.| Percentiles | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geography | Employment | Emp SE* | Mean | Mean SE* | 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
| Minnesota | 300 | 70 | $26.26/hr | $0.55/hr | $20.37/hr | $23.59/hr | $26.79/hr | $29.39/hr | $30.94/hr |
| U S | 16,180 | 1,311 | $27.88/hr | $1.12/hr | $16.96/hr | $21.24/hr | $27.37/hr | $34.59/hr | $39.70/hr |
| *SE = Standard error, a measure of the statistical reliability of the estimate. | |||||||||
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| Occupation (click title for details) | OES | Projections | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment | Median Wage | % Change 2023 - 2025 | |
| Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators | 10,240 | $33.03/hr | 5.1% |
| Highway Maintenance Workers | 5,030 | $25.82/hr | 3.3% |
| Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators | 840 | $28.91/hr | 6.9% |
| Logging Equipment Operators | 360 | $20.43/hr | -1.4% |
| Pile-Driver Operators | 70 | $35.00/hr | 3.1% |
Tasks for Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators
- Drives vehicle that automatically moves and lays track or rails over section of track to be constructed, repaired, or maintained.
- Adjusts controls of machines that spread, shape, raise, level, and align track, according to specifications.
- Turns wheels of machine, using lever controls, to adjust guidelines for track alignments and grades, following specifications.
- Drives graders, tamping machines, brooms, and ballast-cleaning-spreading machines to redistribute gravel and ballast between rails.
- Lubricates machines, changes oil, and fills hydraulic reservoirs to specified levels.
- Observes leveling indicator arms to verify levelness and alignment of track.
- Strings and attaches wire-guidelines machine to rails to level or align track or rails.
- Pushes control to close grasping device on track or rail section to raise or move section to specified location.
- Engages mechanism that lays track or rail to specified gauge.
