Construction and Extraction Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 47-2011

Boilermakers

O*NET task statements lead this Boilermakers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers, Tapers, Roof Bolters, Mining, Construction and Building Inspectors.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Boilermakers: First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers ($80K) , Tapers ($68K) , Roof Bolters, Mining ($79K) , Construction and Building Inspectors ($75K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Boilermakers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 47-2011 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Conduct pressure tests on vessels, such as boilers
  2. 2. Study blueprints to determine locations, relationships, or dimensions of parts
  3. 3. Assemble large vessels in an on-site fabrication shop prior to installation to ensure proper fit
  4. 4. Examine boilers, pressure vessels, tanks, or vats to locate defects, such as leaks, weak spots, or defective sections, so that they can b…
  5. 5. Inspect assembled vessels or individual components, such as tubes, fittings, valves, controls, or auxiliary mechanisms, to locate any def…
  6. 6. Lay out plate, sheet steel, or other heavy metal and locate and mark bending and cutting lines, using protractors, compasses, and drawing…
  7. 7. Bell, bead with power hammers, or weld pressure vessel tube ends to ensure leakproof joints
  8. 8. Locate and mark reference points for columns or plates on boiler foundations, following blueprints and using straightedges, squares, tran…
  9. 9. Shape or fabricate parts, such as stacks, uptakes, or chutes, to adapt pressure vessels, heat exchangers, or piping to premises, using he…
  10. 10. Position, align, and secure structural parts or related assemblies to boiler frames, tanks, or vats of pressure vessels, following bluepr…
  11. 11. Clean pressure vessel equipment, using scrapers, wire brushes, and cleaning solvents
  12. 12. Repair or replace defective pressure vessel parts, such as safety valves or regulators, using torches, jacks, caulking hammers, power saw…

Boilermakers: O*NET ranks Operations Monitoring first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 47-2011 - lead skill Operations Monitoring at 4.0 ; lead knowledge Mechanical. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Operations Monitoring 4.0
  2. 2. Operation and Control 3.8
  3. 3. Critical Thinking 3.5
  4. 4. Equipment Maintenance 3.1
  5. 5. Troubleshooting 3.1
  6. 6. Repairing 3.1
  7. 7. Quality Control Analysis 3.1
  8. 8. Reading Comprehension 3.0

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Mechanical 4.2
  2. 2. English Language 3.3
  3. 3. Mathematics 3.2
  4. 4. Administration and Management 2.9
  5. 5. Building and Construction 2.8
  6. 6. Computers and Electronics 2.6
National median after O*NET task lead
$76,410
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Conduct pressure tests on vessels, such as boilers
$76K
National median
↓ -2%
Growth 2024-2034
800
Annual openings
10,190
Estimated US jobs
First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers
Highest-pay peer · $80K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Boilermakers

1. Michigan $98,220
2. Minnesota $96,190
3. Indiana $91,410
4. Mississippi $105,910
5. Illinois $99,730
6. California $118,150
7. Wisconsin $97,590
8. New Mexico $101,200
9. Colorado $89,350
10. Washington $95,200

Other Construction and Extraction Occupations titles

  1. 1. Roof Bolters, Mining $78,540
  2. 2. First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers $79,920
  3. 3. Construction and Building Inspectors $74,690
  4. 4. Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators $70,070
  5. 5. Tapers $68,270
  6. 6. Terrazzo Workers and Finishers $76,170

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Boilermakers (SOC 47-2011). The national OEWS median is $76,410 inside Construction and Extraction Occupations. Same-group neighbors: First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers, Tapers, Roof Bolters, Mining, Construction and Building Inspectors. Lead published task: Conduct pressure tests on vessels, such as boilers.

Employment Projections expect -2% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 800 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Michigan at $98,220. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers at $79,920. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Boilermakers pay-rank #4 in Construction and Extraction Occupations

Among 60 detailed Construction and Extraction Occupations with a published OEWS median, Boilermakers is pay-rank #4, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 47-2011 · national median $76,410 · upper third of Construction and Extraction Occupations (#4/60). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Boilermakers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 47-2011

Michigan · top state for Boilermakers

$98K published median

Minnesota · #2 state pay

$96K · behind Michigan

First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers

Highest-pay peer vs Boilermakers · $80K

Tapers

Lower-pay peer beside Boilermakers · $68K

Compare Boilermakers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Boilermakers with another occupation →

Role and task next reads

Boilermakers full salary map

State and metro OEWS after the task lead

Compare tasks and pay

Side-by-side with another occupation

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Construction and Extraction Occupations titles sit near Boilermakers at the top of the pay table? ▼
Boilermakers is pay-rank #4 of 60 detailed Construction and Extraction Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Terrazzo Workers and Finishers ($76K), Construction and Building Inspectors ($75K), Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining ($75K), Roof Bolters, Mining ($79K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do boilermakers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Boilermakers. Leading ones include: Conduct pressure tests on vessels, such as boilers; Study blueprints to determine locations, relationships, or dimensions of parts; Assemble large vessels in an on-site fabrication shop prior to installation to ensure proper fit; Examine boilers, pressure vessels, tanks, or vats to locate defects, such as leaks, weak spots, or defective sections, so that they can b…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for boilermakers? ▼
For SOC 47-2011, O*NET importance scores lead with Operations Monitoring (4.0), Operation and Control (3.8), Critical Thinking (3.5), Equipment Maintenance (3.1). Knowledge areas emphasize Mechanical, English Language, Mathematics. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Boilermakers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $76,410 as the national median for Boilermakers. The published 10th-90th range is $50,490 to $110,370. Beside First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers ($79,920), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Boilermakers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Boilermakers is -2%. Projected annual openings: about 800. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Boilermakers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Boilermakers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Boilermakers? ▼
Michigan ($98,220), Minnesota ($96,190), Indiana ($91,410) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Boilermakers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 47-2011. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Boilermakers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics