Transportation and Material Moving Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 53-7073

Wellhead Pumpers

O*NET task statements lead this Wellhead Pumpers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers, Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers, Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters, Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Wellhead Pumpers: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers ($232K) , Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers ($61K) , Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters ($78K) , Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers ($62K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Wellhead Pumpers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 53-7073 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks
  2. 2. Gauge oil and gas production
  3. 3. Start compressor engines and divert oil from storage tanks into compressor units and auxiliary equipment to recover natural gas from oil
  4. 4. Monitor control panels during pumping operations to ensure that materials are being pumped at the correct pressure, density, rate, and co…
  5. 5. Operate engines and pumps to shut off wells according to production schedules, and to switch flow of oil into storage tanks
  6. 6. Open valves to return compressed gas to bottoms of specified wells to repressurize them and force oil to surface
  7. 7. Change water filters
  8. 8. Repair gas and oil meters and gauges
  9. 9. Prepare trucks and equipment necessary for the type of pumping service required
  10. 10. Perform routine maintenance on vehicles and equipment
  11. 11. Attach pumps and hoses to wellheads
  12. 12. Mix acids, chemicals, or dry cement as required for a specific job

Wellhead Pumpers: O*NET ranks Operations Monitoring first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 53-7073 - 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 3.9
  3. 3. Critical Thinking 3.1
  4. 4. Monitoring 3.1
  5. 5. Equipment Maintenance 3.1
  6. 6. Troubleshooting 3.1
  7. 7. Repairing 3.1
  8. 8. Judgment and Decision Making 3.1

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Mechanical 3.7
  2. 2. Mathematics 3.0
  3. 3. Administrative 2.9
  4. 4. Chemistry 2.8
  5. 5. Production and Processing 2.8
  6. 6. English Language 2.7
National median after O*NET task lead
$69,960
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks
$70K
National median
↓ -5%
Growth 2024-2034
2,000
Annual openings
17,990
Estimated US jobs
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
Highest-pay peer · $232K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent
Related experience Less than 5 years

Top Paying States for Wellhead Pumpers

1. California $64,430
2. New Mexico $78,010
3. Texas $75,860
4. Colorado $72,700
5. Oklahoma $61,380
6. Louisiana $76,930
7. Arkansas $64,650
8. North Dakota $79,820
9. Mississippi $62,560
10. Kansas $62,400

Other Transportation and Material Moving Occupations titles

  1. 1. Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters $78,000
  2. 2. Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers $232,140
  3. 3. Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers $61,770
  4. 4. Ship Engineers $109,530
  5. 5. Transportation Inspectors $92,100
  6. 6. Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers $60,600

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Wellhead Pumpers (SOC 53-7073). The national OEWS median is $69,960 inside Transportation and Material Moving Occupations. Same-group neighbors: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers, Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers, Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters, Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers. Lead published task: Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks.

Employment Projections expect -5% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 2,000 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry and less than 5 years as the typical related-work-experience category. 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: California at $64,430. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers at $232,140. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Wellhead Pumpers pay-rank #11 in Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

Among 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations with a published OEWS median, Wellhead Pumpers is pay-rank #11, 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 53-7073 · national median $69,960 · upper third of Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (#11/50). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Wellhead Pumpers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 53-7073

California · top state for Wellhead Pumpers

$64K published median

New Mexico · #2 state pay

$78K · behind California

Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers

Highest-pay peer vs Wellhead Pumpers · $232K

Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers

Lower-pay peer beside Wellhead Pumpers · $61K

Compare Wellhead Pumpers

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

Role and task next reads

Wellhead Pumpers 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 Transportation and Material Moving Occupations titles sit near Wellhead Pumpers at the top of the pay table? ▼
Wellhead Pumpers is pay-rank #11 of 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers ($69K), Crane and Tower Operators ($68K), Flight Attendants ($64K), First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors ($63K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do wellhead pumpers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Wellhead Pumpers. Leading ones include: Monitor pumps and flow lines for gas and fluid leaks; Gauge oil and gas production; Start compressor engines and divert oil from storage tanks into compressor units and auxiliary equipment to recover natural gas from oil; Monitor control panels during pumping operations to ensure that materials are being pumped at the correct pressure, density, rate, and co…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for wellhead pumpers? ▼
For SOC 53-7073, O*NET importance scores lead with Operations Monitoring (4.0), Operation and Control (3.9), Critical Thinking (3.1), Monitoring (3.1). Knowledge areas emphasize Mechanical, Mathematics, Administrative. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Wellhead Pumpers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $69,960 as the national median for Wellhead Pumpers. The published 10th-90th range is $44,100 to $98,170. Beside Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers ($232,140), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Wellhead Pumpers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Wellhead Pumpers is -5%. Projected annual openings: about 2,000. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Wellhead Pumpers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Wellhead Pumpers. Related-work-experience category: less than 5 years. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Wellhead Pumpers? ▼
California ($64,430), New Mexico ($78,010), Texas ($75,860) 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 Wellhead Pumpers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 53-7073. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Wellhead Pumpers. 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