Highway Maintenance Worker Job Outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of highway maintenance workers to grow 3.4% from 2025 to 2035 (about 5,500 more jobs), with about 11,800 openings a year, and the May 2025 median pay of $50,260 a year ranks 548th of 825 occupations.
- Projected change
- +3.4%
- Openings a year
- 11,800
- Median pay
- $50,260
- Pay rank
- 548th of 825
Is employment of highway maintenance workers growing or shrinking?
Growing: BLS projects employment of highway maintenance workers to rise 3.4% (about 5,500 more jobs) from 2025 to 2035, about the same as the 3.5% projected across all occupations. That is slower than the +5.1% summed from BLS's employment levels across the 60 construction and extraction occupations with a projection. That change ranks 364th of 830 projected occupations.
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Employment, 2025 | 161,800 |
| Employment, 2035 | 167,300 |
| Projected change | +3.4% |
| Openings a year | 11,800 |
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035. A projection is a BLS estimate, not a count. The 161,800 jobs here differ from the 154,960 on the salary page because Employment Projections also counts the self-employed and a wider set of workers, while OEWS counts wage and salary jobs in May 2025. BLS published these projections on August 27, 2026; checked November 10, 2026. Confirm any figure in the BLS Employment Projections tables.
BLS's reasons for this projection are at the Occupational Outlook Handbook. State projections are at Projections Central; projections by industry are left to BLS. Education, licensing and work context at O*NET.
How many job openings are there each year?
About 11,800 openings a year, from job growth and from workers leaving the occupation, the 248th most of 830 occupations. About 95% of them replace workers who change occupations or leave the labor force; the rest come from the 550 jobs added in an average year.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035.
How does pay for highway maintenance workers rank?
The median of $50,260 a year ranks 548th of 825 occupations with a published median. It sits in the upper half of occupations on openings and the lower half on pay.
Source: BLS OEWS national file, May 2025. Wage and salary jobs only; the self-employed are not counted. OEWS pay excludes overtime, shift differentials and non-production bonuses. Ranks count only the occupations with that published figure: 830 for projected change, 830 for openings, 825 for median pay, which is why the totals differ.
What does it take to start?
- Typical entry-level education: high school diploma or equivalent.
- Typical on-the-job training: moderate-term on-the-job training.
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, education and training assignments.
How do related jobs compare on outlook?
| Occupation | Change | Openings a year | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators | +4.6% | 39,200 | $59,850 |
| Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators | -0.9% | 3,100 | $53,340 |
| Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators | +1.5% | 1,200 | $70,070 |
| Pile Driver Operators | -5.7% | 200 | $73,300 |
| Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners | +7.8% | 2,800 | $49,880 |
| Construction Laborers | +7.3% | 120,000 | $47,120 |
| Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining | +1.0% | 2,400 | $57,430 |
| Helpers--Extraction Workers | +1.7% | 700 | $47,730 |
Related occupations from O*NET; projections from BLS Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035; pay from BLS OEWS, May 2025.