Heavy equipment operator pay, for employers
What heavy equipment operators earn, from Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) medians, what one costs to employ, how the job is paid and whether overtime is owed.
Heavy equipment operator pay at a glance
- Median a year
- $59,850
- Median an hour
- $28.78
- BLS period
- May 2025
- Federal overtime
- Owed after 40 hours
What heavy equipment operators earn
- National median
- $59,850 a year, $28.78 an hour (May 2025)BLS occupation: Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators (SOC 47-2073).Source: BLS OEWS May 2025, national, Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, all industries: annual median, series OEUN000000000000047207313 (BLS data API, JSON) (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026; BLS OEWS May 2025, national, Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, all industries: hourly median, series OEUN000000000000047207308 (BLS data API, JSON) (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
- What the median covers
- BLS medians include base rate; cost-of-living allowances; guaranteed pay; hazardous-duty pay; incentive pay, including commissions and production bonuses; and tips.They leave out overtime pay; severance pay; shift differentials; nonproduction bonuses; employer cost for supplementary benefits; and tuition reimbursements.The annual figure is the hourly median times 2,080 hours.Source: BLS, May 2025 OEWS Estimates: technical notes (opens in a new tab), read from an archived copy dated August 30, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
Median pay by state
BLS medians for heavy equipment operators in each state and DC, May 2025.
| State | Median a year | Median an hour |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $47,520 | $22.84 |
| Alaska | $77,810 | $37.41 |
| Arizona | $60,620 | $29.14 |
| Arkansas | $44,520 | $21.41 |
| California | $87,160 | $41.90 |
| Colorado | $62,620 | $30.11 |
| Connecticut | $78,750 | $37.86 |
| Delaware | $58,020 | $27.89 |
| District of Columbia | $74,610 | $35.87 |
| Florida | $49,400 | $23.75 |
| Georgia | $47,880 | $23.02 |
| Hawaii | $115,860 | $55.70 |
| Idaho | $61,680 | $29.66 |
| Illinois | $97,740 | $46.99 |
| Indiana | $79,580 | $38.26 |
| Iowa | $60,330 | $29.01 |
| Kansas | $51,620 | $24.82 |
| Kentucky | $57,780 | $27.78 |
| Louisiana | $51,700 | $24.86 |
| Maine | $56,140 | $26.99 |
| Maryland | $61,410 | $29.53 |
| Massachusetts | $76,820 | $36.93 |
| Michigan | $62,690 | $30.14 |
| Minnesota | $79,130 | $38.04 |
| Mississippi | $47,410 | $22.79 |
| Missouri | $60,540 | $29.10 |
| Montana | $61,580 | $29.61 |
| Nebraska | $58,360 | $28.06 |
| Nevada | $71,410 | $34.33 |
| New Hampshire | $62,200 | $29.91 |
| New Jersey | $89,660 | $43.11 |
| New Mexico | $52,000 | $25.00 |
| New York | $80,980 | $38.94 |
| North Carolina | $49,310 | $23.71 |
| North Dakota | $62,150 | $29.88 |
| Ohio | $64,940 | $31.22 |
| Oklahoma | $47,970 | $23.06 |
| Oregon | $73,430 | $35.30 |
| Pennsylvania | $60,530 | $29.10 |
| Rhode Island | $63,610 | $30.58 |
| South Carolina | $48,940 | $23.53 |
| South Dakota | $59,500 | $28.61 |
| Tennessee | $52,000 | $25.00 |
| Texas | $50,460 | $24.26 |
| Utah | $60,740 | $29.20 |
| Vermont | $58,870 | $28.30 |
| Virginia | $57,160 | $27.48 |
| Washington | $81,700 | $39.28 |
| West Virginia | $51,300 | $24.66 |
| Wisconsin | $75,280 | $36.19 |
| Wyoming | $62,960 | $30.27 |
Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 state estimates (oesm25st.zip) (opens in a new tab), read from an archived copy dated October 4, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
What one costs to employ
The national median as the year's gross wages, plus your Social Security, Medicare and FUTA. Enter your state unemployment rate and wage base, workers' comp rate, benefits and overhead for your own figure.
One year: a heavy equipment operator at the national median, $59,850 (BLS, May 2025)
Employer cost of one employee for calendar year 2026: 6.2% Social Security on wages up to $184,500 (2026), 1.45% Medicare, and FUTA at 0.6% of the first $7,000 a year with the full 5.4% credit, plus the state unemployment, workers’ compensation, benefits, and overhead you enter, with all wages subject to FICA and FUTA. It leaves out credit reduction states, pay that FICA or FUTA excludes, such as your health plan contributions, and how the cost spreads across pay periods. Other cases and state law can change the result.
State unemployment rates and wage bases: Payroll tax rates by state
How heavy equipment operators are paid
Each way of paying the job, with the federal rule for its regular rate and overtime. Where the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook says how the job is paid, its words are quoted.
- Hourly
- Paid by the hour. When the hourly rate is the only pay, it is the regular rate, and each hour over 40 in the workweek earns half that rate on top.Source: 29 CFR 778.110 (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
Overtime
- Owed after 40 hours
- Owed. Non-management operating engineers are blue-collar workers the white-collar exemptions do not cover, however well paid: time and a half after 40 hours in a workweek.Federal rule only: a state's overtime law can require more.Source: 29 CFR 541.3 (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026; 29 U.S.C. 207 (opens in a new tab)
Industry and workers' comp
- HCM industry
- Construction: GCs and specialty trades
- Workers' comp class codes
- Class codes that commonly cover heavy equipment operators, on Worklio Insurance. The class depends on your business and the manual filed in your state.6217 Excavation5507 Road subsurface work5506 Road pavingAll class codes on Worklio Insurance
WORKLIO HCM
Run payroll for heavy equipment operators in Worklio HCM
Payroll, tax, HR, time, and benefits administration run on one 50-state engine, for companies with 50 to 50,000+ employees. Approve once: hours flow in from time tracking, deductions from benefits, and every pay run posts taxes, filings, comp premiums and the general ledger automatically. For construction: prevailing wage by job and classification, union fringes calculated and reported, WH-347 ready, job costing by project and comp class codes per employee. Union, prevailing wage, and certified payroll is available as an add-on to any plan.
Other jobs
- Electrician$63,190 a year
- Plumber$63,800 a year
- Carpenter$60,580 a year
- HVAC technician$61,010 a year
- Roofer$55,440 a year
- Construction laborer$47,120 a year
- All 41 jobs
Sources
The data series, regulation or document behind each figure and rule, as checked.
- BLS OEWS May 2025, national, Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, all industries: annual median, series OEUN000000000000047207313 (BLS data API, JSON) (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
- BLS OEWS May 2025, national, Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators, all industries: hourly median, series OEUN000000000000047207308 (BLS data API, JSON) (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
- BLS, May 2025 OEWS Estimates: technical notes (opens in a new tab), read from an archived copy dated August 30, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- BLS OEWS May 2025 state estimates (oesm25st.zip) (opens in a new tab), read from an archived copy dated October 4, 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- 29 CFR 778.110 (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
- 29 CFR 541.3 (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
- 29 U.S.C. 207 (opens in a new tab)
- Worklio Insurance: workers' comp class codes (opens in a new tab), checked October 6, 2026
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm current requirements with the relevant agency or your advisor. You remain responsible for how you classify and pay each employee.