Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining
US occupation · SOC 47-5022
Job titles people report: Backhoe Operator, Dragline Oiler, Dragline Operator, Equipment Operator, Excavator Operator, Heavy Equipment Operator, Loader Operator, Pit Operator, Track Hoe Operator
Pay and outlook
- Median annual wage, May 2025
- $57,430
- Half earn more, half earn less
- Middle half earn
- $47,890 – $65,730
- 25th to 75th percentile
- People employed, May 2025
- 34,480
- Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)
- Projected change, 2025–35
- +1%
- Growing slower than all jobs (0% to under 3.5%)
- Openings a year (projected)
- 2,400
- New jobs plus replacing people who leave
- Typical education to enter
- High school diploma or equivalent
- BLS
- All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
- Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
- Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.
What the work involves
Operate or tend machinery at surface mining site, equipped with scoops, shovels, or buckets to excavate and load loose materials.
Main tasks
- Move levers, depress foot pedals, and turn dials to operate power machinery, such as power shovels, stripping shovels, scraper loaders, or backhoes.
- Set up or inspect equipment prior to operation.
- Become familiar with digging plans, machine capabilities and limitations, and efficient and safe digging procedures in a given application.
- Observe hand signals, grade stakes, or other markings when operating machines so that work can be performed to specifications.
- Operate machinery to perform activities such as backfilling excavations, vibrating or breaking rock or concrete, or making winter roads.
- Receive written or oral instructions regarding material movement or excavation.
- Move materials over short distances, such as around a construction site, factory, or warehouse.
- Create or maintain inclines or ramps.
Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.
Getting in
- Typical education to enter (BLS)
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Work experience in a related job: less than 5 years
- Training once hired: moderate-term on-the-job training
- O*NET Job Zone 1–2
- Little to some preparation
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Interests it suits
The strongest of the six O*NET interest types for this occupation, highest first. The short glosses are ours.
- Realistic: hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
- Conventional: organising information, records and procedures
- Investigative: research, analysis and solving problems with ideas
Fields of study that lead here
From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 1 programme to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.
Fields
Our college matcher doesn't offer this field as a major, so we can't suggest colleges for it here.
Transportation and Materials Moving
- Construction/Heavy Equipment/Earthmoving Equipment Operation
Related careers
Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.
- Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
$59,850 median · +4.6% projected
- Hoist and Winch Operators
$56,450 median · +0.2% projected
- Continuous Mining Machine Operators
$61,810 median · +3.2% projected
- Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines
$65,510 median · +6.7% projected
- Crane and Tower Operators
$68,080 median · +3.8% projected
- Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
$46,420 median · +1.5% projected
Sources
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CollegeMatcher has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0
Changes: we show the core tasks in the O*NET database with the highest importance ratings (up to eight, in that order), the top three O*NET interest types by score, and shortened Job Zone names. Titles, descriptions and task text are unchanged.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Projections, typical entry education and training: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35. Fields of study: NCES and BLS CIP 2020–SOC 2018 Crosswalk. All public domain. OEWS · Employment Projections · CIP–SOC crosswalk