Hazardous Materials Removal Workers Salary: $63,040 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 50,570 hazardous materials removal workers nationally earn a mean of $63,040. Employment in the series shown rose about 10% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 1.6% annual growth.
Key Statistics
Hazardous Materials Removal Workers: what the data shows
Common questions about hazardous materials removal workers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a hazardous materials removal workers?
Hazardous Materials Removal Workers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 47-4041.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 50,570 workers.
What does a hazardous materials removal workers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Handling and Moving Objects, Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a hazardous materials removal workers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $48,490 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $63,040 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $40,517 |
| 25th percentile | $46,673 |
| Median (50th) | $56,349 |
| 75th percentile | $78,872 |
| 90th percentile | $91,029 |
What education do you need?
For Hazardous Materials Removal Workers, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Monitoring, Critical Thinking, Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, Speaking, and knowledge areas including Public Safety and Security, Administration and Management, Transportation, Customer and Personal Service. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is hazardous materials removal workers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 1.6% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 8.5%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 17.7%.
Current U.S. headcount: 50,570.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do hazardous materials removal workerss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 50,570 | 19.8% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 48,360 | 18.9% |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | 41,500 | 16.2% |
| Waste Management and Remediation Services | 38,080 | 14.9% |
| Remediation and Other Waste Management Services | 31,250 | 12.2% |
| Waste Treatment and Disposal | 5,050 | 2.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Hazardous Materials Removal Workers workforce.
Employment Over Time
50,570 Workforce in 2023
The Hazardous Materials Removal Workers workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$63,040 Average Wage
In 2023, Hazardous Materials Removal Workers earned an average of $63,040.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Salary distribution for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Employment Growth Projections
1.6% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
33,390 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 8.5%
36,223 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 17.7%
This occupation is projected to grow at 1.6% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Hazardous Materials Removal Workers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Hazardous Materials Removal Workers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Wage Trends by Industry
-4.0% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 7,950 employees, $61,240 avg wage
- NY: 3,660 employees, $71,350 avg wage
- TX: 3,260 employees, $46,140 avg wage
- WA: 2,850 employees, $67,200 avg wage
- MA: 2,550 employees, $53,960 avg wage
- FL: 2,300 employees, $43,430 avg wage
- NJ: 2,090 employees, $63,170 avg wage
- CO: 1,950 employees, $58,240 avg wage
- IL: 1,810 employees, $62,770 avg wage
- PA: 1,600 employees, $52,360 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 3,580 employees, $71,880 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 3,020 employees, $59,130 avg wage
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 1,950 employees, $54,550 avg wage
- San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA: 1,470 employees, $67,710 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 1,440 employees, $64,890 avg wage
- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA: 1,320 employees, $64,970 avg wage
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO: 1,060 employees, $57,120 avg wage
- Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: 1,040 employees, $40,740 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 970 employees, $46,130 avg wage
- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA: 900 employees, $52,570 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Hazardous Materials Removal Workers in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Hazardous Materials Removal Workers in 2023 was 50,570 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Hazardous Materials Removal Workers in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Hazardous Materials Removal Workers workers.
Education level distribution for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Skills
Hazardous Materials Removal Workers need many skills, but most especially Monitoring, Critical Thinking, Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening.
Required skills for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers include Public Safety and Security, Administration and Management, Transportation, Customer and Personal Service, Building and Construction.
Knowledge areas required for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers include Problem Sensitivity, Oral Comprehension, Control Precision, Near Vision, Oral Expression.
Required abilities for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
Daily Activities
Hazardous Materials Removal Workers spend their time on activities such as Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Handling and Moving Objects.
Most important work activities for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.
About
Hazardous Materials Removal Workers
The average yearly wage for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers was $63,040 in 2023.
SOC Code
47-4041 - Hazardous Materials Removal Workers
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Hazardous Materials Removal Workers reports an average salary of $63,040.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 50,570 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 1.6%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.