Career
Construction laborers
Do the physical work that keeps job sites moving.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Tend pumps, compressors, or generators to provide power for tools, machinery, or equipment or to heat or move materials, such as asphalt.
- Lubricate, clean, or repair machinery, equipment, or tools.
- Signal equipment operators to facilitate alignment, movement, or adjustment of machinery, equipment, or materials.
- Read plans, instructions, or specifications to determine work activities.
- Measure, mark, or record openings or distances to layout areas where construction work will be performed.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Tend pumps, compressors, or generators to provide power for tools, machinery, or equipment or to heat or move materials, such as asphalt.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Speaking, Coordination, Active Listening, Operation and Control.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though short-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $47,120 a year and 120,000 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- NO MATCHCIP 99.9999
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators$53,340 · -0.9%
- Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining$57,430 · +1.0%
- Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers$57,020 · +1.6%
- Pipelayers$49,000 · -3.1%
- Structural Iron and Steel Workers$62,780 · +3.1%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.