Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers
Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesO*NET 53-7072.00United States
Tend, control, or operate power-driven, stationary, or portable pumps and manifold systems to transfer gases, oil, other liquids, slurries, or powdered materials to and from various vessels and processes.
- Median annual earnings
- $60,862
- Projected change
- +3.6%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 14.08K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
60.9% of the workforce
Growing to 14.59K by 2035
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The work
What pump operators, except wellhead pumpers do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Monitor gauges and flowmeters and inspect equipment to ensure that tank levels, temperatures, chemical amounts, and pressures are at specified levels, reporting abnormalities as necessary.
- Record operating data such as products and quantities pumped, stocks used, gauging results, and operating times.
- Plan movement of products through lines to processing, storage, and shipping units, using knowledge of interconnections and capacities of pipelines, valve manifolds, pumps, and tankage.
- Communicate with other workers, using signals, radios, or telephones, to start and stop flows of materials or substances.
- Turn valves and start pumps to start or regulate flows of substances such as gases, liquids, slurries, or powdered materials.
- Connect hoses and pipelines to pumps and vessels prior to material transfer, using hand tools.
- Tend vessels that store substances such as gases, liquids, slurries, or powdered materials, checking levels of substances by using calibrated rods or by reading mercury gauges and tank charts.
- Clean, lubricate, and repair pumps and vessels, using hand tools and equipment.
- Read operating schedules or instructions or receive verbal orders to determine amounts to be pumped.
- Test materials and solutions, using testing equipment.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $38,045
- 25th percentile
- $46,224
- 50th percentile
- $60,862
- 75th percentile
- $76,673
- 90th percentile
- $98,322
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $60,862 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+3.6%average or slower
202514,077 jobs
2035 projected14,587 jobs
510 more positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 60.9%
- Bachelor's degree
- 17.6%
- Some college
- 8.5%
- Certificate
- 8.4%
- Associate degree
- 4.6%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Operations Monitoring
- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Active Listening
- Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- Writing
- Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Instructing
- Teaching others how to do something.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Pipeline Technicians703 postings
- 02Locate Technicians513 postings
- 03Pipeline Operators363 postings
- 04Pump Technicians272 postings
- 05Operators210 postings
- 06Pipeliners205 postings
- 07Pump Mechanics196 postings
- 08Field Technicians169 postings
- 09Lease Operators150 postings
- 10Operations Technicians148 postings
- 11Pump Operators144 postings
- 12Technicians103 postings
- 13Field Operators70 postings
- 14Pipeline Integrity Specialists60 postings
- 15Damage Prevention Specialists55 postings
- 16Grain Operators49 postings
- 17Pipeline Specialists49 postings
- 18Roustabouts44 postings
- 19Behavior Technicians38 postings
- 20LDAR Technicians38 postings
Top employers
- 01Gridhawk409 postings
- 02Energy Transfer227 postings
- 03EPCO117 postings
- 04Enterprise Products112 postings
- 05Danos99 postings
- 06Stake Center Locating94 postings
- 07Kinder Morgan83 postings
- 08Adecco79 postings
- 09Enbridge69 postings
- 10Amergis55 postings
- 11Keystone Clearwater Solutions54 postings
- 12Berkshire Hathaway53 postings
- 13Oneok Rockies Midstream, L.L.C.51 postings
- 14Atmos Energy50 postings
- 15Plains Ag40 postings
- 16One Gas37 postings
- 17Oneok Services Company35 postings
- 18Williams Companies35 postings
- 19Aerotek34 postings
- 20Airswift33 postings
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