Recycling and Reclamation Workers
Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesO*NET 53-7062.04United States
Prepare and sort materials or products for recycling. Identify and remove hazardous substances.
- Median annual earnings
- $40,118
- Projected change
- +5.3%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 3.01M jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
76% of the workforce
Growing to 3.17M by 2035
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ASU learning related to this career
These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
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The work
What recycling and reclamation workers do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Sort materials, such as metals, glass, wood, paper or plastics, into appropriate containers for recycling.
- Clean recycling yard by sweeping, raking, picking up broken glass and loose paper debris, or moving barrels and bins.
- Operate forklifts, pallet jacks, power lifts, or front-end loaders to load bales, bundles, or other heavy items onto trucks for shipping to smelters or other recycled materials processing facilities.
- Sort metals to separate high-grade metals, such as copper, brass, and aluminum, for recycling.
- Clean, inspect, or lubricate recyclable collection equipment or perform routine maintenance or minor repairs on recycling equipment, such as star gears, finger sorters, destoners, belts, and grinders.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $30,872
- 25th percentile
- $35,781
- 50th percentile
- $40,118
- 75th percentile
- $47,138
- 90th percentile
- $56,327
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $40,118 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
+5.3%average or slower
20253,011,748 jobs
2035 projected3,171,945 jobs
160,197 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
- 76%
- Associate degree
- 14.6%
- Doctoral degree or more
- 8%
- Certificate
- 1.5%
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.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- 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.
- 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.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Reading Comprehension
- Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Service Orientation
- Actively looking for ways to help people.
- 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.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- 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
- 01Sanitation Technicians1,889 postings
- 02General Utility Workers556 postings
- 03Trash Technicians297 postings
- 04Cleaning Technicians289 postings
- 05Equipment Operators276 postings
- 06Sanitation Workers259 postings
- 07Street Sweepers256 postings
- 08Technicians243 postings
- 09Utility Workers236 postings
- 10Recycling Technicians214 postings
- 11Environmental Technicians185 postings
- 12Sorters170 postings
- 13Solid Waste Managers159 postings
- 14Assistants/Associates158 postings
- 15Car Wash Technicians157 postings
- 16Removal Technicians148 postings
- 17Maintenance Equipment Operators137 postings
- 18Environmental Services Technicians128 postings
- 19Sanitation Operators120 postings
- 20Sanitation Laborers118 postings
Top employers
- 01Aramark526 postings
- 02Waste Management167 postings
- 03ManpowerGroup155 postings
- 04Walmart134 postings
- 05Republic Services132 postings
- 06Compass Group120 postings
- 07Sweeping Corporation Of America103 postings
- 08Aerotek99 postings
- 09SBM Management Services99 postings
- 10J.R. Simplot Company74 postings
- 11Hannaford Brothers Company70 postings
- 12Clean Harbors60 postings
- 13Stericycle60 postings
- 14Reworld59 postings
- 15ABM Industries58 postings
- 16Crothall Healthcare58 postings
- 17ESFM54 postings
- 18Atrium Health51 postings
- 19Makers Pride44 postings
- 20Tyson Foods43 postings
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