OCCUPATIONAL
PROFILE
Equipment Operator (47-2073.00)
At-a-Glance Statistics
Sample Back Hoe Operator, Engineering Equipment Operator, Equipment Operator, Heavy
. .	Equipment Operator, Loader Operator, Machine Operator, Motor Grader Operator,
JOD I ItieS Operating Engineer, Operator, Track Hoe Operator
Key Tasks • Learn and follow safety regulations.
•	Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines,
other equipment, other workers, or falling objects.
•	Locate underground services, such as pipes or wires, prior to beginning
work.
•	Monitor operations to ensure that health and safety standards are met.
•	Adjust handwheels and depress pedals to control attachments, such as
blades, buckets, scrapers, or swing booms.
•	Start engines, move throttles, switches, or levers, or depress pedals to
operate machines, such as bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, or
backhoes.
•	Coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads
in response to hand or audio signals from crew members.
•	Load and move dirt, rocks, equipment, or other materials, using trucks,
crawler tractors, power cranes, shovels, graders, or related equipment.
•	Check fuel supplies at sites to ensure adequate availability.
•	Drive and maneuver equipment equipped with blades in successive passes
over working areas to remove topsoil, vegetation, or rocks or to distribute
and level earth or terrain.
•	Signal operators to guide movement of tractor-drawn machines.
•	Keep records of material or equipment usage or problems encountered.
•	Align machines, cutterheads, or depth gauge makers with reference stakes
and guidelines or ground or position equipment, following hand signals of
other workers.

-------
Education and Training Top Industries
High school
diploma or
equivalent
67%
Post-secondary
certificate
18%
Less than a
high school
diploma
13%
Median Wages
Hourly
$17.21
EH
Annually
$35,800

Construction
Government
Number Employed

402,000 positions
52,500 job openings
Top Ten States for Occupational Percentage Growth
UT FL CO TX OR AZ CA NV ID DC

-------