SOC 47-5081.00

    Helpers--Extraction Workers

    Help extraction craft workers, such as earth drillers, blasters and explosives workers, derrick operators, and mining machine operators, by performing duties requiring less skill.

    Median pay
    $47,730
    Growth
    +1.7%
    Slower than average
    Openings a year
    700
    Typical education
    High school diploma

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

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    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $36,960
    Median
    $47,730
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $68,020
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    6,700 people work in this occupation.

    What helpers--extraction workers do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Help extraction craft workers, such as earth drillers, blasters and explosives workers, derrick operators, and mining machine operators, by performing duties requiring less skill. Duties include supplying equipment or cleaning work area.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    100 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    19 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    0 / 100
    Social (S)
    13 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    10 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    45 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCI. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Handling and Moving Objects
    94
    Controlling Machines and Processes
    94
    Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment
    93
    Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment
    89
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    87
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    85
    Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
    84
    Performing General Physical Activities
    84
    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    81
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    80
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Monitoring
    • Operations Monitoring
    • Equipment Maintenance
    • Operation and Control
    • Repairing
    • Troubleshooting
    • Coordination
    • Critical Thinking
    • Equipment Selection
    • Quality Control Analysis

    Knowledge

    • Mechanical
    • English Language
    • Transportation
    • Mathematics
    • Administration and Management
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Education and Training
    • Production and Processing
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Engineering and Technology

    Abilities

    • Manual Dexterity
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Control Precision
    • Multilimb Coordination
    • Reaction Time
    • Far Vision
    • Near Vision
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Static Strength
    • Trunk Strength

    Work styles

    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Attention to Detail
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Self-Control
    • Integrity
    • Cooperation
    • Perseverance
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Adaptability

    Also called

    Blaster Helper · Blasting Helper · Boring Machine Operator Helper · Bottom Hole Pressure Recording Operator Helper · Churn Driller Helper · Clean Out Driller Helper · Clean-Out Driller Helper · Coal Loader · Continuous Miner Operator Helper · Core Drill Operator Helper

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    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.