Hazardous Materials Removal Workers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators: $49K vs $53K Median Pay

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators: what changes?

Consider Hazardous Materials Removal Workers if you want to identify, remove, pack, transport, or dispose of hazardous materials, including asbestos, lead-based paint, waste oil, fuel, transmission fluid, radioactive materials, or contaminated soil. Consider Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators if you would rather operate equipment used for applying concrete, asphalt, or other materials to road beds, parking lots, or airport runways and taxiways or for tamping gravel, dirt, or other materials. Both list high school diploma or equivalent; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers and Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers

National median pay (2025): $49,450
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Build containment areas prior to beginning abatement or decontamination work.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 4,300

Know before you choose

The work can involve real occupational hazards. Training, protective equipment, and routine safety discipline matter every day.

See the full Hazardous Materials Removal Workers brief

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

National median pay (2025): $53,340
Route into the job: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.
Work to investigate: Start machine, engage clutch, and push and move levers to guide machine along forms or guidelines and to control the operation of machine attachments.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 3,100

Know before you choose

BLS projects employment to shrink 0.9% from 2025 to 2035. Openings can still occur when existing workers leave.

See the full Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators brief

How the national numbers differ

Typical preparation differs.

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators: High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing Preparation categories do not establish admission difficulty, calendar time, tuition, time without earnings, or licensing difficulty.

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers has the edge on projected growth

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers is at 1.5% projected growth, compared with -0.9% projected growth for Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators.

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators has the edge on median pay

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators is at $53,340, compared with $49,450 for Hazardous Materials Removal Workers.

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers has the edge on annual openings

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers is at 4,300 annual openings, compared with 3,100 annual openings for Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators.

40.5/ 100

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers

42/ 100

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

Dimension	Hazardous Materials Removal Workers	Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators
Median pay (2025)	$49,450	$53,340
Pay percentile	30.9 percentile	38.6 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	1.5%	-0.9%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	4,300	3,100
2025 employment	52,700	42,300
How you qualify	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing	High school diploma or equivalent; More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 3	Job Zone 2
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.	More than one month and up to 12 months of on-the-job training, in addition to any qualifying education or licensing.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Hazardous Materials Removal Workers brief Read Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators brief

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

How the national numbers differ

Typical preparation differs.

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers has the edge on projected growth

Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators has the edge on median pay

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers has the edge on annual openings

Hazardous Materials Removal Workers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators

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