Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2005

51-9051 Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders

Operate or tend heating equipment other than basic metal, plastic, or food processing equipment. Includes activities, such as annealing glass, drying lumber, curing rubber, removing moisture from materials, or boiling soap.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
28,140 2.8 % $15.36 $31,940 1.0 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $9.59 $11.69 $14.62 $18.75 $22.41
Annual Wage (2) $19,940 $24,320 $30,400 $38,990 $46,620

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Rubber product manufacturing 3,630 $16.66 $34,640
Glass and glass product manufacturing 3,380 $14.85 $30,880
Clay product and refractory manufacturing 3,040 $13.54 $28,170
Plywood and engineered wood product mfg. 1,360 $13.17 $27,400
Sawmills and wood preservation 1,330 $13.96 $29,040

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage
Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills 1,280 $20.08 $41,770
Metal ore mining 180 $19.25 $40,030
Cement and concrete product manufacturing 1,240 $18.77 $39,050
Iron and steel mills and ferroalloy mfg. 580 $18.35 $38,160
Converted paper product manufacturing 190 $18.28 $38,020

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest published employment concentrations and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all States with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
Arkansas 810 $16.35 $34,000 0.071%
Mississippi 610 $14.14 $29,410 0.055%
Indiana 1,590 $16.15 $33,600 0.055%
Tennessee 1,420 $14.61 $30,380 0.053%
Kentucky 930 $14.64 $30,450 0.053%

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment
Wyoming 80 $21.08 $43,850 0.032%
Kansas 330 $19.04 $39,610 0.025%
Nevada 90 $18.99 $39,490 0.008%
Washington 630 $18.91 $39,330 0.024%
Maine 200 $18.29 $38,050 0.033%

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest published employment concentrations and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all Metropolitan areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Dalton, GA 140 $12.31 $25,610 0.189%
Hattiesburg, MS 90 $19.76 $41,100 0.169%
Toledo, OH 320 $16.44 $34,190 0.099%
Johnson City, TN 70 $13.65 $28,390 0.094%
Macon, GA 90 $15.45 $32,140 0.090%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Savannah, GA (8) $22.05 $45,860 (8)
Duluth, MN-WI 110 $21.72 $45,180 0.089%
Columbus, OH (8) $20.81 $43,280 (8)
Charleston-North Charleston, SC 130 $20.47 $42,590 0.048%
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA Metropolitan Division (8) $20.36 $42,340 (8)

About May 2005 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files (XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2005 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2005 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2005 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: May 24, 2006