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Power Plant Operators in California

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Power Plant Operators in California

Get the information you need to know about working as a Power Plant Operator.

$95,340 Median Salary
280 Job Openings
  • Power Plant Operators in California earn higher salaries than the typical U.S. wage earner.

How Many Power Plant Operators Work in California?

In California, there were 3,670 people working as Power Plant Operators in the year 2018.

There were 3,210 Power Plant Operators employed in this state in 2017.

That’s growth of 460 jobs between 2017 and 2018.

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The typical state has 500 Power Plant Operators working in it, which means California has more Power Plant Operators than average.

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Job Projections for California

Jobs for Power Plant Operators in this state are not projected to grow or decrease, but nationwide they are growing at a rate of 1.1%.

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California Annual Job Openings

The BLS estimates 280 annual job openings, and a total of 3,200 jobs for California Power Plant Operators in 2026.

Nationwide, the prediction is 3,200 annual jobs and 36,500 total jobs in 2026.

What do Power Plant Operators Make in California?

In 2018 wages for Power Plant Operators ranged from $60,490 to $127,090 with $95,340 being the median annual salary.

Broken down to an hourly rate, workers in this field made anywhere from $29.08 to $61.1. The median hourly rate was $45.84.

In 2017 the median pay for this field was $46.22 an hour.

The hourly rate declined by $0.38.

The median salary in California is higher than the nationwide median salary.

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Top California Metros for Power Plant Operators

The table below shows some of the metros in this state with the most Power Plant Operators.

Metro Number Employed Annual Median Salary
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 300 $111,150
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA 290 $86,690
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA 230 $67,710
Fresno, CA 190 $108,020
Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA 180 $113,950
Bakersfield, CA 110 $103,630
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 90 $81,150
Modesto, CA 70 $104,880
Merced, CA 60 $93,930
Stockton-Lodi, CA 40 $86,420
Madera, CA 40 $49,300
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA 30 $86,420

Top States for Power Plant Operators Employment

The table below shows the states where most Power Plant Operators work.

State Number Employed Annual Median Salary
California 3,670 $95,340
Texas 2,530 $76,520
New York 1,850 $90,690
Michigan 1,640 $78,850
Florida 1,620 $74,250
Pennsylvania 1,540 $73,720
Ohio 1,280 $73,260
North Carolina 1,180 $85,980
Illinois 1,110 $77,510
Massachusetts 990 $80,590
Minnesota 990 $84,830
Missouri 910 $76,100
Colorado 780 $82,030
Kentucky 720 $87,520
Georgia 680 $71,480
Wisconsin 660 $64,030
Alabama 660 $68,360
Tennessee 620 $80,970
Kansas 590 $53,020
Indiana 560 $66,750

Below are the states where Power Plant Operators get paid the most:

State Annual Median Salary
California $95,340
Washington $93,330
Hawaii $92,620
North Dakota $92,350
Maryland $91,770
New York $90,690
New Jersey $88,110
Kentucky $87,520
Nevada $87,460
North Carolina $85,980

Discover similar careers:

Occupation CA Employment Total

References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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