Occupation Profile

Highway Maintenance Workers

(SOC Code : 47-4051)

in California

Maintain highways, municipal and rural roads, airport runways, and rights-of-way. Duties include patching broken or eroded pavement, repairing guard rails, highway markers, and snow fences. May also mow or clear brush from along road or plow snow from roadway. Exclude "Tree Trimmers and Pruners" (37-3013).

Employers usually expect an employee in this occupation to be able to do the job after Moderate-term on-the-job training (1-12 months) .

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Occupational Wages

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Area	Year	Period	Hourly Mean	Hourly by Percentile
				25th	Median	75th
California	2012	1st Qtr	$24.37	$18.97	$23.81	$28.62

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Occupational Projections of Employment (also called "Outlook" or "Demand")

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Area	Estimated Year-Projected Year	Employment		Employment Change		Annual Avg Openings
		Estimated	Projected	Number	Percent
California	2010 - 2020	4,100	4,500	400	9.8	150

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Job Openings from JobCentral National Labor Exchange

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Industries Employing This Occupation (click on Industry Title to View Employers List)

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Data for Industries Employing This Occupation (click on Industry Title to View Employers List) not available.

About Staffing Patterns

Training Programs (click on title for more information)

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Program Title

Construction/Heavy Equipment/Earthmoving Equipment Operation

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About This Occupation (from O*NET - The Occupation Information Network)

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Top Tasks (Specific duties and responsibilities of this job.)

Flag motorists to warn them of obstacles or repair work ahead.

Set out signs and cones around work areas to divert traffic.

Perform preventative maintenance on vehicles and heavy equipment.

Drive heavy equipment and vehicles with adjustable attachments to sweep debris from paved surfaces, mow grass and weeds, remove snow and ice, and spread salt and sand.

Drive trucks to transport crews and equipment to work sites.

Haul and spread sand, gravel, and clay to fill washouts and repair road shoulders.

Dump, spread, and tamp asphalt, using pneumatic tampers, to repair joints and patch broken pavement.

Clean and clear debris from culverts, catch basins, drop inlets, ditches, and other drain structures.

Remove litter and debris from roadways, including debris from rock and mud slides.

Erect, install, or repair guardrails, road shoulders, berms, highway markers, warning signals, and highway lighting, using hand tools and power tools.

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Top Skills used in this Job

Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

Equipment Maintenance - Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.

Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.

Troubleshooting - Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.

Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others` actions.

Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.

Quality Control Analysis - Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.

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Top Abilities (Attributes of the person that influence performance in this job.)

Control Precision - The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.

Multilimb Coordination - The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.

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Top Work Values (Aspects of this job that create satisfaction.)

Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees.

Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment.

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Top Interests (The types of activities someone in this job would like.)

Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.

Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

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Alternate Titles

Highway Maintainers; Highway Maintenance Crew Workers; Highway Workers; Service Assistants (Maintenance)