Excavator operator vs payloader operator

The differences between excavator operators and payloader operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an excavator operator and a payloader operator. Additionally, an excavator operator has an average salary of $46,102, which is higher than the $36,148 average annual salary of a payloader operator.

The top three skills for an excavator operator include CDL, OSHA and backhoe. The most important skills for a payloader operator are mission planning, UAS, and UAV.

Excavator operator vs payloader operator overview

	Excavator Operator	Payloader Operator
Yearly salary	$46,102	$36,148
Hourly rate	$22.16	$17.38
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	36,584	30,099
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	4	4

Excavator operator vs payloader operator salary

Excavator operators and payloader operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Excavator Operator	Payloader Operator
Average salary	$46,102	$36,148
Salary range	Between $33,000 And $62,000	Between $24,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	Baltimore, MD	-
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	-
Best paying company	Roto	-
Best paying industry	Energy	-

Differences between excavator operator and payloader operator education

There are a few differences between an excavator operator and a payloader operator in terms of educational background:

	Excavator Operator	Payloader Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 56%	Bachelor's Degree, 35%
Most common major	Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies	Aviation
Most common college	-	-

Excavator operator vs payloader operator demographics

Here are the differences between excavator operators' and payloader operators' demographics:

	Excavator Operator	Payloader Operator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 96.1% Female, 3.9%	Male, 97.4% Female, 2.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 2.5% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%	Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 16.0% Asian, 2.5% White, 67.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.3%
LGBT Percentage	2%	2%

Differences between excavator operator and payloader operator duties and responsibilities

Excavator operator example responsibilities.

Experience in operating heavy equipment including excavators, front end loaders, skid loaders, tractors, etc.
Obtain CDL with Hazmat and tanker endorsements.
Create safe slopes and proper barricading during excavations.
Locate under grind utilitys via blue print GPS mapdata.
Position is a laborer working on the mowing crew.
Dig safe bell holes that meet osha standards and company policy standards

Payloader operator example responsibilities.

Perform payload operations and flight engineer duties including creating and managing Sigact (significant acts) PowerPoint presentations.
Manage the master calendar and schedule resources such as communication equipment, weapons, transportation and ammunition forecast and delivery.
Perform both day and nighttime air reconnaissance missions.
Launch and re-cover the UAV using militarize radio controller.
Protect surface combat units and supply convoys in two war zones.
Prepare and conduct air reconnaissance surveillance, targeting and acquisition missions.

Excavator operator vs payloader operator skills

Common excavator operator skills

CDL, 12%
OSHA, 10%
Backhoe, 9%
Manual Labor, 8%
Asphalt, 6%
Plumbing, 6%

Common payloader operator skills

Mission Planning, 40%
UAS, 23%
UAV, 14%
Flight Operations, 10%
Troubleshoot, 8%
Combat, 5%

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Transportation Industry
Excavator Operator
Excavator Operator vs Payloader Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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