Heavy lift rigger vs crane operator

The differences between heavy lift riggers and crane operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a crane operator has an average salary of $54,275, which is higher than the $37,204 average annual salary of a heavy lift rigger.

The top three skills for a heavy lift rigger include cranes, pallets and assembly line. The most important skills for a crane operator are cranes, NCCCO, and CDL.

Heavy lift rigger vs crane operator overview

	Heavy Lift Rigger	Crane Operator
Yearly salary	$37,204	$54,275
Hourly rate	$17.89	$26.09
Growth rate	-	7%
Number of jobs	5,076	34,918
Job satisfaction	-	4.67
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 72%	High School Diploma, 56%
Average age	40	47
Years of experience	-	4

Heavy lift rigger vs crane operator salary

Heavy lift riggers and crane operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Heavy Lift Rigger	Crane Operator
Average salary	$37,204	$54,275
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $61,000	Between $35,000 And $83,000
Highest paying City	Santa Rosa, CA	Vancouver, WA
Highest paying state	Alaska	Washington
Best paying company	Rich Products	Katerra
Best paying industry	Transportation	Energy

Differences between heavy lift rigger and crane operator education

There are a few differences between a heavy lift rigger and a crane operator in terms of educational background:

	Heavy Lift Rigger	Crane Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 72%	High School Diploma, 56%
Most common major	Computer Science	Business
Most common college	-	-

Heavy lift rigger vs crane operator demographics

Here are the differences between heavy lift riggers' and crane operators' demographics:

	Heavy Lift Rigger	Crane Operator
Average age	40	47
Gender ratio	Male, 93.3% Female, 6.7%	Male, 95.5% Female, 4.5%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 16.2% Unknown, 7.4% Hispanic or Latino, 17.4% Asian, 2.4% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 0.7% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	11%	2%

Differences between heavy lift rigger and crane operator duties and responsibilities

Heavy lift rigger example responsibilities.

Inspect and maintain manual hoists.
Operate Toyota forklift, cherry pickers, Taylor forklifts, overhead cranes
Perform general repairs and maintenance on major and minor rig components.
Run fork lift an man lift an rig on items to be lift
Install grind rigging for yarding lines, attaching chokers to logs and then the lines.
Well verse in effectively communicating hoisting problems to concern personnel.

Crane operator example responsibilities.

Perform preventive maintenance on cranes in accordance with manufacturer and OSHA requirements.
Train, test and certify to run all small and large hydraulic cranes through NCCCO.
Operate LBT and TLL cranes, loading and unloading concrete bridge girders in a precast yard in a production setting.
Rig cranes to handle constriction materials using appropriate nylon and wire rope slings, shackles and other material handling equipment.
Arch, MIG, and TIG welding.
Maintain and use appropriate PPE.

Heavy lift rigger vs crane operator skills

Common heavy lift rigger skills

Cranes, 39%
Pallets, 29%
Assembly Line, 16%
Rig, 4%
Critical Lifts, 3%
Pulleys, 2%

Common crane operator skills

Cranes, 25%
NCCCO, 7%
CDL, 7%
OSHA, 4%
Hoisting, 4%
Safety Rules, 3%

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Installation, Maintenance and Repair Industry
Heavy Lift Rigger
Heavy Lift Rigger vs Crane Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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