Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between junior operators and equipment operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a junior operator, becoming an equipment operator takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a junior operator has an average salary of $37,735, which is higher than the $31,739 average annual salary of an equipment operator.
The top three skills for a junior operator include frac, safety rules and pallets. The most important skills for an equipment operator are CDL, loaders, and asphalt.
| Junior Operator | Equipment Operator | |
| Yearly salary | $37,735 | $31,739 |
| Hourly rate | $18.14 | $15.26 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 49,016 | 62,473 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 35% | High School Diploma, 46% |
| Average age | 40 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 4 |
Junior operators ensure efficient, reliable, and safe operation of assigned areas by following operating discipline practices, procedures, policies, standards, and principles. They enable good functional discipline for each activity, both unplanned and planned, and monitor key performance metrics, control systems, process conditions, and equipment systems. Also, they make reliable decisions to achieve and maintain the right conditions or rates as per the site goals. These professionals perform scheduled operational tasks, related tasks, and other tasks that arise because of handling unplanned events.
Equipment operators are employees who are assigned to work on specific company equipment. They are skilled workers trained to handle all aspects of the particular equipment, from basic operating to repairing. They use the equipment and ensure that safety standards are being followed. Aside from managing the equipment, they are also in charge of repairs and maintenance. They are responsible for ensuring that the machine works properly, troubleshooting if there are challenges encountered, and repairing any problems. Equipment operators are reliable, trustworthy, and attentive.
Junior operators and equipment operators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Junior Operator | Equipment Operator | |
| Average salary | $37,735 | $31,739 |
| Salary range | Between $27,000 And $52,000 | Between $24,000 And $40,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Indianapolis, IN |
| Highest paying state | - | Connecticut |
| Best paying company | - | Nelsen Partners |
| Best paying industry | - | Energy |
There are a few differences between a junior operator and an equipment operator in terms of educational background:
| Junior Operator | Equipment Operator | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 35% | High School Diploma, 46% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between junior operators' and equipment operators' demographics:
| Junior Operator | Equipment Operator | |
| Average age | 40 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 84.2% Female, 15.8% | Male, 93.0% Female, 7.0% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.8% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 22.1% Asian, 1.2% White, 60.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% | Black or African American, 7.4% Unknown, 4.3% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 0.9% White, 66.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 2% |