Paver vs screed operator

The differences between pavers and screed operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a paver and a screed operator. Additionally, a screed operator has an average salary of $40,762, which is higher than the $33,680 average annual salary of a paver.

The top three skills for a paver include asphalt, RAN and blacktop. The most important skills for a screed operator are asphalt, OSHA, and loaders.

Paver vs screed operator overview

	Paver	Screed Operator
Yearly salary	$33,680	$40,762
Hourly rate	$16.19	$19.60
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	226	29,842
Job satisfaction	-	5
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 65%	High School Diploma, 63%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

Paver vs screed operator salary

Pavers and screed operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Paver	Screed Operator
Average salary	$33,680	$40,762
Salary range	Between $25,000 And $44,000	Between $29,000 And $57,000
Highest paying City	Saginaw, MI	-
Highest paying state	Alaska	-
Best paying company	Alta Equipment	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between paver and screed operator education

There are a few differences between a paver and a screed operator in terms of educational background:

	Paver	Screed Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 65%	High School Diploma, 63%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Business
Most common college	-	-

Paver vs screed operator demographics

Here are the differences between pavers' and screed operators' demographics:

	Paver	Screed Operator
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 96.4% Female, 3.6%	Male, 92.0% Female, 8.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 0.9% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.0%	Black or African American, 5.8% Unknown, 4.4% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 0.9% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.0%
LGBT Percentage	2%	2%

Differences between paver and screed operator duties and responsibilities

Paver example responsibilities.

Pave roads run street sweeper.
Work as a paver laying blacktop.
Ensure strict compliance with all OSHA regulations across all operational aspects.
Use Volvo skid steer to dig out and load old blacktop onto waiting trucks.
Load and move material using various types of trucks, power cranes, shovels, graders, or relate equipment.
Operate heavy machinery, shoveled/racked asphalt, make calculations.

Screed operator example responsibilities.

Operate screed to apply asphalt per plan and quality specifications as instructed by crew superintendent to insure daily schedules/estimates are meet.
Programme CNC machine for component placement and trigonometry assessment of circuitry board.
Work together as a four-man team manually making plywood, pull green chain.

Paver vs screed operator skills

Common paver skills

Asphalt, 53%
RAN, 7%
Blacktop, 6%
Manual Labor, 6%
Shovels, 5%
BOB Cat, 4%

Common screed operator skills

Asphalt, 75%
OSHA, 10%
Loaders, 4%
Topcon, 3%
Electrical Systems, 2%
Hydraulic Systems, 2%

Paver vs. similar jobs

Paver related careers

Paver related jobs

What similar roles do

Paving Machine Operator responsibilities

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse construction and extraction jobs