Senior operator vs backup operator

The differences between senior operators and backup operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a senior operator, becoming a backup operator takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a senior operator has an average salary of $85,677, which is higher than the $38,519 average annual salary of a backup operator.

The top three skills for a senior operator include safety procedures, math and powerpoint. The most important skills for a backup operator are quality checks, GMP, and pallets.

Senior operator vs backup operator overview

	Senior Operator	Backup Operator
Yearly salary	$85,677	$38,519
Hourly rate	$41.19	$18.52
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	45,548	41,711
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	High School Diploma, 41%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	4	2

Senior operator vs backup operator salary

Senior operators and backup operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Senior Operator	Backup Operator
Average salary	$85,677	$38,519
Salary range	Between $54,000 And $135,000	Between $24,000 And $59,000
Highest paying City	Boston, MA	-
Highest paying state	Massachusetts	-
Best paying company	Google	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between senior operator and backup operator education

There are a few differences between a senior operator and a backup operator in terms of educational background:

	Senior Operator	Backup Operator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 38%	High School Diploma, 41%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	University of Pennsylvania

Senior operator vs backup operator demographics

Here are the differences between senior operators' and backup operators' demographics:

	Senior Operator	Backup Operator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 72.8% Female, 27.2%	Male, 73.1% Female, 26.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 17.0% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 19.1% Asian, 2.6% White, 56.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8%	Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 12.3% White, 63.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	4%	10%

Differences between senior operator and backup operator duties and responsibilities

Senior operator example responsibilities.

Measure and inspect parts with calipers, scale, MRP, leads, micrometers and taper.
Manage the master calendar and schedule resources such as communication equipment, weapons, transportation and ammunition forecast and delivery.
Operate QC testing equipment such as calipers and micrometers.
Experience with MVS and JES2 command sets, the weekly shutdown and initial power load of production systems.
Assist in migration to the LAN environment, perform quality control and JCL setup and interface with user and vendor communities.
Train with TSO, JES2, and UCC7.

Backup operator example responsibilities.

Manage the master calendar and schedule resources such as communication equipment, weapons, transportation and ammunition forecast and delivery.
Perform preventive maintenance and emergency repairs on LP air blowers, air compressors, vacuum pumps and water chillers.
Configure Cisco MDS switches via GUI and CLI for SAN.
Follow all guidelines for sanitation per USDA auditing.
Move pallets of finish product and raw materials using sit down fork lift.
Replace or repair windows, doors, floors and seats on wheel vehicles.

Senior operator vs backup operator skills

Common senior operator skills

Safety Procedures, 17%
Math, 8%
PowerPoint, 7%
Windows, 5%
Logistics, 5%
CDL, 5%

Common backup operator skills

Quality Checks, 24%
GMP, 15%
Pallets, 15%
Hand Tools, 14%
Troubleshoot, 13%
Data Entry, 10%

Senior Operator vs. similar jobs

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Transportation Industry
Senior Operator
Senior Operator vs Backup Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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