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The differences between structured cabling technicians and tower climbers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a tower climber has an average salary of $41,248, which is higher than the $37,985 average annual salary of a structured cabling technician.
The top three skills for a structured cabling technician include structured cabling, fiber optic and hand tools. The most important skills for a tower climber are CPR, RF, and OSHA.
| Structured Cabling Technician | Tower Climber | |
| Yearly salary | $37,985 | $41,248 |
| Hourly rate | $18.26 | $19.83 |
| Growth rate | 8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 89,739 | 18,165 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 3 |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | High School Diploma, 49% |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Years of experience | - | - |
A structured cabling technician builds infrastructure for local area networks, wide area networks, and cable television networks. They visit clients' homes or offices to install cabling that supports infrastructure. They often work overtime, and they may be required to work in hazardous conditions.
Tower Climbers are professionals who are responsible for performing comprehensive installations, inspections, and maintenance on cell towers, self-supporting towers, and other tower transmitter systems. These climbers are required to complete tower safety courses so that they can climb communication towers to assist crews in repairing and inspecting communication boxes. They must operate heavy equipment to prepare sites for the construction and erection of communication towers. Tower Climbers should also guarantee the safety of their crews during extreme weather conditions by following company policies and procedures.
Structured cabling technicians and tower climbers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Structured Cabling Technician | Tower Climber | |
| Average salary | $37,985 | $41,248 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $58,000 | Between $28,000 And $59,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Sacramento, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | General Dynamics Mission Systems |
| Best paying industry | - | Telecommunication |
There are a few differences between a structured cabling technician and a tower climber in terms of educational background:
| Structured Cabling Technician | Tower Climber | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | High School Diploma, 49% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering | Business |
| Most common college | Inter American University of Puerto Rico Bayamon | New York University |
Here are the differences between structured cabling technicians' and tower climbers' demographics:
| Structured Cabling Technician | Tower Climber | |
| Average age | 45 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 94.4% Female, 5.6% | Male, 95.7% Female, 4.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 11.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 18.3% Asian, 6.3% White, 58.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 6.6% White, 57.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |