Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between substation technicians and shop technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become a substation technician, becoming a shop technician takes usually requires 1-2 years. Additionally, a substation technician has an average salary of $39,335, which is higher than the $36,798 average annual salary of a shop technician.
The top three skills for a substation technician include hand tools, circuit breakers and substation equipment. The most important skills for a shop technician are preventative maintenance, routine maintenance, and diagnosis.
| Substation Technician | Shop Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $39,335 | $36,798 |
| Hourly rate | $18.91 | $17.69 |
| Growth rate | -1% | 4% |
| Number of jobs | 44,872 | 150,349 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Average age | 37 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 2 |
Substation technicians are electrical professionals who are responsible for performing routine maintenance and emergency repairs on electrical substations. These technicians must possess skills in using basic hand tools to install or replace defective parts while assembling or disassembling electrical equipment. They are required to make professional electrical wiring and other repairs to electrical systems so that they can ensure safety to residents and other employees. Substation technicians must also work outdoors to perform maintenance on high voltage equipment that is installed in high and confined areas.
Shop Technicians are skilled workers assigned to a retail store. Their main activities depend on the nature of the business their company is in. Usually, Shop Technicians work with machines in the shop. They conduct repair and maintenance work for machines that have long been in the shop. They are also in charge of installing and building new machines as well. Shop Technicians are assigned to manage records of such machines or s other mechanical items in the store. This is part of the administrative activities they may do for the shop.
Substation technicians and shop technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Substation Technician | Shop Technician | |
| Average salary | $39,335 | $36,798 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $53,000 | Between $25,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Leandro, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | Alaska |
| Best paying company | - | Los Alamos National Laboratory |
| Best paying industry | - | Energy |
There are a few differences between a substation technician and a shop technician in terms of educational background:
| Substation Technician | Shop Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 35% | High School Diploma, 30% |
| Most common major | Electrical Engineering Technology | Automotive Technology |
| Most common college | New Mexico State University | - |
Here are the differences between substation technicians' and shop technicians' demographics:
| Substation Technician | Shop Technician | |
| Average age | 37 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 97.3% Female, 2.7% | Male, 91.9% Female, 8.1% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 5.5% Unknown, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 13.9% Asian, 3.9% White, 69.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 8.0% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 2.4% White, 65.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 2% |