Occupations · Production
Chemical Plant and System Operators
Control or operate entire chemical processes or system of machines.
O*NET 30.3 Database (USDOL/ETA) · occupation code 51-8091.00
What it pays
A single “average salary” hides the spread. This is the whole distribution — the gap between the bottom and top bar is usually the number that matters.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2024 · national, cross-industry · annual wage
Pay over time
Median up 67% between 2003 and 2024, before inflation. The band shows the 10th to 90th percentile.
BLS OEWS, one release per year. Before May 2011 only national estimates were published, so geography detail starts there.
Where the jobs are
| Metro area | Median wage | Employed |
|---|---|---|
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | $101,150 | 1,820 |
| Baton Rouge, LA | $101,130 | 1,640 |
| New Orleans-Metairie, LA | $99,810 | 770 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | $79,400 | 290 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $108,370 | 250 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | $53,420 | 240 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | $67,500 | 210 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | $50,690 | 210 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $62,880 | 160 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $78,310 | 150 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $77,030 | 130 |
| Spartanburg, SC | $66,640 | 130 |
BLS OEWS May 2024, metropolitan estimates · the 12 areas with the most people in this occupation
Typical education to enter: High school diploma or equivalent · BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
What people in this job actually do
Ordered by how important the work is rated.
- Monitor recording instruments, flowmeters, panel lights, or other indicators and listen for warning signals to verify conformity of process conditions.
- Regulate or shut down equipment during emergency situations, as directed by supervisory personnel.
- Control or operate chemical processes or systems of machines, using panelboards, control boards, or semi-automatic equipment.
- Move control settings to make necessary adjustments on equipment units affecting speeds of chemical reactions, quality, or yields.
- Inspect operating units, such as towers, soap-spray storage tanks, scrubbers, collectors, or driers to ensure that all are functioning and to maintain maximum efficiency.
- Draw samples of products and conduct quality control tests to monitor processing and to ensure that standards are met.
- Record operating data, such as process conditions, test results, or instrument readings.
- Patrol work areas to ensure that solutions in tanks or troughs are not in danger of overflowing.
- Turn valves to regulate flow of products or byproducts through agitator tanks, storage drums, or neutralizer tanks.
- Interpret chemical reactions visible through sight glasses or on television monitors and review laboratory test reports for process adjustments.
- Confer with technical and supervisory personnel to report or resolve conditions affecting safety, efficiency, or product quality.
- Start pumps to wash and rinse reactor vessels, to exhaust gases or vapors, to regulate the flow of oil, steam, air, or perfume to towers, or to add products to converter or blending vessels.
O*NET 30.3 task ratings, importance scale
Skills that matter most
Importance, rated 1 to 5.
O*NET 30.3 skills, importance scale
Software and tools
A dot marks what O*NET flags as in demand.
O*NET 30.3 software skills · hot-technology flag
What this work is actually like
Conditions rated against the average across all occupations — only what makes this job different is listed.
O*NET 30.3 Job Zones
Working conditions that stand out
O*NET 30.3 work context, frequency scale · observed 2015-07
How people actually get in
Share of workers by the education they hold.
O*NET 30.2 education, training and experience · observed 2015-07
What kind of person the work suits
Occupational interest profile, rated 1 to 7.
O*NET 30.2 occupational interests (RIASEC)
What you take with you
Skills rated for how well they transfer into other occupations.
O*NET 30.3 transferable skills, importance scale
Knowledge the work draws on
Abilities it leans on
O*NET 30.3 abilities and knowledge, importance scale
How this job is advertised
The same work is posted under many titles — this is what to search for.
O*NET 30.3 job titles reported for this occupation
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What changed since 2015
Comparing O*NET release 20.1 (2015-10-01) with 30.3 (2026-05-01). Signs, not colour alone, carry the meaning. 1 entries that were only relabelled between releases are left out.
Now listed 3
Diff across the O*NET releases held here in full since October 2015, following occupations through merges and retirements. O*NET re-surveys occupations on a rolling cycle, so “no change” can also mean “not re-surveyed”.
Related jobs
O*NET 30.3 related occupations
Also called
O*NET 30.3 alternative titles
The same work in Europe
| ESCO occupation | ISCO | Match |
|---|---|---|
| soap tower operator | 8131.20 | broader |
| air separation plant operator | 3133.1.1 | broader |
| nitrator operator | 8131.12 | broader |
| chemical plant control room operator | 3133.1.3 | broader |
| soap drier operator | 8131.19.2 | broader |
| nitroglycerin separator operator | 8131.14 | broader |
| chemical mixer | 8131.2 | broader |
| chemical processing plant controller | 3133.1 | broader |
Official ESCO ↔ O*NET crosswalk (ESCO Secretariat with USDOL/ETA)
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