Trade occupations supported 7.49 million U.S. jobs in construction and extraction and another 6.49 million in installation, maintenance, and repair in 2025. The outlook varies widely by occupation: solar and wind technician jobs have some of the fastest projected growth, while large occupations such as general maintenance and construction labor continue to provide substantial employment bases. The figures below come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational projections and worker characteristics, unless another source is identified.
Contents
- How many trade jobs exist and how fast are they projected to grow?
- Construction trade employment and outlook
- Installation, maintenance, and repair job projections
- Trade-job pay by occupation
- Education, experience, and on-the-job training
- Physical demands and work characteristics
How many trade jobs exist and how fast are they projected to grow?
The broadest employment category in this dataset is construction and extraction. It employed 7,492.9 thousand people in 2025. BLS projects an increase of 385.7 thousand jobs from 2025 to 2035, with 587.0 thousand annual openings on average during that period. Annual openings include opportunities created by employment growth and by workers leaving occupations, so they are not the same measure as net new jobs.
Construction trades workers accounted for 5,678.1 thousand jobs in 2025. Employment is projected to reach 6,002.1 thousand in 2035, a 5.7% increase. Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations employed 6,494.4 thousand people in 2025 and are projected to grow 5.4% from 2025 to 2035. That group is projected to have 569.0 thousand annual openings on average over the same period.
| Occupational group | Employment in 2025 | Projected change or level | Average annual openings, 2025–2035 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Construction and extraction | 7,492.9 thousand | +385.7 thousand jobs | 587.0 thousand |
| Construction trades workers | 5,678.1 thousand | 6,002.1 thousand in 2035; +5.7% | Not provided |
| Installation, maintenance, and repair | 6,494.4 thousand | +5.4% | 569.0 thousand |
These are U.S. employment projections for 2025–2035, not guarantees for an individual occupation or location. They are useful for comparing the relative scale and direction of broad trade-related groups.
Construction trade employment and outlook
Construction includes both very large occupations and smaller specialties with faster projected growth. Construction laborers employed 1,489.3 thousand people in 2025, and their employment is projected to grow 7.3% by 2035. Carpenters employed 889.7 thousand, with projected growth of 3.9%. Electricians employed 821.0 thousand and have a stronger projected growth rate of 9.2%.
Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters employed 510.6 thousand people in 2025, with employment projected to grow 6.8% by 2035. Operating engineers and other construction equipment operators employed 489.5 thousand, with projected growth of 4.6%. Roofers represented 166.9 thousand jobs and are projected to grow 5.3%.
Renewable-energy construction specialties stand out in percentage terms. Solar photovoltaic installers employed 31.1 thousand people in 2025, with employment projected to grow 36.5% by 2035. Elevator and escalator installers and repairers employed 24.7 thousand, with projected growth of 5.7%. Construction and building inspectors employed 153.9 thousand, and employment is projected to remain essentially unchanged through 2035.
The contrast matters when evaluating a career path. A small occupation can have a high growth rate without matching the number of jobs or openings available in a much larger occupation. Conversely, a large occupation with moderate growth can offer a substantial employment base. The BLS projections describe national occupation-level patterns; they do not predict hiring conditions for a particular contractor, city, or state.
Installation, maintenance, and repair job projections
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations also combine high-volume work with rapidly growing specialties. General maintenance and repair workers employed 1,621.8 thousand people in 2025, the largest occupation listed here, with projected growth of 4.2% by 2035. Automotive service technicians and mechanics employed 825.8 thousand and are projected to grow 5.0%.
Industrial machinery mechanics employed 446.9 thousand people in 2025, with projected growth of 17.8%. Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers employed 440.9 thousand, with projected growth of 10.9%. Mobile heavy equipment mechanics employed 180.3 thousand and are projected to grow 6.7%.
Several specialized occupations show strong projected growth from smaller employment bases. Medical equipment repairers employed 71.8 thousand people in 2025 and are projected to grow 12.6%. Electrical power-line installers and repairers employed 131.9 thousand, with projected growth of 10.3%. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians employed 140.0 thousand, with projected growth of 5.4%.
Wind turbine service technicians employed 11.8 thousand people in 2025, with employment projected to grow 29.5% by 2035. As with solar installation, that high percentage applies to a comparatively small occupation. The projected rate is therefore best read alongside the occupation’s employment level rather than by itself.
Trade-job pay by occupation
The supplied BLS wage figures show substantial differences in median annual pay. These are national medians for 2025, except where the source explicitly reports May 2025. A median means half of workers earned more and half earned less; it is not an entry-level wage or a promise of earnings after training.
| Occupation | Median annual wage | Measurement period |
|---|---|---|
| Elevator and escalator installers and repairers | $109,910 | 2025 |
| Electrical power-line installers and repairers | $95,320 | 2025 |
| Industrial machinery mechanics | $64,520 | 2025 |
| Wind turbine service technicians | $64,120 | 2025 |
| Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters | $63,800 | 2025 |
| Electricians | $63,190 | 2025 |
| Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers | $61,010 | May 2025 |
| Solar photovoltaic installers | $53,140 | 2025 |
| Construction laborers and helpers | $46,680 | May 2025 |
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook page for construction laborers and helpers reports the $46,680 median for May 2025. The BLS page for heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers reports the $61,010 median for May 2025. These source-specific dates should remain attached to the figures when comparing them with the 2025 occupation table.
The highest listed median is for elevator and escalator installers and repairers, while construction laborers and helpers have the lowest listed median. Pay comparisons should still account for occupation, experience, work setting, location, schedules, credentials, and the difference between a national median and a particular job offer. The dataset does not provide those additional breakdowns.
Education, experience, and on-the-job training
Many of the occupations listed use a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry education, combined with an apprenticeship or work-based training. In 2025, carpenters had a self-employment rate of 25.1%, and typical entry was a high school diploma or equivalent with an apprenticeship. Electricians had a 7.1% self-employment rate, with the same typical entry education and apprenticeship pathway. Plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters had an 8.0% self-employment rate and the same typical entry profile.
Other trade paths emphasize postsecondary credentials or longer periods of supervised learning. Heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers had a 6.3% self-employment rate; typical entry was a postsecondary nondegree award with long-term on-the-job training. Industrial machinery mechanics had a 1.3% self-employment rate, with a high school diploma or equivalent and long-term on-the-job training as the typical entry path.
Medical equipment repairers had an 8.5% self-employment rate. Typical entry was an associate’s degree with moderate-term on-the-job training. Radio, cellular, and tower equipment installers and repairers had a 0.7% self-employment rate and the same typical entry education and training duration. General maintenance and repair workers had a 0.9% self-employment rate, with a high school diploma or equivalent and moderate-term on-the-job training.
Construction and building inspectors had a 3.3% self-employment rate. Typical entry was a high school diploma or equivalent, at least five years of related experience, and moderate-term on-the-job training. These figures describe typical occupation-level pathways in 2025; individual employers may set different requirements.
Physical demands and work characteristics
Trade work can involve reaching, low postures, and fine manipulation. The BLS Occupational Requirements in the United States—2024 reports that, in construction and extraction occupations, 49.6% of workers had jobs requiring occasional reaching overhead, 64.9% had jobs requiring occasional low postures, and 66.4% had jobs requiring occasional fine manipulation in 2024.
The corresponding figures were higher across installation, maintenance, and repair occupations: 66.8% for occasional reaching overhead, 77.9% for occasional low postures, and 72.4% for occasional fine manipulation. These percentages describe the share of workers whose jobs required the activity occasionally; they do not state how long the activity lasted or how physically demanding every task was.
Some occupations showed especially high results for particular requirements. Among aircraft mechanics and service technicians, 81.4% of workers had jobs requiring occasional reaching overhead in 2024. Among helpers in installation, maintenance, and repair, the figure was 88.5%. For transportation and material-moving occupations, 66.9% of workers had jobs requiring occasional low postures.
Together, the employment, outlook, wage, training, and work-characteristic figures give different ways to compare trade careers. Employment size indicates how established an occupation is, projected growth indicates direction through 2035, median pay describes the middle of the wage distribution, and entry requirements show the training route. Physical-requirement data adds context for deciding whether the day-to-day work fits a person’s abilities and preferences.