Career Profile: Maintenance and Repair Workers, General

Salary and Outlook

According to the US Department of Labor, there are 1,539,100 people employed as maintenance and repair workers, general in the United States. The median annual salary is $43,180. Entry level employees earn approximately $28,910 per year and senior employees earn approximately $62,400 per year.

Estimates do not include other potential benefits such as health insurance, overtime, or retirement benefits that may be offered by employers.

Job Duties

• Assemble, install, or repair wiring, electrical or electronic components, pipe systems, plumbing, machinery, or equipment.
• Clean or lubricate shafts, bearings, gears, or other parts of machinery.
• Estimate costs to repair machinery, equipment, or building structures.
• Align and balance new equipment after installation.
• Record type and cost of maintenance or repair work.
• Maintain or repair specialized equipment or machinery located in cafeterias, laundries, hospitals, stores, offices, or factories.
• Dismantle machines, equipment, or devices to access and remove defective parts, using hoists, cranes, hand tools, or power tools.
• Plan and lay out repair work, using diagrams, drawings, blueprints, maintenance manuals, or schematic diagrams.
• Install equipment to improve the energy or operational efficiency of residential or commercial buildings.
• Repair machines, equipment, or structures, using tools such as hammers, hoists, saws, drills, wrenches, or equipment such as precision measuring instruments or electrical or electronic testing devices.
• Order parts, supplies, or equipment from catalogs or suppliers.
• Diagnose mechanical problems and determine how to correct them, checking blueprints, repair manuals, or parts catalogs, as necessary.
• Design new equipment to aid in the repair or maintenance of machines, mechanical equipment, or building structures.
• Operate cutting torches or welding equipment to cut or join metal parts.
• Inspect used parts to determine changes in dimensional requirements, using rules, calipers, micrometers, or other measuring instruments.
• Assemble boilers at installation sites, using tools such as levels, plumb bobs, hammers, torches, or other hand tools.
• Lay brick to repair or maintain buildings, walls, arches, or other structures.
• Position, attach, or blow insulating materials to prevent energy losses from buildings, pipes, or other structures or objects.
• Grind and reseat valves, using valve-grinding machines.
• Perform routine maintenance, such as inspecting drives, motors, or belts, checking fluid levels, replacing filters, or doing other preventive maintenance actions.
• Inspect, operate, or test machinery or equipment to diagnose machine malfunctions.
• Adjust functional parts of devices or control instruments, using hand tools, levels, plumb bobs, or straightedges.
• Fabricate or repair counters, benches, partitions, or other wooden structures, such as sheds or outbuildings.
• Paint or repair roofs, windows, doors, floors, woodwork, plaster, drywall, or other parts of building structures.
• Perform routine maintenance on boilers, such as replacing burners or hoses, installing replacement parts, or reinforcing structural weaknesses to ensure optimal boiler efficiency.
• Test and treat water supply.
• Provide groundskeeping services, such as landscaping or snow removal.
• Set up and operate machine tools to repair or fabricate machine parts, jigs, fixtures, or tools.
• Perform general cleaning of buildings or properties.
• Train or manage maintenance personnel or subcontractors.

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