Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers Salary - BLS OEWS Wage Benchmarks
SOC 49-9052 · National · May 2025 OEWS Data
Median Annual Salary
$74,318
$35.73/hr
Verified BLS OEWS data · Updated May 18, 2026
Source: BLS OEWS · Published May 15, 2026
Next refresh: May 2027
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The national median salary for Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers is $74,318 per year ($35.73/hr) according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025. The middle 50% of earners make between $54,309 and $95,846 annually. Top earners at the 90th percentile reach $103,688 per year. There are approximately 97,720 telecommunications line installers and repairers employed in the United States.
About This Role
BLS Standard Occupational Classification 2018
Install and repair telecommunications cable, including fiber optics.
Career Outlook
BLS Employment Projections · 2024-2034
10-year growth
-3.1%
Slower than average
Annual openings
9K
per year, on avg
Workforce today
100K
as of 2024
Why those openings exist
0% from new growth100% from people leaving the role
Most openings come from replacement, not growth. Retention matters more than recruiting here.
Typical entry requirements
Education
High school diploma or equivalent
Experience
None
On-the-job training
Long-term on-the-job training
Industry Wage Breakdown
Top 5 industries by employment · median annual wage, sector-specific
Industry
Workforce
Median Pay
Telecommunications
NAICS 517000
60K
$81,850
Utility System Construction
NAICS 237100
15K
$57,780
Building Equipment Contractors
NAICS 238200
14K
$52,540
Computer Systems Design and Related Services
NAICS 541500
1K
$55,080
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)
NAICS 999300
1K
$64,650
Wage range across top 5 industries: $52,540 to $81,850 (56% spread)
Wage Percentiles
Hourly & annualized (2,080 hours)
Percentile
Hourly Rate
Annual Salary
P10
$21.79
$45,323
P25
$26.11
$54,309
P50MEDIAN
$35.73
$74,318
P75
$46.08
$95,846
P90
$49.85
$103,688
Market Context Signal
JOLTS · manufacturing sector
Stable
Openings Rate
3.5%
Quits Rate
1.4%
Manufacturing openings ticked up to 462K (+19K) in March, with the rate at 3.5%. Hires rose to 310K. The sector has stabilized after late-2025 softening.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the average telecommunications line installers and repairers salary?
The national median salary for Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers is $74,318 per year ($35.73/hr) according to BLS OEWS May 2025 data. The middle 50% earn between $54,309 and $95,846 annually.
How much do top-earning telecommunications line installers and repairers make?
The 90th percentile salary for Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers is $103,688 per year ($49.85/hr). The 75th percentile is $95,846 per year.
What is the entry-level salary for telecommunications line installers and repairers?
Entry-level Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers (10th percentile) earn approximately $45,323 per year ($21.79/hr). The 25th percentile is $54,309 per year.
Wage figures on this page come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey, May 2025 release. OEWS surveys roughly 1.1 million establishments annually. It is the most comprehensive employer-reported wage dataset in the United States.
P10 through P90 percentiles represent the wage distribution across all surveyed employers (not self-reported by workers). Geographic adjustments use BLS-derived cost multipliers calibrated from regional wage variation.
Wages are estimates. Individual compensation depends on experience, education, employer size, industry, and negotiation. Use this as benchmark context, not absolute ground truth.
CompSignal is a free labor market intelligence tool built for HR, compensation, and talent acquisition teams. We make BLS data, the same primary source Mercer and Radford cross-reference in their paid surveys, searchable and actionable without an enterprise subscription.
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