Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators Salary

It’s a stretch — at the median salary of $81K, rent takes 39.6% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $2,044/month. The 30% guideline puts the comfortable ceiling at roughly $1,500/month in rent — so roommates or a 1-bedroom would ease the math significantly.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new paving, surfacing, and tamping equipment operators typically earn — is $50K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,999/month.

Local pay is 53% above the national median — $81K here vs. $53K nationally.

North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area pays $81K median vs. the U.S. average of $53K — that’s +53%.

The median is $81,360 a year, that works out to about $39 an hour. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $49,980, and experienced paving, surfacing, and tamping equipment operators can clear $81,380. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $5,160/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $2,044/month, which eats 39.6% of your paycheck. That's above the 30% rule of thumb, housing will be a stretch at the median salary, though you can manage with roommates or a smaller place.

North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area has a Regional Price Parity of 100 (100 is the national average). That's right at the national average. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median paving, surfacing, and tamping equipment operators salary is worth about $81,360 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.