Power Plant Operator
This is the one utility job on this site with a genuine documented precedent for automation-linked headcount reduction, and it's worth being precise about what that precedent actually shows.
We have not ingested real-world usage data for this occupation yet. We show a band only where genuine data exists, rather than estimate one.
What a power plant operator actually does
Power plant operators control and monitor the machinery that generates electricity — boilers, turbines, generators, and increasingly the control systems of gas-fired and renewable generation — from a control room or on physical rounds through the plant.
The job includes reading and adjusting instruments that control water levels, temperatures, and pressure; starting and stopping generators and auxiliary equipment in response to grid demand signals from dispatchers; and responding immediately when an alarm or abnormal reading signals a developing equipment problem, since a delayed response at a power plant can mean a safety incident or a cascading grid outage.
Operators work rotating shifts around the clock, because a plant that supplies electricity to the grid doesn't stop running at 5 p. m. , and much of the job is spent watching for the deviation that needs a human decision rather than actively doing something every minute. Entry typically comes through vocational training or an associate degree in power plant technology, followed by extensive on-the-job training, since every plant's specific equipment configuration has to be learned on-site.
Why it reads this way
This is the one utility job on this site with a genuine documented precedent for automation-linked headcount reduction, and it's worth being precise about what that precedent actually shows.
The clearest case (IEEE Spectrum, 2017) is a utility replacing aging coal units staffed by 500+ workers with a modern combined-cycle gas plant needing roughly 35 — but that's a one-time generational technology transition (new plant, inherently simpler and more automated by design from day one), not an ongoing wave of existing operators being displaced from the plants they already work in.
No comparably documented case from the last several years was found despite a dedicated search, and this site's own structural exposure model — corroborated by two independent data sources — reads this occupation as similarly low-exposure to its utility-sector peers (gas utility technician, water/wastewater operator).
What still requires a licensed human on shift: NERC System Operator Certification for real-time grid-facing control, and 24/7 physical presence to respond to equipment failures and emergencies that automated monitoring can flag but not resolve on its own.
Skills this role draws on
We don't yet have task-by-task time-share data for this occupation, so we can't show which specific tasks carry the exposure score above. This is the real skill set instead.
Typical salary range (USD)
$61,790–$131,940
Average: $102,040/yr
Range source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Power Plant Operators (51-8013.00), 2025 release
Average source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Power Plant Operators (51-8013.00), 2025 release, accessed via O*NET OnLine / My Next Move — direct bls.gov access returned HTTP 403 during research
Nearest jobs by score
Related careers
Head-to-head comparisons
Power Plant Operator scores 74/100 on structuralScore (Medium confidence), in line with its closest utility-sector peers. The strongest documented automation-linked headcount case (a utility replacing coal units with a leaner combined-cycle gas plant) dates to 2017 and reflects a one-time generational technology transition — new plants built inherently simpler by design — rather than an ongoing wave of existing operators being displaced from plants they already staff; no comparable recent case was found despite a dedicated search. NERC System Operator Certification still requires a licensed human for real-time grid-facing control, and 24/7 on-site presence remains necessary to respond to equipment failures that automated monitoring flags but can't resolve. BLS projects a slight employment decline through 2034, offset by steady replacement demand.
This is a researched judgment (checklist v1.2), not a statistical measurement — it sits alongside, not instead of, the structural exposure signal above. Next scheduled review: 2027-02-11.
Data sources & methodology
Salary data: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Power Plant Operators (51-8013.00), 2025 release. Min/max figures represent the 10th–90th percentile annual wage range across the United States. Average figure sourced separately: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Power Plant Operators (51-8013.00), 2025 release, accessed via O*NET OnLine / My Next Move — direct bls.gov access returned HTTP 403 during research.
Automation Risk Score: Based on O*NET occupational analysis (51-8013.00) evaluating task complexity, physical requirements, social intelligence, and environmental variability. Methodology based on research from Frey & Osborne (Oxford, 2017).
Growth projections: -1% or lower (2024-2034) per BLS; automation-driven, corroborated by documented plant staffing reductions — ~2,500 projected openings from replacement demand, based on BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.