Explosives Operating
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the Explosives Operating occupation series (code 6502), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (June 2026).
The verdict
With 554 employees (0.0% of the federal civilian workforce), Explosives Operating ranks as a smaller, specialized federal occupation within the Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family, and headcount declined from the prior period. Its average salary of n/a pays below the federal average.
- Headcount change
- -1.6%
- Pay change
- 0.0%
- Avg tenure
- 11 yrs
- Rank in family
- #2 of 4
What the Numbers Say About Explosives Operating
Headcount moved down versus the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path. Pay moved sideways between the two reporting periods, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. On length of service, this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
Code 65, the Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family, is where the federal government classifies Explosives Operating alongside 3 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Explosives Operating postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family. The Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family totals 1,236 employees, and Explosives Operating accounts for 44.8% of them.
Salary context · lean-pay series
How Explosives Operating pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
n/a
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-100.0%
Where Explosives Operating ranks on lean federal pay
Explosives Operating earns more on average than 0% of federal occupation series (0 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Explosives Operating sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Explosives Operating.
Related Occupations in Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family
3 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Misc Ammun, Explosives, & Toxic Mater Work | 557 | n/a | 11.2 yrs |
| Missile/toxic Materials Handling | 98 | n/a | 14.4 yrs |
| Munitions Destroying | 27 | n/a | 17.1 yrs |
Nationwide occupation series with similar scale or pay
Two peer sets for Explosives Operating outside the Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (554 here).
Similar lean average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families (n/a here).
Key takeaways
- Place Explosives Operating pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Ammunition, Explosives, and Toxic Materials Work Family family occupations in the table above, or search current Explosives Operating postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.