General Equipment Operating
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the General Equipment Operating occupation series (code 4741), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (June 2026).
The verdict
In the General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family, General Equipment Operating counts 26 employees, a smaller, specialized federal occupation at 0.0% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined from the prior period; pay averages $81,524, which pays below the federal-wide average.
- Headcount change
- -3.7%
- Pay change
- +2.9%
- Avg tenure
- 18.2 yrs
- Rank in family
- #8 of 10
FedScope read on General Equipment Operating (thin series)
Headcount moved down versus the prior period, though at this small a headcount, year-to-year swings can reflect a handful of hires or departures rather than a broad hiring trend. Pay moved up between the two reporting periods, a broad shift as locality pay tables and grade-level adjustments moved through the workforce. On length of service, this series shows a long average tenure, typical of career federal roles where employees stay through much of a full career before retirement.
The General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family (code 47) groups General Equipment Operating together with 9 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for General Equipment Operating postings should also review these sibling occupations in the General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family. The General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family totals 15,982 employees, and General Equipment Operating accounts for 0.2% of them.
Salary Context
How General Equipment Operating pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$81,524
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-30.5%
Where General Equipment Operating ranks on federal pay
General Equipment Operating earns more on average than 38% of federal occupation series (204 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where General Equipment Operating sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks General Equipment Operating.
Related Occupations in General Maintenance and Operations Work Family
9 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Maintenance Mechanic | 10,441 | $73,094 | 11.9 yrs |
| Misc General Maintenance & Operations Work | 2,599 | $93,724 | 16.5 yrs |
| Utility Systems Repairing-Operating | 1,983 | $84,204 | 13.2 yrs |
| Cemetery Caretaking | 644 | $63,552 | 8.6 yrs |
| General Equipment Mechanic | 140 | $75,100 | 15.4 yrs |
| Model Making | 91 | $93,472 | 14.8 yrs |
| Boat Building and Repairing | 34 | $74,449 | 13.3 yrs |
| Exhibits Making/modeling | 16 | n/a | 17.5 yrs |
| Research Laboratory Mechanic | 8 | $83,825 | 13 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this thin headcount
Two peer sets for General Equipment Operating outside the General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar thin headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (26 here).
Similar average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($81,524 here).
Key takeaways
- Place General Equipment 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 General Maintenance and Operations Work Family family occupations in the table above, or search current General Equipment 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.