Construction Laborers vs Pipelayers
Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index
A factual, source-backed comparison of Construction Laborers and Pipelayers on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”
At a glance
| Dimension | Construction Laborers | Pipelayers |
|---|---|---|
| Median pay | $46,730 | $48,710 |
| Employment | 1,057,660 | 33,580 |
| Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection | Growing fast (+7.3%) | Declining (-4.1%) |
| Annual openings · BLS projection | 129,400 | 2,400 |
| Typical education · O*NET | Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. | Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. |
| AI exposure · published exposure studies | Low · 5th pct | Low · 8th pct |
| Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk | 2nd pct · 9% of tasks | 18th pct · 15% of tasks |
| Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index | — | — |
| Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman | No | No |
Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.
Skills
Shared: Building and Construction, Manual Dexterity, Static Strength, Multilimb Coordination, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Speaking, Oral Comprehension, Oral Expression, Problem Sensitivity, Control Precision, Trunk Strength, Near Vision, Public Safety and Security, Active Listening, Coordination, Operation and Control, Information Ordering, Finger Dexterity, Stamina, Extent Flexibility, Far Vision, Mechanical, Operations Monitoring, Deductive Reasoning, Category Flexibility, Selective Attention, Rate Control, Depth Perception, Speech Recognition, Speech Clarity, Written Comprehension, Visualization, Reaction Time, Reading Comprehension, Critical Thinking.
Specific to Construction Laborers
- Dynamic Strength
- Inductive Reasoning
- Response Orientation
- Customer and Personal Service
- Complex Problem Solving
Specific to Pipelayers
- Quality Control Analysis
- Engineering and Technology
- Administration and Management
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Time Management
Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).
Tools & technology
Shared: Spreadsheet software , Office suite software .
Specific to Construction Laborers
Specific to Pipelayers
Full profiles
This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Construction Laborers or Pipelayers — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.
More comparisons
Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.
- Construction Laborers vs Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators
- Construction Laborers vs Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining
- Construction Laborers vs Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers
- Construction Laborers vs Structural Iron and Steel Workers
- Construction Laborers vs Brickmasons and Blockmasons
- Construction Laborers vs Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
- Construction Laborers vs Helpers--Brickmasons, Blockmasons, Stonemasons, and Tile and Marble Setters
- Construction Laborers vs Carpenters
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Construction Laborers vs Pipelayers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/construction-laborers-vs-pipelayers
Singulariki. (2026). Construction Laborers vs Pipelayers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/construction-laborers-vs-pipelayers
@misc{singulariki-construction-laborers-vs-pipelayers,
title = {Construction Laborers vs Pipelayers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/compare/construction-laborers-vs-pipelayers}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.