Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Gas Plant Operators
Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index
A factual, source-backed comparison of Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers and Gas Plant Operators 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 | Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | Gas Plant Operators |
|---|---|---|
| Median pay | $97,540 | $83,400 |
| Employment | 34,860 | 15,910 |
| Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection | Declining (-2.8%) | Declining (-8.8%) |
| Annual openings · BLS projection | 3,200 | 1,300 |
| 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 · 14th pct | Low · 31st pct |
| Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk | 55th pct · 29% of tasks | 55th pct · 29% 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: Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Information Ordering, Flexibility of Closure, Perceptual Speed, Near Vision, Monitoring, Problem Sensitivity, Production and Processing, Public Safety and Security, Mechanical, Reading Comprehension, Selective Attention, Auditory Attention, Deductive Reasoning, Mathematics, English Language, Speaking, Complex Problem Solving, Oral Comprehension, Written Comprehension, Oral Expression, Inductive Reasoning, Category Flexibility, Active Listening, Writing, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Time Management, Written Expression, Visualization.
Specific to Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers
- Administration and Management
- Hearing Sensitivity
- Speech Recognition
- Control Precision
- Active Learning
- Arm-Hand Steadiness
- Manual Dexterity
- Finger Dexterity
Specific to Gas Plant Operators
- Computers and Electronics
- Quality Control Analysis
- Far Vision
- Engineering and Technology
- Reaction Time
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administrative
- Coordination
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 , Electronic mail software , Word processing software , Industrial control software .
Specific to Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers
Full profiles
This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers or Gas Plant Operators — 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.
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Wellhead Pumpers
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Power Plant Operators
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Chemical Plant and System Operators
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Biomass Plant Technicians
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators
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
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- 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. "Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Gas Plant Operators." 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; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); 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/petroleum-pump-system-operators-refinery-operators-and-gaugers-vs-gas-plant-operators
Singulariki. (2026). Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Gas Plant Operators. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/petroleum-pump-system-operators-refinery-operators-and-gaugers-vs-gas-plant-operators
@misc{singulariki-petroleum-pump-system-operators-refinery-operators-and-gaugers-vs-gas-plant-operators,
title = {Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers vs Gas Plant Operators},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); 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/petroleum-pump-system-operators-refinery-operators-and-gaugers-vs-gas-plant-operators}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.