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Pipelayers vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index

A factual, source-backed comparison of Pipelayers and Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters 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.”

Pipelayers Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Median pay · BLS OEWS
$48,710
$39,270
Employment · BLS OEWS
33,580
43,640
AI exposure (percentile) · task overlap, not automation
8th pct
14th pct

At a glance

Dimension Pipelayers Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters
Median pay $48,710 $39,270
Employment 33,580 43,640
Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection Declining (-4.1%) About average (+4.9%)
Annual openings · BLS projection 2,400 4,900
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 · 8th pct Low · 14th pct
Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk 18th pct · 15% of tasks 2nd pct · 9% 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, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Control Precision, Oral Comprehension, Static Strength, Public Safety and Security, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Coordination, Oral Expression, Problem Sensitivity, Information Ordering, Visualization, Selective Attention, Manual Dexterity, Finger Dexterity, Multilimb Coordination, Trunk Strength, Stamina, Extent Flexibility, Near Vision, Depth Perception, Speech Recognition, Speech Clarity, Engineering and Technology, Mechanical, Administration and Management, Judgment and Decision Making, Deductive Reasoning, Category Flexibility.

Specific to Pipelayers

  • Operation and Control
  • Speaking
  • Operations Monitoring
  • Quality Control Analysis
  • Rate Control
  • Reaction Time
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Time Management

Specific to Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Mathematics
  • English Language
  • Design
  • Monitoring
  • Education and Training
  • Inductive Reasoning
  • Transportation

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 Pipelayers

    Specific to Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

    Full profiles

    This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Pipelayers or Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters — 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.

    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.

    Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

    Cite this page
    Plain

    Singulariki. "Pipelayers vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters." 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/pipelayers-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters

    APA

    Singulariki. (2026). Pipelayers vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/pipelayers-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters

    BibTeX 
    @misc{singulariki-pipelayers-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters,
  title  = {Pipelayers vs Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters},
  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/pipelayers-vs-helpers-pipelayers-plumbers-pipefitters-and-steamfitters}
}

    Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.