1 (844) 303-5123 [email protected]

Average Hourly Wage of Drywall Installers, By State

Photo by 182nd Airlift WingPhoto by 182nd Airlift Wing

Drywall, gypsum, sheet rock, wall board, or whatever you call it, has to be installed by someone, so who better than a drywall installer? Some drywallers install the board and also tape and mud the joints, but others only hang the board.  

When sanding, drywallers are exposed to a lot of dust, including silica in some cases, which they need to be protected from.  The Center for Disease Control suggests using a vaccuum sander or pole sanding to reduce worker’s exposure to harmful dust particles. 

The Bureau of Labor Statistics lumps drywall installers and ceiling tile installers in with each other, so keep that in mind when examining the data below. Data for the state of Rhode Island was unavailable for this work category, unfortunately.

All data below comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistic’s most recent reports from May 2016. 

Graph of Average Hourly Wage of a Drywall Installer, by State

click for larger imageclick for larger image

click for larger image

Rankings of Average Hourly Wage of a Drywall Installer, by State

51. Rhode Island  —  N/A/hour

50. Hawaii  —  $14.81/hour

49. New York  —  $15.36/hour

48. Alaska  —  $16.01/hour

47. California  —  $16.42/hour

46. New Jersey  —  $16.51/hour

45. Connecticut  —  $16.62/hour

44. Washington  —  $16.65/hour

43. Illinois–$16.92/hour

42. District of Columbia  —  $16.98/hour

41. Wisconsin  —  $17.38/hour

40. Minnesota  —  $17.42/hour

39. Massachusetts  —  $17.53/hour

38. Pennsylvania  —  $18.04/hour

37. Maine  —  $18.44/hour

36. Oregon  —  $18.55/hour

35. Delaware  —  $18.82/hour

34. Vermont  —  $18.84/hour

33. New Hampshire  —  $18.95/hour

32. Wyoming  —  $19.00/hour

31. Michigan  —  $19.03/hour

30. Louisiana  —  $19.13/hour

29. Indiana  —  $19.38/hour

28. Colorado  —  $19.65/hour

27. Missouri  —  $19.99/hour

26. Maryland  —  $20.13/hour

25. Virginia  —  $20.16/hour

24. North Dakota  —  $20.42/hour

23. Kansas  —  $20.94/hour

22. Ohio  —  $21.08/hour

21. Georgia  —  $21.40/hour

20. West Virginia  —  $22.01/hour

19. Nevada  —  $22.10/hour

18. Oklahoma  —  $22.13/hour

17. New Mexico  —  $22.28/hour

16. Arizona  —  $22.52/hour

15. Kentucky  —  $22.58/hour

14. Nebraska  —  $22.80/hour

13. Tennessee  —  $22.86/hour

12. Idaho  —  $23.75/hour

11. Utah  —  $24.29/hour

10. South Dakota  —  $24.79/hour

9. Alabama  —  $25.29/hour

8. Mississippi  —  $27.44/hour

7. Iowa  —  $27.99/hour

6. Montana  —  $28.11/hour

5. North Carolina  —  $28.94/hour

4. Texas  —  $29.08/hour

3. Arkansas  —  $32.67/hour

2. Florida  —  $32.80/hour

1. South Carolina  —  $36.29/hour

Graph of Average Hourly Wage of a Drywall Installer – Adjusted for Cost of Living, by State

Cost of living in each state also has a large impact on the amount of money construction trades actually bring home, so the graph below shows each state’s adjusted hourly wage based upon the cost of living index for that state.  All cost of living index data comes from the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center and was last updated for the second quarter of 2017.  The cost of living index was based upon grocery, housing, utilities, transportation, health, and miscellaneous costs for each state. 

click for larger imageclick for larger image

click for larger image

Rankings of Average Hourly Wage of a Drywall Installer – Adjusted for Cost of Living, by State

51. Rhode Island  —  N/A/hour

50. District of Columbia  —  $11.79/hour

49. Hawaii  —  $12.19/hour

48. Maryland  —  $14.72/hour

47. South Carolina  —  $15.02/hour

46. Oregon  —  $15.42/hour

45. Florida  —  $15.59/hour

44. California  —  $15.82/hour

43. Montana–$16.50/hour

42. Massachusetts  —  $16.51/hour

41. North Carolina  —  $17.40/hour

40. South Dakota  —  $17.45/hour

39. Texas  —  $17.96/hour

38. Nevada  —  $17.97/hour

37. Iowa  —  $18.00/hour

36. Arkansas  —  $18.03/hour

35. Utah  —  $18.24/hour

34. Alabama  —  $18.56/hour

33. Idaho  —  $19.06/hour

32. Mississippi  —  $19.37/hour

31. New Hampshire  —  $19.47/hour

30. Arizona  —  $19.48/hour

29. Virginia  —  $19.69/hour

28. Kentucky  —  $19.79/hour

27. West Virginia  —  $19.81/hour

26. New Mexico  —  $19.95/hour

25. Nebraska  —  $19.95/hour

24. Tennessee  —  $19.95/hour

23. Maine  —  $20.13/hour

22. North Dakota  —  $20.21/hour

21. Colorado  —  $20.33/hour

20. Ohio  —  $20.87/hour

19. Oklahoma  —  $20.88/hour

18. Georgia  —  $20.93/hour

17. Vermont  —  $21.63/hour

16. Kansas  —  $21.67/hour

15. Delaware  —  $22.02/hour

14. New Jersey  —  $22.43/hour

13. New York  —  $22.44/hour

12. Missouri  —  $22.48/hour

11. Pennsylvania  —  $22.49/hour

10. Louisiana  —  $22.56/hour

9. Alaska  —  $22.74/hour

8. Wyoming  —  $22.87/hour

7. Indiana  —  $23.02/hour

6. Connecticut  —  $23.47/hour

5. Michigan  —  $24.14/hour

4. Minnesota  —  $24.34/hour

3. Wisconsin  —  $25.43/hour

2. Washington  —  $25.75/hour

1. Illinois  —  $28.21/hour

Wood construction has typically been used for purely residential products in the past few decades and especially after fire protection standards became more stringent.  Besides fire rating, concrete and metal has several other benefits over wood, including overall strength, resistance to insects, and resistance to rot.  Wood, however, does have some advantages over concrete and steel, like its relative light weight and it’s much less harmful to the environment.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) defines the occupation we’re examining today as “First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers,” meaning the men and women in this job directly supervise employees and coordinate activities.  This could either mean a construction superintendent or a foreman.

The controversial Electronic Injury and Illness Reporting rule from OSHA was supposed to go into effect on December 1, 2017, but OSHA has recently delayed that enforcement to allow those affected to become familiar with the new electronic reporting system.

High winds can cause problems in many situations on a job site, especially with cranes and scaffolds.  A horrific crane collapse in downtown New York City was caught on tape after a gust of wind knocked it down in early 2016.  Last week, high winds caused more problems at construction sites, as it knocked over a scaffold above a busy sidewalk and sent a suspended scaffold swinging out of control and crashing into a building.

If you can believe it, we’re already in the middle of gift giving season as December is quickly approaching.  Sorting through dozens of aisles in stores and hundreds of pages on line looking for that perfect gift for the construction professional in your life can leave you confused and frustrated.  Construction Junkie is here to save the day with our 3rd Annual Ultimate Construction Holiday Gift Guide. Be sure to check out our 2015 and 2016 guide for additional ideas!

Structural iron and steel workers often work from great heights when installing the structural and reinforcing steel and iron on buildings, bridges, and other structures. From 2016 to 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects overall employment of ironworkers to grow 13%, which is higher than the average growth rate of all industries.  That’s good news if you’re currently and iron worker or about to become one.

With that growth assumption in mind, let’s take a look at how much steel and iron workers are currently being paid in each state.

Drywall, gypsum, sheet rock, wall board, or whatever you call it, has to be installed by someone, so who better than a drywall installer? Some drywallers install the board and also tape and mud the joints, but others only hang the board.  

When sanding, drywallers are exposed to a lot of dust, including silica in some cases, which they need to be protected from.  The Center for Disease Control suggests using a vaccuum sander or pole sanding to reduce worker’s exposure to harmful dust particles

Roofers have one of the most uncomfortable jobs on any construction site, especially when installing a dark roofing material.  A traditional black roof, either asphalt shingles or EPDM, can be up to 50 degrees warmer than the surrounding temperatures.  

It’s also one of the most dangerous professions in the industry.  Not only is it one of the most heavily cited group by OSHA, it also leads in number of fatalities per 100,000 workers.

Having said that, let’s take a look at how they’re paid in each state…