Hazardous Materials Removal Workers

Summary

Hazmat removal workers often work with toxic materials.

Quick Facts: Hazardous Materials Removal Workers
2010 Median Pay	$37,600 per year $18.08 per hour
Entry-Level Education	High school diploma or equivalent
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	Moderate-term on-the-job training
Number of Jobs, 2010	38,100
Job Outlook, 2010-20	23% (Faster than average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	8,800

What Hazardous Materials Removal Workers Do

Hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers identify and dispose of asbestos, radioactive and nuclear waste, arsenic, lead, and other hazardous materials. They also clean up materials that are flammable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic.

Work Environment

Hazmat removal workers face different working conditions, depending on their area of expertise. Some must wear fully enclosed protective suits for several hours at a time. Completing projects often requires night and weekend work. Overtime also is common, especially for emergency or disaster response workers.

How to Become a Hazardous Materials Removal Worker

Hazmat removal workers learn informally on the job. Most workers take at least 40 hours of mandatory Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training.

Pay

The median annual wage of hazardous materials removal workers was $37,600 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of hazmat removal workers is expected to grow 23 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. The need for decontamination technicians, radiation safety technicians, and decommissioning workers is expected to drive employment growth. Many job openings are anticipated because of the need to replace workers who leave the occupation.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of hazardous materials removal workers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

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What Hazardous Materials Removal Workers Do About this section

Hazmat removal workers contain liquid spills with absorbents.

Hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers identify and dispose of asbestos, radioactive and nuclear waste, arsenic, lead, and other hazardous materials. They also clean up materials that are flammable, corrosive, reactive, or toxic.

Duties

Hazmat removal workers typically do the following:

• Comply with safety procedures and federal laws regarding waste disposal
• Construct scaffolding or build containment areas before cleaning up
• Remove or clean up hazardous materials that are found or spilled
• Clean contaminated equipment for reuse
• Operate equipment that removes and stores waste materials
• Keep records of cleanup activities

Hazmat removal workers clean up materials that are harmful to people and the environment. The work they do depends on the substances they are cleaning. Removing lead and asbestos is different from cleaning up radiation contamination and toxic spills. Differences also can relate to why these workers have been called in to clean a site. For example, cleaning up a fuel spill from a train derailment is more urgent than removing lead paint from a bridge.

The following are types of hazmat removal workers:

Asbestos abatement workers and lead abatement workers remove asbestos and lead from buildings that are going to be fixed up or taken down. Most of this work is in older buildings that were originally built with asbestos insulation and lead-based paints—both of which are now banned from being used in newer buildings and must be removed from older ones.

Until the 1970s, asbestos was often used in buildings for fireproofing, insulation, and other uses. However, asbestos particles can cause deadly lung diseases. Similarly, until the 1970s, lead was commonly used in paint, pipes, and plumbing fixtures. Inhaling lead dust or ingesting chips of lead-based paint can cause serious health problems, though, especially in children.

Lead abatement workers use chemicals and may need to know how to operate sandblasters, high-pressure water sprayers, and other common tools.

Decommissioning and decontamination workers remove and treat radioactive materials generated by nuclear facilities and powerplants. They break down contaminated items such as “gloveboxes,” which are used to process radioactive materials. When a facility is being closed or decommissioned (taken out of service), these workers clean the facility and decontaminate it from radioactive materials.

Decontamination technicians do tasks similar to those of janitors and cleaners, but the items and areas they clean are radioactive. Some of these jobs are now being done by robots controlled by people away from the contamination site. Increasingly, many of these remote devices automatically monitor and survey floors and walls for contamination.

Emergency and disaster response workers must work quickly to clean up hazardous materials after train and trucking accidents. Immediate, thorough cleanups help to control and prevent more damage to accident or disaster sites.

Radiation-protection technicians use radiation survey meters and other remote devices to locate and assess the hazard associated with radiated materials, operate high-pressure cleaning equipment for decontamination, and package radioactive materials for moving or disposing.

Treatment, storage, and disposal workers transport and prepare materials for treatment, storage, or disposal. To ensure proper treatment of materials, workers must follow laws enforced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). At incinerator facilities, treatment, storage, and disposal workers move materials from the customer or service center to the incinerator. At landfills, they organize and track the location of items in the landfill and may help change the state of a material from liquid to solid to prepare it to be stored. These workers typically operate heavy machinery, such as forklifts, earthmoving machinery, and large trucks and rigs.

Mold remediation makes up a small segment of hazardous materials removal work. Although mold is present in almost all structures and is not usually defined as a hazardous material, some mold—especially the types that cause allergic reactions—can infest a building to such a degree that extensive efforts must be taken to remove it safely.

Work Environment About this section

Hazmat removal workers wear protective clothing to reduce exposure to toxic materials.

Hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers held about 38,100 jobs in 2010, of which 78 percent were employed in the waste management and remediation services industry.

Hazmat removal workers have different working conditions, depending on their area of expertise.

Asbestos and lead abatement workers usually work in office buildings, schools, or historic buildings that are being fixed up. Frequently, completing projects requires night and weekend work to avoid interfering with normal business activity.

Treatment, storage, and disposal workers are usually employed at facilities such as landfills, incinerators, and industrial furnaces. These facilities often are located in remote areas, so workers may have to commute long distances to their jobs.

Decommissioning and decontamination workers, decontamination technicians, and radiation protection technicians work at nuclear facilities and electric powerplants. These hazmat removal workers must deal with the stress of handling radioactive materials.

Injuries

Hazmat removal workers function in a highly structured environment to minimize the danger they face. This concern for safety keeps occupational injuries below the national average. Each phase of an operation is planned in advance, and workers are trained to deal with hazardous situations. Crews and supervisors take every safety measure to ensure that the worksite is safe.

No matter the material being cleaned, hazmat workers must often stand for long periods.

To reduce their exposure to harmful materials, workers often wear coveralls, gloves, shoe covers, safety glasses, or goggles. Some must wear fully enclosed protective suits for several hours at a time; these suits may be hot and uncomfortable and may cause the workers who wear them to experience claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces). In extremely toxic cleanups, hazmat workers are required to wear respirators to protect themselves from airborne particles or noxious gases. Lead abatement workers wear a personal air monitor that measures the amount of lead to which the worker has been exposed.

Work Schedules

Although most hazmat removal workers are employed full time, overtime and shift work are common, especially for emergency and disaster response workers. Hazmat removal workers may be required to travel outside their normal working areas to respond to emergency cleanups, which sometimes take several days or weeks to complete. During a cleanup, workers may be away from home for the entire time. Hazmat removal workers who work at nuclear facilities are busiest during refueling and may experience unemployment during other times.

How to Become a Hazardous Materials Removal Worker About this section

Hazmat removal workers take at least 40 hours of mandatory Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training.

Hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers learn on the job. They take at least 40 hours of mandatory Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training. There are no formal educational requirements beyond a high school diploma.

Licenses

To become an emergency and disaster response worker or a treatment, storage, and disposal worker, candidates must have a federal license that OSHA requires. Employers are responsible for ensuring that employees complete a formal 40-hour training program, given either in house or in OSHA-approved training centers. The program covers health hazards, personal protective equipment and clothing, site safety, recognizing and identifying hazards, and decontamination.

Training

Workers who treat asbestos and lead, the most common contaminants, must complete an employer-sponsored training program that meets OSHA standards. Employer-sponsored training is usually given in-house, and the employer is responsible for covering all technical and safety subjects outlined by OSHA.

In some cases, workers may discover one hazardous material while dealing with another. If workers are not licensed to handle the newly discovered material, they cannot continue to work with it. Many experienced workers opt to take courses in additional types of hazardous material removal to avoid this situation.

Training is most extensive for decommissioning and decontamination workers employed at nuclear facilities. In addition to getting a license through the standard 40-hour training course in hazardous waste removal, workers must take courses dealing with regulations about nuclear materials and radiation safety as mandated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

These courses add up to about 3 months of training, although most are not taken consecutively. Many agencies, organizations, and companies nationwide provide training programs that are approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy, and other regulatory agencies. To keep their license, workers in all fields must take continuing education courses each year.

OSHA does not regulate mold removal, but each state does.

Education

There is no formal education requirement, but most hazardous materials removal workers entering the occupation have a high school diploma. High school math courses are helpful, as are general vocational technical education courses. Additionally, there are several associate’s degree programs related to radiation protection.

Work Experience

To work at some nuclear facilities, workers must have 2 years of related work experience. Experience in the U.S. Navy and internships related to associate’s degree programs often count, as does experience working as a janitor at a nuclear facility.

For other workers in this occupation, a background in construction is helpful because much of the work is done in buildings.

Important Qualities

Detail oriented. Hazmat removal workers must follow safety procedures closely and keep records of their work. For example, workers must track the amount and type of waste disposed, equipment used, and number of containers stored.

Math skills. Workers must be able to do basic mathematical conversions and calculations when mixing solutions that neutralize contaminants.

Mechanical skills. Depending on the size and type of the cleanup, hazmat removal workers may use sandblasters, power washers, or earthmovers to clean contaminated sites.

Stamina. The work that hazmat crews do can be strenuous. Hazmat removal workers stand and scrub equipment for hours at a time to remove toxic materials.

Teamwork. Most workers in this occupation work in crews. Because the work is highly structured, with each crew member assigned a particular task, ability to work with others and take instruction is important.

Troubleshooting skills. Hazmat removal workers must be able to quickly diagnose the contents of a spill or leak and choose the proper method for cleaning up. For example, when a chemical tanker overturns, workers must find out what was spilled, decide if evacuation is needed, and clean up the site.

Pay About this section

The median annual wage of hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers was $37,600 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $24,720, and the top 10 percent earned more than $63,800.

Although most hazmat removal workers are employed full time, overtime and shift work are common, especially for emergency and disaster response workers. Hazmat removal workers may be required to travel outside their normal working areas to respond to emergency cleanups, which sometimes take several days or weeks to complete. During a cleanup, workers may be away from home for the entire time. Hazmat removal workers who work at nuclear facilities are busiest during refueling and may experience unemployment during other times.

Some hazmat removal workers are union members. The Laborers’ International Union of North America is one of the largest organizers of these workers.

Job Outlook About this section

Employment of hazardous materials (hazmat) removal workers is expected to grow 23 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. The need for decontamination technicians, radiation safety technicians, and decommissioning workers in response to increased pressure for cleaner electric generation facilities is expected to drive employment growth.

In addition, numerous abandoned hazardous material sites (Superfund) recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency still require cleanup. However, employment growth will be determined largely by federal funding.

With a declining number of structures containing asbestos and lead, demand for workers who remove these materials is expected to be somewhat limited. However, regulations for asbestos and lead removal have become stricter, and the need to remove these materials from many federal and historic buildings should continue.

Mold remediation is a small specialty and is unlikely to produce a significant number of jobs.

Job Prospects

Many job openings are expected for hazmat removal workers because of the need to replace workers who leave the occupation. Job opportunities for radiation safety technicians and decontamination workers should be good as new workers replace those who retire or leave the occupation for other reasons. Additional job openings may result for remediation workers as new facilities open in the coming decade.

Lead and asbestos workers will likely have limited job opportunities at specialty remediation companies as the restoration of federal buildings and historic structures continues at a slower pace than in the past. Also, hazmat removal workers should continue to face competition from construction laborers and insulation workers to do these cleanups.

The best employment opportunities for mold remediation workers should be in the Southeast and parts of the Northeast and Northwest, where mold tends to thrive.

Applicants who have experience working with reactors in the U.S. Navy have better opportunities when they apply for hazmat removal work at nuclear facilities.

Contacts for More Information About this section

For more information about hazardous materials removal workers in the construction industry, including information on training, visit

Laborers' International Union of North America  

For more information about working in the nuclear industry, visit

Nuclear Energy Institute