General Maintenance and Repair Workers

Summary

General maintenance and repair workers use tools to fix appliances and equipment.

Quick Facts: General Maintenance and Repair Workers
2010 Median Pay	$34,730 per year $16.70 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	1,289,000
Job Outlook, 2010-20	11% (About as fast as average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	142,000

What General Maintenance and Repair Workers Do

General maintenance and repair workers maintain and repair machines, mechanical equipment, and buildings. They work on plumbing, electrical, and air-conditioning and heating systems.

Work Environment

General maintenance and repair workers often carry out many different tasks in a single day. They could work at any number of locations, both indoor and outdoor. They may work inside a single building, such as a hotel or hospital, or be responsible for the maintenance of many buildings, such as those in an apartment complex or college campus.

How to Become a General Maintenance and Repair Worker

Jobs in this field typically do not require any formal education beyond high school. General maintenance and repair workers often learn their skills on the job. They start by doing simple tasks and watching and learning from skilled maintenance workers.

Pay

The median annual wage of general maintenance and repair workers was $34,730 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of general maintenance and repair workers is expected to grow 11 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Demand will stem from new building and real estate construction.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of general maintenance and repair workers with similar occupations.

O*NET

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about general maintenance and repair workers by contacting these additional resources.

What General Maintenance and Repair Workers Do About this section

General maintenance and repair workers are responsible for the upkeep of many homes and apartment buildings.

General maintenance and repair workers maintain and repair machines, mechanical equipment, and buildings. They work on plumbing, electrical, and air-conditioning and heating systems.

Duties

General maintenance and repair workers typically do the following:

• Maintain and repair machines, mechanical equipment, and buildings
• Troubleshoot and fix faulty electrical switches
• Inspect and diagnose problems and figure out the best way to correct them, frequently checking blueprints, repair manuals, and parts catalogs
• Do routine preventive maintenance to ensure that machines continue to run smoothly
• Assemble and set up machinery or equipment
• Plan repair work using blueprints or diagrams
• Do general cleaning and upkeep of buildings and properties
• Order supplies from catalogs and storerooms
• Meet with clients to estimate repairs and costs
• Keep detailed records of their work

General maintenance and repair workers are hired for maintenance and repair tasks that are not complex enough to need the specialized training of a licensed tradesperson, such as a plumber or electrician.

They are also responsible for recognizing when a job is above their skill level and needs the skills of a tradesperson. For more information about other trade occupations, see the profiles on electricians; carpenters; heating, air-conditioning, and refrigeration mechanics and installers; and plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters.

Workers may fix plaster or drywall. They may fix or paint roofs, windows, doors, floors, woodwork, and other parts of buildings.

They also maintain and repair specialized equipment and machinery in cafeterias, laundries, hospitals, stores, offices, and factories.

They get supplies and repair parts from distributors or storerooms to fix problems. They use common hand and power tools such as screwdrivers, saws, drills, wrenches, and hammers to fix, replace, or repair equipment and parts of buildings.

Work Environment About this section

General maintenance and repair workers may need safety gear when working with certain tools and equipment.

General maintenance and repair workers held about 1.3 million jobs in 2010. The following industries employed the most general maintenance and repair workers in 2010:

General maintenance and repair workers often carry out many different tasks in a single day, at any number of locations. They may work inside a single building, such as a hotel or hospital, or be responsible for the maintenance of many buildings, such as those in an apartment complex or college campus.

General maintenance and repair workers may have to stand for long periods or lift heavy objects. These workers may work in uncomfortably hot or cold environments, in uncomfortable and cramped positions, or on ladders. The work involves a lot of walking, climbing, and reaching.

Injuries

Some tasks put workers at risk of electrical shock, burns, falls, cuts, and bruises. Full-time general maintenance workers experienced a work-related injury and illness rate that was much higher than the national average for all full-time workers.

Work Schedules

Most general maintenance workers work full time. Some work evening, night, or weekend shifts or are on call for emergency repairs.

How to Become a General Maintenance and Repair Worker About this section

New maintenance and repair workers may work under the supervision of more experienced workers.

Jobs in this field typically do not require any formal education beyond high school. General maintenance and repair workers often learn their skills on the job. They start by doing simple tasks and watching and learning from skilled maintenance workers.

Education

Many maintenance and repair workers may learn some basic skills in high school shop or technical educations classes, postsecondary trade or vocational schools, or community colleges.

Courses in mechanical drawing, electricity, woodworking, blueprint reading, science, mathematics, and computers are useful. Maintenance and repair workers often do work that involves electrical, plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning systems or painting and roofing tasks. Workers need a good working knowledge of many repair and maintenance tasks.

Practical training, available at many adult education centers and community colleges, is another option for workers to learn tasks such as drywall repair and basic plumbing.

Training

General maintenance and repair workers usually start by watching and learning from skilled maintenance workers. They begin by doing simple tasks, such as fixing leaky faucets and replacing light bulbs. They go on to more difficult tasks, such as overhauling machinery or building walls.

Some learn their skills by working as helpers to other types of repair or construction workers, including machinery repairers, carpenters, or electricians.

Because a growing number of new buildings rely on computers to control their systems, general maintenance and repair workers may need to know basic computer skills, such as how to log onto a central computer system and navigate through a series of menus. Companies that install computer-controlled equipment usually give on-site training for general maintenance and repair workers.

Certification

General maintenance and repair workers can show their competency by attaining voluntary certification. The Society for Maintenance and Reliability Professionals (SMRP) offers the Certified Maintenance and Reliability Professional (CMRP) designation to those who successfully complete the program and pass an exam. Certification can help applicants find jobs and provide them with better advancement opportunities.

Licensing

Licensing requirements vary by state and locality. For more complex tasks, workers may need to be licensed in a particular specialty, such as electrical or plumbing work.

Advancement

Some maintenance and repair workers decide to train in one specific craft and become craft workers, such as electricians, heating and air-conditioning mechanics, or plumbers. Within small organizations, promotion opportunities may be limited.

Important Qualities

Computer skills. Many new buildings have automated controls. Workers must be able to navigate a centralized computer system to adjust and monitor the controls.

Customer-service skills. Workers interact with customers on a regular basis. They need to be friendly and able to address customers’ questions.

Dexterity. Many technician tasks, such as repairing small devices, connecting or attaching components, and using handtools, require a steady hand and good hand-eye coordination.

Troubleshooting skills. Workers find, diagnose, and repair problems. They do tests to figure out the cause of problems before fixing equipment.

Pay About this section

The median annual wage of general maintenance and repair workers was $34,730 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 $20,800, and the top 10 percent earned more than $56,090.

Most general maintenance workers work full time. Some work evening, night, or weekend shifts or are on call for emergency repairs.

Job Outlook About this section

Employment of general maintenance and repair workers is expected to grow 11 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Because many general maintenance and repair workers work in industries related to real estate, employment opportunities may be sensitive to fluctuations in the economy. Some workers may experience periods of unemployment when the overall level of construction and real estate development falls. However, maintenance and repairs continue during economic downturns, and may even increase as people opt to repair rather than replace equipment.

Employment growth of general maintenance and repair workers may be negatively affected by the use of building management systems. These systems control and monitor the building’s mechanical and electrical equipment, such as ventilation and lighting. For example, these systems can identify a broken ventilation fan or turn off lights automatically after a set amount of time. Building management systems make it easier to detect problems and automatically schedule repairs, partially reducing the need for general maintenance and repair workers. 

Job Prospects

There should be many job openings for general maintenance and repair workers, due to growth and the need to replace workers who leave the occupation. Many job openings are expected as experienced workers retire. Those with experience in repair- or maintenance-related fields should continue to have the best job prospects.

Contacts for More Information About this section

For more information on the Certified Materials & Resources Professional (CMRP) designation, visit

The Society for Maintenance and Reliability Professionals