Compared with the local labor market
Heavy Equipment Operator pay vs. the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area
Across all employers in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area, the median wage for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators — about 950 people — is $73,650. Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op pays a median base salary of $40,887 for this role, 44% below that figure — below the 10th percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op sits in the local pay range
$49,170
$57,450
$73,650
$92,600
$114,540
Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op median · $40,887
The bar is the range of annual wages for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators across every employer in the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY area, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators — about 478,090 people — is $59,850. Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op’s median base salary is 32% below that national figure, below the 10th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
$42,190
$48,680
$59,850
$77,170
$101,090
Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op median · $40,887
Local and national wages differ for reasons beyond how well a job pays — cost of living, the mix of employers, and local demand for the occupation all move the Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY range relative to the national one.
Computed over the 10 of 16 people in this role paid at least $25,000in base salary. The rest are part-year or part-time records, whose actual pay isn’t comparable to a full-time annual wage.
Median total compensation for this role at Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op is $61,093, which includes overtime and employer-paid benefits. The benchmark above excludes both, so total compensation is deliberately not compared against it.
Benchmark: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025). BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) covers all employers in the area — private, non-profit, and government alike — so this is a comparison against the whole local labor market for the occupation, not against private-sector pay. OEWS wages are straight-time pay and exclude overtime, shift differentials, and employer-paid benefits, so the government figure shown here is base pay on the same basis. Total compensation is not comparable to it. Job titles are matched to the closest standard occupation, so the comparison is between similar work rather than an identical job classification.
Compare departments
This role across City of Buffalo
Heavy Equipment Operator is held in 2 City of Buffalo departments. In Pub Wks, Pks & St - Equipt Op, the median of $61,093 ranks #1 of 2.
Highest-paying departments for this role
Median total compensation for the Heavy Equipment Operator role in other City of Buffalodepartments (highest first). Each bar links to that department’s page for this role.