Compared with the local labor market
Refrigeration Mechanic pay vs. Minnesota
Across all employers in Minnesota, the median wage for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers — about 4,200 people — is $76,350. Corrections Department pays a median base salary of $71,163 for this role, 7% below that figure — about the 43rd percentile of local pay for the occupation.
Where Corrections Department sits in the local pay range
$48,220
$58,860
$76,350
$87,190
$100,030
Corrections Department median · $71,163
The bar is the range of annual wages for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers across every employer in Minnesota, from the 10th to the 90th percentile, with the middle 50% highlighted. The marker shows Corrections Department’s median base salary for this role. Both figures are base pay only.
And across the country
Nationwide, the median wage for Heating, Air Conditioning, and Refrigeration Mechanics and Installers — about 409,670 people — is $61,010. Corrections Department’s median base salary is 17% above that national figure, about the 66th percentile of pay for the occupation nationally.
$40,050
$48,360
$61,010
$77,060
$95,210
Corrections Department median · $71,163
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 Minnesota range relative to the national one.
Median total compensation for this role at Corrections Department is $71,400, 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 jurisdictions
Refrigeration Mechanic beyond Minnesota
This role is reported in 3 jurisdictions. In Minnesota, the median of $75,929 ranks #2 of 3. See Refrigeration Mechanic across all of Minnesota →
Highest-paying jurisdictions for this role
Median total compensation for comparable Refrigeration Mechanicroles in other jurisdictions. Titles are matched by normalized name across sources, not identical job classification, and pay is not cost-of-living adjusted. Each bar links to that jurisdiction’s page for the role.