Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers
Assemble, install, repair, or maintain electric or hydraulic freight or passenger elevators, escalators, or dumbwaiters.
Also called: Elevator Adjuster · Elevator Constructor · Elevator Installer · Elevator Mechanic · Elevator Repair and Maintenance Technician (Elevator Repair and Maintenance Tech) · Elevator Service Mechanic
Median pay (national)
$106,580
$54,720–$149,250 (10th–90th)
Employed (US)
23,340
BLS OEWS, May 2024
Outlook 2024–34
+5%
~2,000 openings/yr
Typical entry
High school diploma or equivalent
What the numbers say
Refit analysis ·Pay for elevator and escalator installers and repairers shows an unusually wide range: the top 10% earn $149,250 versus $54,720 at the bottom 10% — 2.7x. The median of $106,580 leaves roughly 40% of headroom to the 90th percentile, which is where seniority, specialization, and the skills below tend to pay off.
Refit analysis ·Employment is projected to change +5% from 2024 to 2034 — faster than the 3% all-occupation average. Even so, BLS projects about 2,000 openings a year, mostly to replace workers who retire or change careers.
Refit analysis ·Where you work moves the number a lot. Across the 38 states with released data, Hawaii pays the most for this role (median $150,600, +41% vs the national median), while Puerto Rico sits lowest at $37,720 — a 299% spread for the same job title.
Refit analysis ·O*NET rates Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Reading Comprehension as the highest-importance skills here — so a resume aimed at this role should lead with evidence of those, not a generic skills list.
Tailor your resume to Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers
Honest tailoring
See how your resume lines up with Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers
Refit re-angles your real experience toward this role using the skills above — and never invents skills you don't have. A no-fabrication gate checks every change before you see it.
Free. No account needed to see your first re-fit.
Top skills employers ask for
Ranked by O*NET importance for this occupation.
- Critical Thinking
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Learning
- Monitoring
- Speaking
- Writing
- Learning Strategies
- Mathematics
- Science
What they actually do
Core O*NET tasks for this role.
- Inspect wiring connections, control panel hookups, door installations, and alignments and clearances of cars and hoistways to ensure that equipment will operate properly.
- Disassemble defective units, and repair or replace parts such as locks, gears, cables, and electric wiring.
- Locate malfunctions in brakes, motors, switches, and signal and control systems, using test equipment.
- Adjust safety controls, counterweights, door mechanisms, and components such as valves, ratchets, seals, and brake linings.
- Read and interpret blueprints to determine the layout of system components, frameworks, and foundations, and to select installation equipment.
- Connect electrical wiring to control panels and electric motors.
- Test newly installed equipment to ensure that it meets specifications, such as stopping at floors for set amounts of time.
- Participate in additional training to keep skills up to date.
- Install electrical wires and controls by attaching conduit along shaft walls from floor to floor and pulling plastic-covered wires through the conduit.
- Attach guide shoes and rollers to minimize the lateral motion of cars as they travel through shafts.
Tools & technology
- Computerized maintenance management system CMMS
- Elevator Controls INTERACT
- Scheduling software
- Troubleshooting software
- WORLD Electronics Freedomware
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Outlook
- Microsoft Word
Knowledge areas
- Mechanical
- Customer and Personal Service
- Building and Construction
- Public Safety and Security
- Computers and Electronics
- Mathematics
- Engineering and Technology
- English Language