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Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, & Blasters

What do they do?

Place and detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials. May perform specialized handling, storage, and accounting procedures.

Education Required

These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

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What Does This Job Pay?

Median Annual Salary: $61,590

Median Hourly Salary: $30

$42,670

$61,590

$89,400

One out of ten earn less than $42,670

The median salary is $61,590

One out of ten earn more than $89,400

Top Skills For This Job

Basic Skills
Reading work related information
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Talking to others
Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Reading work related information
Writing things for co-workers or customers
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Reading work related information
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Writing things for co-workers or customers
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Reading work related information
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Reading work related information
Talking to others
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Changing what is done based on other people's actions
Teaching people how to do something
Reading work related information
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Figuring out how to use new ideas or things
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Looking for ways to help people
Changing what is done based on other people's actions
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Talking to others
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Problem Solving
Reading work related information
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Talking to others
Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Reading work related information
Writing things for co-workers or customers
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Reading work related information
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Writing things for co-workers or customers
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Reading work related information
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Reading work related information
Talking to others
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Changing what is done based on other people's actions
Teaching people how to do something
Reading work related information
Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Figuring out how to use new ideas or things
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Looking for ways to help people
Changing what is done based on other people's actions
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Reading work related information
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Talking to others
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Teaching people how to do something
Looking for ways to help people
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

Will There Be Jobs?

New job opportunities are very likely in the future.

Typical Daily Tasks

Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
Place safety cones around blast areas to alert other workers of danger zones, and signal workers as necessary to ensure that they clear blast sites prior to explosions.