When we choose to have a career, we surely think whether the career path is good or not. It also happens when you want to work in public utilities. You may ask yourself whether public utilities is a good career path or not.
Public Utilities Is A Good Career Path
If you want to work in public utilities and you wonder whether this field is a good career path or not, you do not have to be worried because public utilities is a good career path. One of the reasons is because it is a rewarding career where it does not only give you a good salary and benefits but also a sense of fulfilment from your work as described on the Open Education Online site.
According to the Full Edu Info site, the public utility industry offers a lot of job opportunities in the departments and job titles of engineering, administration, marketing, customer service agents and technicians.
Reasons Why Public Utilities Is A Good Career Path
According to the Full Edu Info site, here are some reasons why public utilities are a good career path.
- Public Utilities offer a high level of job security.
If you work in the public utility field, you have a higher certainty of employment than others who work in the private sector. After you work for years, you will get the right to job security. - If you have little or no industry experience, it is okay.
If you are a fresh graduate who is looking for a job in public utility, but you do not have industry experience, don’t worry. It is because you will have a lot of latitude in the public utilities sector so that it will be easy for you to get a job. As explained on the Full Edu Info site, the majority of public utilities permit applicants to compete for middle-level and higher-level positions even if you do not have any prior experience. There is only a small portion of the public utilities sector’s job applicants who are required to have specialized training or work experience. - There is professional advancement.
Do you want rapid and high professional advancement? If so, a position in public utilities can help you to get it. The methods of advancement which are used by public utilities permit their employees to advance in position and compensation and often it is based on years of service. Beside considering the employees’ years of service, when assessing employees’ competency and deciding whether they need to receive a pay raise or a position promotion, most public utilities also follow well-established procedures. Let’s say that you have worked at a public utility for a long time. If so, you are able to be eligible for getting a special bonus or pay raise if you take part in professional development activities such as earning a degree or taking advanced classes related to your field of work. - You can get extra benefits.
If you become a public utility employee, usually you will be eligible for a number of incentives such as special allowance, paid leave, award leave, gratuity, and special bonuses. Some employees can get certain type of bonus where the amount is based on their duration of service. Let’s say that you have more service time. If so, you will be eligible for a greater bonus percentage. However, if you have less service time, your bonus percentage will be lower. - The wage is relatively high.
The public utility employees earn more than their counterparts in the private sector. However, there are some factors that can affect your salary such as your degree of education and also your job title. If you have a higher degree, you may be able to get a higher compensation than those who have a lower degree if a certain educational level is strongly demanded for a certain public utility job. - There is no gender-based wage disparity.
Some people want to work in the public utility sector probably because there is no gender-based compensation discrepancy in this job. You may find that some private sector employment pay men higher than they do women. However, it cannot happen in public utilities.
Jobs Available in the Public Utilities
According to the Open Education Online site, here are some jobs available in some areas of public utilities.
- Electric Power Utilities
In the US, 172,000 people worked in just generation of electricity. And here are some of the jobs in this utilities sector: -
- Power Plant Engineer
The salary is around $100k to $143k per year. - Power System Dispatcher
The salary is around $47k to $121k per year. - Nuclear Licensing Engineer
The salary is around $76k to $145k per year. - Power Utility Manager
The salary is around $47k to $115k per year. - Wind Turbine Technician
The salary is around $50,000 per year. - Power lineman and electricians
The salary is around $54,000 per year.
- Power Plant Engineer
- Water and Sewage Utilities Sector
The responsibility of this sector is for the overall flow of water needed for all purposes in society. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics categorizes the jobs in water utilities with the requirements that you can see below along with the median hourly salaries.- General and Operations Managers
These positions must be filled with people who have a bachelor’s degree with 5+ years of experience. The median salary for this position is $47.74 per hour. - Supervisors
You must have a high school diploma with less than 5 years of experience. The median salary for this position is $27.78 per hour. - Pipelayers
It does not require formal education and experience. The median salary is $18.47 per hour. - Plumbers and Pipefitters
No formal education and experience are needed. The median salary is $24.74 per hour. - Water and wastewater plant system operator
High school diploma is required with no experience. The median salary is $22 per hour. - Construction and Equipment Operators
High school diploma is required with no experience. The median salary is $21.65 per hour. - Utilities Meter Reader
High school diploma is required with no experience and the median salary is $18.72 per hour. - Maintenance and Repair Workers
High school diploma is required with no experience and the median salary is $17.76 per hour. - Construction Laborers
No formal education and experience are needed and the median salary is $16.07 per hour.
- General and Operations Managers
- Natural Gas Utilities Sector
Here are some high-paying jobs in the natural gas sector with their national average salaries.- Driller
The average salary is $50,800 per year. - Gas Technician
The average salary is $53,682 per year. - Distribution Specialist
The average salary is $54,710 per year. - Project Accountant
The average salary is $61,016 per year. - Project Engineer
The average salary is $75,818 per year. - Environmental Health Officer
The average salary is $76,036 per year. - Geologist
The average salary is $84,955 per year. - Petroleum Engineer
The average salary is $88,378 per year.
- Driller
