Recycling and Reclamation Workers build operation and control, operations monitoring and quality control analysis skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders (90%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders | 90% | $43,220 | — | None |
| 2 | Hazardous Materials Removal Workers | 88% | $49,450 | — | None |
| 3 | Helpers--Production Workers | 84% | $39,070 | — | None |
| 4 | Helpers--Extraction Workers | 84% | $47,730 | — | None |
| 5 | Tire Builders | 81% | $57,390 | — | None |
| 6 | Septic Tank Servicers and Sewer Pipe Cleaners | 81% | $49,880 | — | None |
| 7 | Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers | 80% | $46,350 | — | None |
| 8 | Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic | 80% | $46,170 | — | None |
| 9 | Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders | 80% | $54,430 | — | None |
| 10 | Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders | 80% | $43,530 | — | None |
Compared with Recycling and Reclamation Workers, median —. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as recycling and reclamation workers (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
90% skill match · $43,220
Equipment Maintenance · Instructing · Coordination
88% skill match · $49,450
Complex Problem Solving · Persuasion · Systems Analysis
84% skill match · $39,070
Operations Analysis
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders (90% skill match, median $43,220), Hazardous Materials Removal Workers (88% skill match, median $49,450) and Helpers--Production Workers (84% skill match, median $39,070), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
None of the 25 closest matches pays more than recycling and reclamation workers at the national median (BLS May 2025). Higher-paying moves usually need more training.
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.