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Declining

Engineering technicians

Chemical plant operator

#90Declining
4/5

Key facts

−1.2%jobs, 2025 to 2035
United States

This job is declining in the United States. AI exposure: very low according to the ILO, moderate according to the BLS. Employment change in the United States by 2035: −1.2% (BLS). Future-proof jobs use similar skills: see "What next?".

The job

Chemical processing plant controllers (ISCO 3133). Chemical processing plant controllers operate and monitor chemical plants and related multi-function process control machinery, and adjust and maintain processing units and equipment which distil, filter, separate, heat or refine chemicals.

Page built from official classifications (ILO, ESCO); figures cover all the jobs grouped here.

56 job titles linked to this page

Titles from the European ESCO classification. They are also used for search.

  • air separation plant operative
  • air separation plant operator
  • air separation plant production operative
  • air separation plant production operator
  • air separation plant production worker
  • air separation plant worker
  • anaerobic digester technician
  • biogas equipment maintenance technician
  • biogas equipment technician
  • biogas generation technician
  • biogas production technician
  • biogas technician
  • biomass gas generation technician
  • biomass plant technician
  • butadiene compressor operator
  • butane compressor operator
  • CCTV control room operator
  • chemical operator
  • chemical plant and system operator
  • chemical plant and systems monitor
  • chemical plant and systems monitoring technician
  • chemical plant and systems operator
  • chemical plant control room operator
  • chemical plant operations technician
  • chemical plant operator
  • chemical plant process operator
  • chemical plant systems technician
  • chemical processing plant controller
  • closed-circuit television control room operator
  • control room attendant
  • downstream gas processing controller
  • ethylene compressor operator
  • gas compressor and gas pumping station operative
  • gas compressor and gas pumping station operator
  • gas compressor controller
  • gas compressor station operator
  • gas processing controller
  • gas processing maintenance controller
  • gas processing performance controller
  • gas processing plant supervisor
  • gas processing quality controller
  • gas processing safety controller
  • gas production controller
  • gas pumping station operative
  • gas pumping station operator
  • gas station operator
  • gas-compressor operative
  • gas-compressor operator
  • landfill gas plant technician
  • manufacturing control room operator
  • oxygen gas plant operator
  • oxygen plant operator
  • panel board operator
  • process plant operator
  • production control room operator
  • production monitor

What next?

Future-proof jobs that draw on skills close to this one. They are leads to explore, not an assessment of your profile.

Indicative matches: at launch they will come from the skills listed in official occupational directories.

Gauges

Risk 4/5 · High
AI exposureMediumBLS AI exposure category "moderate" (2026), higher than the ILO 2025 index (very low)
Employment outlookDeclineBLS, 2025-2035 projections (Chemical plant and system operators; Chemical equipment operators and tenders; Power plant operators (+3))
Hiring difficultyNot availableNo US indicator measures hiring difficulty job by job
PayHighBLS, 2025 median annual wage: $77,565
EntryQuickBLS, typical education needed for entry

No US indicator measures hiring difficulty job by job: this gauge stays empty. How countries are compared

Sources

Checked on 27 October 2026.