UnionCrane Operators Local 542 wages 2026 (Pennsylvania)
The hourly rates, overtime, shift, vacation and per diem rules of IUOE Local 542 in Pennsylvania, read from the two agreements built into the Crane Operator app. An independent guide: the agreement and your hall have the final word.
Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway
Local 542 agreement with the Contractors Associations of Eastern Pennsylvania, 5-County Heavy/Highway, May 1 2022 to April 30 2027 (wage schedules to May 1 2026)
$58.68an hour
Group I, Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway
From May 1, 2026. No later step published.
| Classification | From May 1, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Group I(A): cranes doing hook work; truck cranes and cherry pickers 15 t and over; crane coordinator / signalmanbase rate | $58.68 |
| Group II(A): single-person truck cranes and cherry pickers 15 t and over | $58.44 |
| Group I: handling steel and stone in erection; spider and mini cranes; high-rail / burro cranes | $55.67 |
| Group II: all types of cranes and derricks; tower crane erecting, dismantling, jumping or jacking | $55.43 |
| Group VII(A): toxic or hazardous waste removal, Group I hook-work cranes | $67.73 |
| Group VII(B): toxic or hazardous waste removal, Group II cranes | $67.44 |
| Group VI: fireman; oiler | $48.34 |
| Apprentice engineer / oiler, 4th year | $40.83 |
| Apprentice engineer / oiler, 3rd year | $36.26 |
| Apprentice engineer / oiler, 2nd year | $34.80 |
| Apprentice engineer / oiler, 1st year | $33.33 |
- Overtime
- Holidays (Sec. 8): New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas; worked, double time, which includes the holiday pay; reporting on a holiday or a Sunday is 12 hours' pay, starting 16 hours.
- Shift premium
- 10% of the rate on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and holiday pay
- Holidays (Sec. 8): New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas; worked, double time, which includes the holiday pay; reporting on a holiday or a Sunday is 12 hours' pay, starting 16 hours.
- Per diem and travel
- The 5-County sections have no per diem or zone pay (the 29-County highway section has zone pay, not built in).
Philadelphia 5-county building
Local 542 5-County Building: rates from the City of Philadelphia schedule (July 22 2026) and Davis-Bacon (May 1 2025); rules from the 2022–2024 building text (the current agreement isn't public)
$58.68 an hour, journeyman, from July 22, 2026.
| Classification | From July 22, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Group I(A): cranes doing hook work; truck cranes and cherry pickers 15 t and over; crane coordinator / signalmanbase rate | $58.68 |
| Group II(A): single-person truck cranes and cherry pickers 15 t and over | $58.44 |
| Group I: handling steel and stone in erection; spider and mini cranes; high-rail / burro cranes | $55.67 |
| Group II: all types of cranes and derricks; tower crane erecting, dismantling, jumping or jacking | $55.43 |
| Group VI: fireman; oiler | $48.34 |
- Overtime
- Hours and overtime (2022-2024 building text): the first 2 overtime hours a day and the first 8 on Saturday are time and a half, all other overtime double time; Sundays double time.
- Shift premium
- 10% of the rate on every hour worked on shift.
- Vacation and holiday pay
- Holidays (Sec. 8): New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas; worked, double time, which includes the holiday pay; reporting on a holiday or a Sunday is 12 hours' pay, starting 16 hours.
- Per diem and travel
- No per diem or zone pay is published for 5-County building work.
One 40-hour week, worked out
Week of November 8, 2026Group I(A): cranes doing hook work; truck cranes and cherry pickers 15 t and over; crane coordinator / signalman, Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway
Example| Day | Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours | 0 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 0 |
| Earnings | |
|---|---|
| Regular40 h × 58.68 | 2,347.20 |
| Gross pay | 2,347.20 |
| Deductions | |
| Field dues3.9% supplemental dues on wages | −91.54 |
| Social Security6.2% | −145.53 |
| Medicare1.45% | −34.03 |
| PA unemployment | −1.64 |
| Federal income taxestimate (W-4) | −346.67 |
| Pennsylvania income taxestimate | −72.06 |
What's missing
Where the app can't follow a rule to the letter yet, its notes say so, and say how to allow for it when you enter your hours. From this page's agreements:
- Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway. Rates after April 30 2027 aren't published, so the app keeps the 2026 rates after that.
- Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway. The app pays it as a flat amount for every hour worked, not multiplied on overtime (the agreement doesn't say). The lead engineer gets $1.00 over the highest-paid engineer (10 or more engineers) and the assistant $0.75 (25 or more), the steward $0.50: use Enter my own rate.
- Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway. The app adds 10% for every hour worked that day and doesn't multiply it on overtime hours.
- Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway. The app pays 8 hours for a holiday on a weekday you don't work, without checking the day before and after, keeps a Saturday holiday on the Friday before and a Sunday one on the Monday after (the agreement doesn't say), and pays a worked holiday at double time with nothing on top.
- Philadelphia 5-county building. The schedule doesn't print the date the 2026 rates started (they equal the heavy/highway May 1 2026 column), so the app uses the schedule's date; and the building apprentice rates after 2024 aren't published, so none are offered (use Enter my own rate).
- Philadelphia 5-county building. The app pays it as a flat amount for every hour worked, not multiplied on overtime. The lead engineer gets $1.50 (7 or more engineers) and the assistant $0.90 (25 or more): use Enter my own rate.
- Philadelphia 5-county building. The current building agreement isn't public, so the app uses these older rules: check your stub.
- Philadelphia 5-county building. The app adds 10% for every hour worked that day, not multiplied on overtime.
- Philadelphia 5-county building. The app pays 8 hours for a holiday on a weekday you don't work (weekly-basis employees who work the day before and after), keeps a Saturday holiday on the Friday before and a Sunday one on the Monday after, and pays a worked holiday at double time with nothing on top.
- Philadelphia 5-county building. Not re-confirmed for the current building agreement.
Enter your own hours in the Crane Operator app: it applies these rates, the overtime and holiday rules, dues and tax, and keeps a year of paychecks. Free for a month.
A number on this page is wrong? Report a wrong rate: it opens the app's feedback box with this page named, no email needed.
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Questions
What does a Local 542 journeyman make in 2026?
$58.68 an hour under the Local 542 agreement with the Contractors Associations of Eastern Pennsylvania, 5-County Heavy/Highway, May 1 2022 to April 30 2027 (wage schedules to May 1 2026), from May 1, 2026. The other agreements on this page: Philadelphia 5-county building $58.68.
When is the next Local 542 raise?
No later step is published in the data for the Philadelphia 5-county heavy & highway agreement. Rates usually change once a year; check the schedule before you count on a raise.
What do Local 542 apprentices make?
Apprentice engineer / oiler, 4th year $40.83, Apprentice engineer / oiler, 3rd year $36.26, Apprentice engineer / oiler, 2nd year $34.80 and Apprentice engineer / oiler, 1st year $33.33 an hour from May 1, 2026.
Does Local 542 pay a per diem?
The 5-County sections have no per diem or zone pay (the 29-County highway section has zone pay, not built in).
How is Local 542 overtime paid?
Holidays (Sec. 8): New Year's Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas; worked, double time, which includes the holiday pay; reporting on a holiday or a Sunday is 12 hours' pay, starting 16 hours.
Sources
The agreements and schedules these numbers were read from. Built October 25, 2026 from the Crane Operator app, version 0.1.0.
Independent. Not affiliated with any union. Check your agreement.