First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers

Career Overview

Directly supervise and coordinate activities of construction or extraction workers.

Also Known As

  • Construction Foreman
  • Construction Supervisor
  • Electrical Supervisor
  • Roustabout Field Supervisor

Alternate Job Titles

  • Acoustical Tile Carpenters' Supervisor
  • Adjustable Steel Joist Setting Supervisor
  • Asbestos Removal Supervisor
  • Asphalt Paving Supervisor
  • Awning Hanger Supervisor
  • Bailer Operators' Supervisor
  • Bailer Tenders' Supervisor
  • Billposting Supervisor
  • Brick Chimney Supervisor
  • Bricklayer Supervisor
  • Brickmason Supervisor
  • Building Construction Superintendent
  • Building Insulation Supervisor
  • Building Repair Maintenance Supervisor
  • Building Superintendent

What You'll Do

In this role, your typical responsibilities include:

  • Inspect work progress, equipment, or construction sites to verify safety or to ensure that specifications are met.
  • Read specifications, such as blueprints, to determine construction requirements or to plan procedures.
  • Supervise, coordinate, or schedule the activities of construction or extractive workers.
  • Assign work to employees, based on material or worker requirements of specific jobs.
  • Coordinate work activities with other construction project activities.
  • Estimate material or worker requirements to complete jobs.
  • Analyze worker or production problems and recommend solutions, such as improving production methods or implementing motivational plans.

Knowledge You'll Use

You'll need solid knowledge in these areas:

  • Administration and Management
  • Building and Construction
  • Mechanical
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • English Language

Essential Skills

Success in this career requires strong skills in:

  1. Coordination
  2. Active Listening
  3. Speaking
  4. Critical Thinking
  5. Management of Personnel Resources

Key Abilities

This career requires key abilities in:

  • Oral Comprehension
  • Oral Expression
  • Problem Sensitivity
  • Near Vision
  • Information Ordering
  • Deductive Reasoning
  • Inductive Reasoning
  • Written Comprehension
  • Speech Clarity
  • Written Expression

Work Style

People who excel in this career typically demonstrate:

  • Leadership Orientation
  • Dependability
  • Cautiousness
  • Perseverance
  • Cooperation

What Matters in This Career

This career tends to satisfy these work values:

  • Independence
  • Relationships
  • Achievement
  • Support
  • Working Conditions

Education & Preparation

Typical Education: Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)

Related Work Experience Needed: Over 10 years

On-the-Job Training: Over 6 months, up to and including 1 year

Education Details: Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.

Experience Required: Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.

Technology You'll Use

Popular Technologies & Software

  • Adobe Acrobat
  • Autodesk AutoCAD
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Project
  • Microsoft Word
  • Oracle Primavera Enterprise Project Portfolio Management
  • Procore software

Tools & Equipment

  • Acetylene welding equipment
  • Adjustable wrenches
  • Aerial personnel lifts
  • Air compressors
  • Allen wrenches
  • Ammeters
  • Analog temperature analyzers
  • Arc welding equipment
  • Backhoes
  • Band saws
  • Bench vises
  • Biscuit joiners
  • Blasting machines
  • Brick trowels
  • Bubble levels

Work Environment

  • Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams
  • Contact With Others
  • Telephone Conversations
  • Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets
  • Frequency of Decision Making

Salary & Job Market

Salary PercentileAnnual Wage
Entry-Level (10th percentile)$51,290
Median$78,690
Top Earners (90th percentile)$126,690

Workers Employed Nationally: 806,080

Related Careers

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Occupational data sourced from the O*NET OnLine database, developed by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. Wage data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), 2024.

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