Mining and quarry workers and related operatives: average salary and pay in the UK
Full-time mining and quarry workers and related operatives in the UK earned a median £38,301 in the year to 5 April 2025, according to the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE): £738 below the all-jobs median of £39,039.
What the figures show
That puts it 152nd of 382, in the middle third of occupations.
A full-time median is published for men only; the sample of women is too small.
Paid hours are long: a full-time median of 42.7 a week including overtime, against 37.5 across all jobs.
ASHE counts roughly 5,000 employee jobs, 100% full-time.
From £30,263 in 2021, the median is up 26.6%, close to the 25.0% for all jobs.
Pay distribution, 2025 provisional
| Gross pay | Full-time, annual | Full-time, weekly | Full-time, hourly | All, annual | All, weekly | All, hourly |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25th percentile | – | – | £14.83 | – | – | £14.83 |
| 30th percentile | £32,464* | £689.60 | £15.10 | £32,464* | £689.60 | £15.10 |
| 40th percentile | £37,631 | £720.10 | £15.84 | £37,631 | £720.10 | £15.84 |
| Median (50th percentile) | £38,301 | £756.20 | £16.02 | £38,301 | £756.20 | £16.02 |
| 60th percentile | £40,604* | £782.20* | £16.89* | £40,604* | £782.20* | £16.89* |
| Mean | £39,714 | £813.50 | £17.76 | £39,714 | £813.50 | £17.76 |
Pay since 2021
| ASHE year | Full-time, annual median | Full-time, weekly median | Full-time, hourly median | All, annual median | All, weekly median | Jobs (thousands, indicative) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 revised | £30,263* | £660.20* | £12.79 | £28,166* | £634.70* | 4* |
| 2022 revised | – | £605.30* | – | – | £511.10* | – |
| 2023 revised | £34,633 | £662.10 | £13.95 | £34,633 | £639.20* | – |
| 2024 revised | – | £694.10 | £14.83 | – | £702.30 | 5* |
| 2025 provisional | £38,301 | £756.20 | £16.02 | £38,301 | £756.20 | 5* |
What mining and quarry workers and related operatives do
Quarry workers erect supports in underground workings, set and detonate explosives to loosen rocks and set up and operate drilling equipment to extract coal and other minerals from the ground, and operate machinery to wash, crush or separate stone and ores. (ONS SOC 2020, 8132)
Also covers: coal miner, derrickman (oil wells), diamond driller (well sinking), plant operator (quarry), quarry operative, aerial attendant, airway repairer, artesian borer, banksman's assistant, bargain man, belt cleaner, belt inspector, belt minder, belt runner, blende cleaner, borer's assistant, boring machinist and bottom cutter (380 titles in the ONS coding index).
- Inspects blasting area, drills shot holes, inserts explosives and detonates charges to loosen large pieces of rock, coal or ore
- Assembles drilling and cutting tools, operates controls to start machines and to regulate the speed and pressure of cutting and drilling
- Erects timber or metal supports to shore up tunnel and assists tunnel miner with the excavation of vertical shafts and underground tunnels
- Operates heading, ripping and cutting-loading machines to remove material from working face and monitors conveyor carrying away loose material
- Conveys goods and materials to and from the workface, loads and unloads mine cars and transfers materials from underground and surface conveyors to bunkers, tubs and rail trucks
- Operates agitators/vibrators to separate minerals and ensures that screened, filtered, crushed and separated material is discharged to appropriate chutes or conveyors
There are no formal academic entry requirements. Training is typically provided on-the-job. NVQs/ SVQs in land drilling operations at level 2 and processing operations (extractive industries) at level 3 are available. There is a minimum age limit of 18 for underground work.
Related
Plant and machine operatives (median £33,197) · Paper and wood machine operatives · Energy plant operatives · salary percentile · Average weekly hours worked in the UK · Median
ASHE Table 14: 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 · coding index · notes · 15 October 2026