Prevailing Wage for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters
Prevailing wages for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters under SOC 51-7011 are set by the Department of Labor across four experience levels, from entry-level Cabinet Assembler positions through senior Cabinet Builder and Cabinet Installer roles. The floor varies significantly by city, so where your employer's worksite sits matters as much as your experience level.
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Entry-level workers with limited woodworking experience, typically performing routine tasks under close supervision. DOL assigns Level 1 to roles requiring basic familiarity with hand tools or power saws but no independent project ownership. Most new-hire cabinet assembler positions fall here.
Qualified workers with moderate hands-on experience who can execute standard cabinetmaking tasks with minimal supervision. Level 2 is the most common filing level for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters, covering journeymen who set up machines and fabricate parts independently.
Experienced professionals who handle complex woodworking assignments, troubleshoot equipment, and may guide junior workers. DOL places workers here when the role demands consistent independent judgment across a range of joinery, surfacing, or custom fabrication tasks.
Fully competent senior cabinetmakers or lead bench carpenters responsible for advanced custom work, quality oversight, or shop floor coordination. These workers apply expert-level knowledge across all aspects of the occupation with minimal or no supervision.
Prevailing Wage for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters by OES area
Each shape is a DOL OES area, the unit prevailing wage is published for.
What’s an OES area?
The Department of Labor publishes prevailing wages for geographic zones called OES areas. Every U.S. county belongs to exactly one, and the wage floor applies across the whole area. A worker in Oakland gets the San Francisco metro wage, not a separate Oakland wage.
Top 10 cities · Level 1
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See which U.S. employers are actively hiring for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
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Watch for title mismatches on your LCA
Employers sometimes file Cabinet Installer or Frame Builder roles under a construction SOC rather than 51-7011, which sets a different wage floor. Confirm the SOC code on your Labor Condition Application matches Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters before signing your offer.
Account for shop location not company headquarters
Cabinetmaking work is performed on-site at a physical shop or mill. DOL's worksite rule means the prevailing wage is pegged to where the bench is located, not the employer's billing address. A shop in rural Vermont and one in Burlington face very different wage floors.
Treat piece-rate and overtime pay carefully
Some cabinet shops structure pay as hourly plus piece-rate bonuses for output. DOL's prevailing wage calculation uses the base hourly equivalent. Piece-rate premiums and productivity bonuses do not count toward satisfying the LCA wage floor for sponsored positions.
Use Migrate Mate to find sponsors in high-wage metros
Markets like New York and San Jose show substantially higher prevailing wages for cabinet and bench carpentry roles. Migrate Mate lets you filter sponsored Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters listings by location so you can see which employers have actively sponsored the role in premium-wage markets.
Jobs for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Jobs for this rolePrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 51-7011.00 alongside Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Cabinet Assembler Prevailing Wage
Cabinet Assembler Prevailing Wage
Cabinet Assembler positions fall under SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Cabinet Builder Prevailing Wage
Cabinet Builder Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Cabinet Builder for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Cabinet Installer Prevailing Wage
Cabinet Installer Prevailing Wage
Cabinet Installer is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Cabinetmaker Prevailing Wage
Cabinetmaker Prevailing Wage
Cabinetmaker positions fall under SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Double End Tenon Operator Prevailing Wage
Double End Tenon Operator Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Double End Tenon Operator for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Frame Builder Prevailing Wage
Frame Builder Prevailing Wage
Frame Builder is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). All roles in this SOC share the same prevailing wage tiers. The level an employer files at depends on what the role requires, not which title is used.
Framer Prevailing Wage
Framer Prevailing Wage
Framer positions fall under SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). DOL OFLC publishes one four-tier prevailing wage schedule for the entire classification; employers filing H-1B, E-3, or PERM petitions for this title use the levels below.
Woodworker Prevailing Wage
Woodworker Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Woodworker for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 51-7011.00 (Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters?
DOL uses Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics across hundreds of metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. For SOC 51-7011, those survey results are translated into four wage levels reflecting local pay distributions. The resulting figures are published through OFLC and become the binding floor an employer must meet on a certified Labor Condition Application.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I know which one applies to me?
Level 1 covers entry-level work under close supervision, Level 2 covers qualified independent work and is the most common filing level for this occupation, Level 3 covers experienced workers who handle complex tasks or mentor others, and Level 4 covers fully competent senior or lead roles. The level is chosen by your employer based on the actual duties, autonomy, and complexity described in the job offer, not solely on your years of experience.
Why does the same Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters role pay so differently from city to city?
DOL's wage floors are built from regional Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics surveys, so they reflect actual local pay conditions. A cabinet shop in San Jose or New York operates in a higher-cost labor market than one in a rural metro. The worksite rule on the LCA ties the required wage to the location where the physical work is performed, meaning employer headquarters location is irrelevant. Dense employer markets and local cost of living both drive the variation across the more than 500 OES areas.
What happens if an employer's offer is below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
An LCA cannot be certified by DOL if the offered wage is below the applicable prevailing wage for the worksite area and experience level. If a petition is filed with a below-floor wage, USCIS can issue a Request for Evidence or deny the petition outright. The employer is required to pay the higher of the actual wage paid to comparable workers or the DOL prevailing wage, whichever is greater, for the entire period of authorized employment.
How do I find and verify the prevailing wage for a Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters position in a specific U.S. city?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool to look up current prevailing wages by SOC code 51-7011 and metropolitan area. Select the area that matches your employer's worksite, not the company's headquarters. OFLC publishes updated wage data annually, so confirm you are using the current cycle. For roles already on the market, Migrate Mate shows which employers have historically sponsored Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters positions, helping you identify companies already familiar with the LCA wage requirements.
See which employers are hiring and sponsoring visas for Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters right now.
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