Prevailing Wage for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians
Prevailing wage for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians is set by DOL at four experience levels, with the floor shifting substantially depending on worksite city. Whether your offer is for a Civil Designer, Civil Engineering Assistant, or Engineering Assistant role, your sponsored salary must clear the DOL threshold for your exact location and experience level.
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Level 1 applies to entry-level technicians with limited field experience, typically recent graduates or candidates new to applying civil engineering principles under close supervision. Work scope is routine and follows established procedures with minimal independent judgment required.
Level 2 is the most common filing level for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians. It covers qualified candidates who apply standard techniques independently, have a few years of hands-on experience, and need only general supervision on design and construction support tasks.
Level 3 applies to experienced technicians who handle complex assignments, exercise independent judgment on non-routine problems, and may guide junior staff. Candidates typically bring several years of demonstrated project experience across planning, design, or construction oversight functions.
Level 4 covers fully competent senior technicians or lead technologists who set technical direction, manage complex multi-discipline projects, and operate with minimal oversight. This level often corresponds to roles carrying supervisory or program-coordination responsibilities within an engineering team.
Prevailing Wage for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians 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 this role and sponsoring H-1B, OPT, and green card visas at or above the prevailing wage.
Search visa-sponsored jobsPrevailing Wage Guide for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians
Watch for title aliasing on LCA filings
Job postings for Civil Designers or Design Technicians are sometimes filed under a broader engineering SOC, which can pull the prevailing wage floor above or below the SOC 17-3022 threshold. Confirm the SOC code on the certified LCA before accepting an offer.
Factor in California metro premiums before negotiating
San Jose and San Francisco post prevailing wage floors significantly above the national median for this occupation. If your worksite is in a Bay Area county, the L2 floor alone substantially exceeds the national L3 figure, reshaping what counts as a competitive offer.
Find sponsors with proven technician hiring history
Migrate Mate filters Civil Engineering Technologist and Technician roles by employers who have historically sponsored this occupation, so you can prioritize firms with an actual track record of filing for technician-level positions rather than engineering-only sponsors.
Confirm your worksite county before accepting a remote offer
DOL prevailing wage for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians is tied to the worksite on the LCA, not your employer's headquarters. A role based at a project site in a lower-wage metro sets the floor at that location, even if the firm is headquartered elsewhere.
Jobs for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians are hiring across the US. Find yours.
Find Jobs for this rolePrevailing Wage by Reported Job Title
DOL classifies these titles under SOC 17-3022.00 alongside Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians, so the same four-tier wage schedule applies to each. Tap a title to see the full breakdown.
Civil Designer Prevailing Wage
Civil Designer Prevailing Wage
Civil Designer positions fall under SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). 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.
Civil Engineering Assistant Prevailing Wage
Civil Engineering Assistant Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Civil Engineering Assistant for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Civil Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
Civil Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
Civil Engineering Technician is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). 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.
Design Technician Prevailing Wage
Design Technician Prevailing Wage
Design Technician positions fall under SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). 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.
Engineer Technician Prevailing Wage
Engineer Technician Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Engineer Technician for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Engineering Assistant Prevailing Wage
Engineering Assistant Prevailing Wage
Engineering Assistant is an O*NET-reported job title within SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). 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.
Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
Engineering Technician positions fall under SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). 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.
Transportation Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
Transportation Engineering Technician Prevailing Wage
When a U.S. employer sponsors a Transportation Engineering Technician for a work visa or green card, DOL applies the prevailing wage schedule for SOC 17-3022.00 (Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians). Wage level reflects the role's experience and responsibility, not the title itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does DOL set the prevailing wage for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians?
DOL derives prevailing wages for this occupation from Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey data collected by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. OFLC translates those regional wage distributions into four wage levels for SOC 17-3022. Employers must obtain a certified Labor Condition Application stating a wage at or above the applicable level before sponsoring a work visa.
What do the four wage levels mean and how do I identify mine?
DOL's four levels reflect experience and independence. Level 1 covers entry-level work under close supervision. Level 2 is for qualified technicians working with general oversight, and it is the most common filing level for this occupation. Level 3 applies to experienced professionals handling complex tasks independently. Level 4 is for fully competent senior or lead technologists. Your level should match your actual duties, experience, and supervisory responsibility, and USCIS may scrutinize a mismatch between the filed level and the job description.
Why does the prevailing wage for this role vary so much by city?
OFLC bases wages on regional OEWS surveys, which capture local labor market conditions. Metropolitan areas with high concentrations of infrastructure projects, government contractors, and engineering firms, such as the San Francisco Bay Area and Washington DC, show significantly higher wage floors than smaller or lower-cost markets. The wage that governs your sponsorship is always the floor for the worksite county listed on the certified LCA, regardless of where your employer is headquartered.
What happens if my job offer is below the prevailing wage for a sponsored position?
An employer cannot certify an LCA with a wage below the DOL prevailing wage floor. If the offered salary falls short, the employer must either raise it to meet the threshold or the sponsorship cannot proceed under that visa category. USCIS will deny an H-1B petition if the supporting LCA wage is below the required level, and for PERM-based green card cases, DOL will reject a below-floor wage determination. The prevailing wage is a hard floor, not a guideline.
How do I find and verify the prevailing wage for a specific U.S. location?
Use the OFLC Wage Search tool to look up current DOL wage rates for SOC 17-3022 by metropolitan area. Select the relevant metro or county, choose the wage level that matches the role description, and confirm the figure against the salary in your offer letter. You can also review recent LCA disclosure data published by OFLC to see what wages employers have certified for Civil Engineering Technologist and Technician roles in your target market. Migrate Mate lists sponsored openings filtered by role and location, helping you benchmark offers against employers already hiring in this occupation.
See which employers are hiring and sponsoring visas for Civil Engineering Technologists and Technicians right now.
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