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St. Louis County, MO · Operating Engineer
Operating Engineer prevailing wage in St. Louis County, Missouri
$76.62an hour, fringe benefits included
One rate, fringe benefits included (DLS prints no split) · Building construction
On Missouri public works in St. Louis County, an operating engineer must be paid at least $76.62 an hour. DLS prints one rate with fringe benefits included, so there is no separate base wage.
Annual Wage Order 33 (final May 29, 2026), effective May 29, 2026. The rates attached to the call for bids "shall remain in effect for the duration of that particular contract" (RSMo 290.250). Checked against labor.mo.gov on October 25, 2026.
DLS lists 12 operating engineer rates for St. Louis County, from $76.52 to $76.62 an hour. See all of them.
One rate, fringe benefits included: $76.62
DLS publishes a single hourly figure that already includes fringe benefits. A contractor can pay it all as wages, or pay part as contributions to bona fide benefit plans for the worker, as long as the two add up to at least $76.62. DLS doesn't publish a base and fringe split, so this page doesn't invent one.
When does this rate change?
- The rates attached to the call for bids "shall remain in effect for the duration of that particular contract" (RSMo 290.250). Where a rate comes from a union agreement, DLS may issue replacement pages for its yearly raise.
- DLS files the initial Annual Wage Order by March 10; objections are due in 30 days and the final order by July 1 (RSMo 290.262). AWO 33 was filed March 10, 2026 and became final May 29, 2026.
Every operating engineer rate in St. Louis County
As DLS lists them. The highlighted row is the one this page leads with.
- Operating EngineerBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group IBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group IIBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group IIIBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group III - ABuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group IVBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating Engineer - Group VBuilding construction$76.62
- Operating EngineerHeavy & highway construction$76.52
- Operating Engineer - Group IHeavy & highway construction$76.52
- Operating Engineer - Group IIHeavy & highway construction$76.52
- Operating Engineer - Group IIIHeavy & highway construction$76.52
- Operating Engineer - Group IVHeavy & highway construction$76.52
| Classification | Base wage | Fringe benefits | Total rate | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating EngineerBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IIBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IIIBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group III - ABuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IVBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group VBuilding construction | incl. | incl. | $76.62 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating EngineerHeavy & highway construction | incl. | incl. | $76.52 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IHeavy & highway construction | incl. | incl. | $76.52 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IIHeavy & highway construction | incl. | incl. | $76.52 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IIIHeavy & highway construction | incl. | incl. | $76.52 | May 29, 2026 |
| Operating Engineer - Group IVHeavy & highway construction | incl. | incl. | $76.52 | May 29, 2026 |
Davis-Bacon operating engineer rate in St. Louis County
Federally funded or assisted construction here uses the U.S. Department of Labor's wage determinations. When a contract requires both the state rate and the Davis-Bacon rate, paying the higher of the two meets both. The contract documents say which apply.
We don't put a federal figure next to DLS's here, because the federal determinations split this trade into groups that don't line up with DLS's. The federal rows for this trade are below; match the classification to the work.
| Construction | Federal classification | Base wage | Total rate | WD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: FORKLIFTENGI0513-023 | $43.46 | $73.68 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: BOBCAT/SKID STEER/SKID LOADERENGI0513-023 | $43.46 | $73.68 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: BACKHOE/EXCAVATOR/TRACKHOEENGI0513-023 | $43.46 | $73.68 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: OILERENGI0513-026 | $39.06 | $69.44 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: BULLDOZERENGI0513-027 | $45.96 | $76.53 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: CRANEENGI0513-028 | $45.96 | $76.53 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Building | OPERATOR: ROLLERUAVGMO0002 | $39.61 | $69.76 | MO20260089 Mod 1 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATORS: GROUP 2: AIR TUGGER WITH PLANT AIR; BOILER (FOR POWER OR HEATING SHELL OF BUILDING OR TEMPORARY ENCLOSURES IN CONNECTION WITH …ENGI0513-004 | $45.96 | $76.92 | MO20260001 Mod 4 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATORS: GROUP 2: AIR TUGGER W/AIR COMPRESSOR; ANCHOR-PLACING BARGE; ASPHALT SPREADER; ATHEY FORCE FEEDER LOADER (SELF- PROPELLED); …ENGI0513-007 | $45.96 | $76.92 | MO20260001 Mod 4 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATORS: GROUP 3: CONVEYOR, LARGE (NOT SELF-PROPELLED); CONVEYOR, LARGE (NOT SELF-PROPELLED) MOVING BRICK AND CONCRETE DISTRIBUTING) ON FLOOR …ENGI0513-007 | $44.66 | $75.62 | MO20260001 Mod 4 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATORS: GROUP 4: BOAT OPERATOR-OUTBOARD MOTOR (JOB SITE); CONVEYOR (SUCH AS CON-VAY-IT) REGARDLESS OF HOW USED; SWEEPER, FLOOR (ST. LOUIS …ENGI0513-007 | $44.22 | $75.18 | MO20260001 Mod 4 |
| Residential | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR:: ROLLER (JEFFERSON, LINCOLN, ST CHARLES, ST LOUIS & WARREN COUNTIES)ENGI0513-020 | $41.01 | $70.64 | MO20260070 Mod 1 |
| Residential | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR:: BACKHOE/EXCAVATOR (JEFFERSON, LINCOLN, ST CHARLES, ST LOUIS & WARREN COUNTIES)ENGI0513-020 | $41.01 | $70.64 | MO20260070 Mod 1 |
Davis-Bacon rates from SAM.gov, read October 25, 2026. Our federal totals are base plus fringe; DOL prints no total. Missouri Davis-Bacon changes
How St. Louis County compares
The main operating engineer rate in every county that has one. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in Missouri
Rates nearby
- St. Louis Countyfringes included$76.62
- St. Louis Cityfringes included$76.81
- St. Charles Countyfringes included$76.35
- Jefferson Countyfringes included$77.88
Operating Engineer rates in nearby counties
Current DLS rates. "Locality" is the county where the physical work is done; the City of St. Louis has its own section (RSMo 290.210(5)).
| County | Classification | Base wage | Total rate | vs St. Louis County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $77.88 | +$1.26 |
| Lincoln County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $77.21 | +$0.59 |
| St. Louis City | Operating Engineer | incl. | $76.81 | +$0.19 |
| St. Louis County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $76.62 | |
| St. Charles County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $76.35 | −$0.27 |
| Franklin County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $76.26 | −$0.36 |
| Warren County | Operating Engineer | incl. | $75.97 | −$0.65 |
Missouri operating engineer prevailing wage by county, with a map
More from DLS on this rate
- DLS Annual Wage Order 33, page 2
- DLS's Annual Wage Order look-up
- The order lists journeyworker rates. Registered apprentices and entry-level workers get 50% of the journeyworker rate, no more than one per journeyworker (RSMo 290.235).
Are you being paid this rate?
Missouri's rate includes fringe benefits, so add your wage to what your employer pays into benefit plans for you and compare it with the rate. Contractors post the rates on site; the contractor forfeits $100 per worker per day of underpayment, and you can sue for double the difference (RSMo 290.250, 290.300). DLS Wage and Hour: 573-751-3403.
Source
Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLS), Annual Wage Order 33 MO-AWO33-100, issued March 10, 2026, effective May 29, 2026, page 2: laborwebapps.mo.gov/DLS/PrevailingWage/AWO/33/33_WO100.pdf
We read every county's AWO 33 PDF, including the replacement pages DLS issued by May 29, 2026, and check every rate with a second, separate reader. Each figure is the printed rate. How we check · Download St. Louis County as CSV · Report an error