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Forest County, PA · Operating Engineer
Operating Engineer prevailing wage in Forest County, Pennsylvania
$69.33an hour, base wage + fringe benefits · Operators Class 1-A
$44.67 base wage + $24.66 fringe benefits · Heavy/Highway
On Pennsylvania public works in Forest County, an operating engineer working as operators class 1-a must be paid at least $69.33 an hour: a $44.67 base wage plus $24.66 in fringe benefits.
PPWS county schedules from each county's newest determination (Oct 25, 2026); this rate, effective January 1, 2026. Rates are set per project: the public body gets a determination before bidding, and once the contract is signed its rates "shall not be altered" while it is in force (Act § 4). A determination must be re-requested if the contract isn't awarded within 120 days (34 Pa. Code 9.104(a)). Checked against dliweb.pa.gov on October 25, 2026.
L&I lists 10 operating engineer rates for Forest County, from $54.12 to $69.33 an hour. See all of them.
Pennsylvania publishes no county rate schedule. These are the rates printed in each county's newest project determination; the binding rates for a job are the ones in that job's own determination.
Base wage and fringe benefits: $44.67 + $24.66
The base wage is the taxable hourly wage. L&I prints the fringe benefits as one hourly figure, not itemized; it can go to health, pension, vacation and training plans, or be paid as cash where the state allows.
| Base wage (taxable) | $44.67 |
| Fringe benefits (one figure, not itemized) | $24.66 |
| Total hourly rate, as printed | $69.33 |
When does this rate change?
- A signed contract keeps the rates in its own determination, including the dated steps printed there. A later L&I rate change doesn't reach it (Act § 4).
- County pages here follow each county's newest determination, so they move whenever L&I issues the next one there. The determination is named in the Source line.
Dated rates for this classification
L&I prints more than one dated line for Operators Class 1-A. The one in force on October 25, 2026 leads this page; scheduled lines take effect on their date.
| Effective | Rate | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 1, 2025 | $67.33 ($43.10 + $24.23) | Earlier |
| Jan 1, 2026 | $69.33 ($44.67 + $24.66) | In force |
Every operating engineer rate in Forest County
As L&I lists them. The highlighted row is the one this page leads with.
- Operators Class 1-AHeavy/Highway$69.33
- Operators Class 1-BHeavy/Highway$68.33
- Operators (Class 01 - see notes)Heavy/Highway$66.33
- Operators (Class 02 -see notes)Heavy/Highway$66.05
- Operators (Class 03 - See notes)Heavy/Highway$62.41
- Operators (Class 04 - See notes)Heavy/Highway$61.92
- Operators (Class 05 - See notes)Heavy/Highway$61.71
- Operators (Class 01 - see notes)Building$61.29
- Operators (Class 02 -see notes)Building$56.67
- Operators (Class 03 - See notes)Building$54.12
| Classification | Base wage | Fringe benefits | Total rate | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operators (Class 01 - see notes)Building | $39.12 | $22.17 | $61.29 | Jul 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 02 -see notes)Building | $34.50 | $22.17 | $56.67 | Jul 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 03 - See notes)Building | $31.95 | $22.17 | $54.12 | Jul 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 01 - see notes)Heavy/Highway | $41.67 | $24.66 | $66.33 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 02 -see notes)Heavy/Highway | $41.39 | $24.66 | $66.05 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 03 - See notes)Heavy/Highway | $37.75 | $24.66 | $62.41 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 04 - See notes)Heavy/Highway | $37.26 | $24.66 | $61.92 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators (Class 05 - See notes)Heavy/Highway | $37.05 | $24.66 | $61.71 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators Class 1-AHeavy/Highway | $44.67 | $24.66 | $69.33 | Jan 1, 2026 |
| Operators Class 1-BHeavy/Highway | $43.67 | $24.66 | $68.33 | Jan 1, 2026 |
Davis-Bacon operating engineer rate in Forest County
Federally funded or assisted construction here uses the U.S. Department of Labor's wage determinations. Pennsylvania's Act doesn't cover projects where Davis-Bacon applies, so a job uses one schedule or the other (L&I FAQ).
We don't put a federal figure next to L&I's here, because the federal determinations split this trade into groups that don't line up with L&I'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 (BACKHOE/EXCAVATOR/TRACKHOE, PAVER (ASPHALT, AGGREGATE, AND CONCRETE), BULLDOZER, CRANE*, DRILL RIG CAISSONS, FORKLIFT (LULL), MAN …ENGI0066-033 | $41.69 | $65.74 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: BOBCAT/SKID STEER/SKID LOADER, LOADER, ROLLERENGI0066-033 | $35.62 | $59.67 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: FORKLIFT (RIDDEN OR SELF PROPELLED)ENGI0066-033 | $35.62 | $59.67 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Building | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: OILERENGI0066-033 | $32.83 | $56.88 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Building | OPERATOR: MECHANICUAVGPA0004 | $36.53 | $58.54 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Building | OPERATOR: HIGHLIFTUAVGPA0009 | $31.19 | $53.20 | PA20260051 Mod 5 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 1- ASPHALT PAVING MACHINE (SPREADER), AUTOGRADE (C.M.I. AND SIMILAR); BACKFILLER, COMPACTOR WITH BLADE, BACKHOE-360 AND 180 …ENGI0066-016 | $41.67 | $66.33 | PA20260002 Mod 6 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 1-A- BACKHOES-360 DEGREE SWING (ABOVE 120,000 LBS. GROSS WEIGHT); CRANES (OVER 100 TONS), CRANES-ROUGH TERRAIN (OVER 100 TON); …ENGI0066-016 | $44.67 | $69.33 | PA20260002 Mod 6 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 1-B- BACKHOES-360 DEGRESS SWING (ABOVE 70,000 LBS. TO 120,000 LBS. GROSS WEIGHT); CRANES (UP TO 100 TON), CRANES0ROUGH TERRAIN …ENGI0066-016 | $43.67 | $68.33 | PA20260002 Mod 6 |
| Highway, Heavy | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATOR: GROUP 3- BROOM FINISHER (C.M.I. OR SIMILAR); COMPACTORS/ROLLERS (STATIC OR VIBRATORY (SELF-PROPELLED) ON DIRT OF STONE); CURB …ENGI0066-016 | $37.75 | $62.41 | PA20260002 Mod 6 |
| Residential | POWER EQUIPMENT OPERATORS: (ROLLERS)SUPA1999-002 | $11.50 | $11.50 | PA20260038 Mod 1 |
Davis-Bacon rates from SAM.gov, read October 25, 2026. Our federal totals are base plus fringe; DOL prints no total. Pennsylvania Davis-Bacon changes
How Forest County compares
The main operating engineer rate in every county that has one, and how the pay splits here and nearby. All bars use the same scale.
Every county in Pennsylvania
Wage and fringe benefits, nearby
- Forest Countybase $44.67$69.33
- Warren Countybase $44.96$69.62
- Clarion Countybase $44.96$69.62
- Venango Countybase $44.96$69.62
Operating Engineer rates in nearby counties
Current L&I rates. L&I sets rates by county, and counties in the same collective bargaining area often share them.
| County | Classification | Base wage | Total rate | vs Forest County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warren County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| Clarion County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| Venango County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| Jefferson County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| Elk County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| McKean County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.96 | $69.62 | +$0.29 |
| Forest County | Operators Class 1-A | $44.67 | $69.33 |
Pennsylvania operating engineer prevailing wage by county, with a map
More from L&I on this rate
- L&I PPWS determination
- L&I's PPWS determination search
- Apprentice rates apply only to apprentices in a program registered with the Pennsylvania Apprenticeship and Training Council, within its ratios. Determinations list journeyperson rates only (§ 9.103(9)).
Are you being paid this rate?
Add your base wage to the fringe your employer pays for you, and compare it with the total. A worker can protest to L&I within three months: Bureau of Labor Law Compliance, 1-800-932-0665 (L&I).
Source
Department of Labor & Industry (L&I), PPWS determination 26-09071, issued October 14, 2026, effective January 1, 2026: www.dliweb.pa.gov/PrevWage/Pages/Project.aspx
We read each county's newest PPWS determination from L&I's site and check every number with a second read. The totals are the ones L&I prints. How we check · Download Forest County as CSV · Report an error