What does a journeyman lineman earn in base pay?
The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the median for electrical power-line installers and repairers at $95,320 in May 2025, or $45.83 an hour. The bottom 10 percent made under $51,470. The top 10 percent made over $128,690. That spread covers new journeymen in low-cost rural areas and senior hands on big utility systems in the West and Northeast.
Who signs your check matters. BLS medians by industry were $111,900 for the federal government, $103,060 for utilities, $90,060 for local government, $76,980 for specialty trade contractors and $76,060 for utility system construction. Utility jobs tend to pay steadier base wages. Contractor work pays less on paper but often comes with more hours and travel.
What do union and prevailing wage rates look like?
Public prevailing wage schedules show what union outside work pays. New York's Department of Labor lists $73.40 an hour for a lineman or splicer on utility distribution and transmission work in Nassau, Queens and Suffolk from July 1, 2026. Benefits on top equal 33.25 percent of the hourly wage plus $16.94, which works out to about $41 an hour more.
California's Department of Industrial Relations set a basic rate of $72.26 for a lineman or cable splicer in its August 2025 statewide determination, with a total package of $98.31 an hour. Overtime on that schedule is paid at double time, $174.23 an hour including the package. That determination ran to May 31, 2026, with a scheduled increase after that date. At 2,080 straight-time hours, either base rate tops $150,000 a year before overtime.
How much do overtime, storm work and travel add?
Overtime is where many linemen pull ahead of the median. BLS notes that most work full time and some work more than 40 hours a week. After storms and other disasters, crews may travel to the damaged area and work long hours several days running. On a double-time schedule like California's, every overtime hour pays twice the straight rate.
Storm calls are irregular. One year you might work weeks of restoration, the next year almost none. Treat storm money as a bonus, and build your budget on base pay. Before you take a traveling job, ask how the employer handles per diem, lodging, travel time and overtime rules. Those terms vary by contract and decide how much you take home.
Where does lineman pay run highest?
Our state figures use the power and utilities category, which covers line work along with other utility trades, so read them as a guide to the regional market. Hawaii, Washington, Oregon and California sit at the top, with median pay above $130,000, and Connecticut is close behind. Illinois and New York also pay well. Pay drops in much of the South. Mississippi's middle half runs from about $52,000 to $95,000, and Texas runs from about $62,000 to $103,000. Higher pay in the West and Northeast comes with higher living costs, so compare offers on take-home after rent.
Pay
USD a year, before tax. Ranges show the 25th to 75th percentile for the power and utilities category, based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS May 2025 data moved to 2026 with a wage index. State figures are modeled. Employer type, union scale, overtime and storm work move actual earnings. Refer to the Power & Utilities salary guide for figures from live adverts.
What you need
- ApprenticeshipMost linemen finish an apprenticeship or employer training program that pairs on-the-job training with classroom work. BLS says these programs may last up to 3 years.
- Entry educationPrograms may require a high school diploma or equivalent and 1 year of high school algebra. Some also ask for a qualifying aptitude test score.
- Drug screeningPassing a substance abuse screening is a common condition of entry into a line apprenticeship.
- Physical fitnessApprentices may have to pass a fitness test. The work is outdoors in all weather, often at height.
- Willingness to travelStorm restoration means traveling to damaged areas and working long hours for days at a time. Much of the overtime money depends on it.
State by state
| New York (Nassau, Queens, Suffolk) | The state prevailing wage for a lineman or splicer on utility line work is $73.40 an hour from July 1, 2026, plus benefits of 33.25 percent of the wage and $16.94. Registered apprentices start at 60 percent of the journeyman rate. |
|---|---|
| California | The August 2025 statewide determination set $72.26 base and $98.31 total for a lineman or cable splicer, with overtime at double time. It covered every county except Del Norte, Modoc and Siskiyou, which have a separate determination. |
How to get there
- Year 1Apprentice linemanYou earn a percentage of journeyman scale. New York's Long Island schedule pays 60 percent in the first 1,000-hour term, which is $44.04 at the 2026 rate.
- Years 2-4Step raisesPay rises each term. On the New York schedule it climbs 5 points per 1,000 hours, up to 90 percent in the seventh term.
- Year 3-4Journeyman linemanBLS says qualified apprentices reach journey level after 3 or 4 years and can then do most tasks without supervision. Full scale applies from here.
- Year 4+Overtime and storm workExperienced journeymen add income through overtime and travel for storm restoration. On double-time schedules this can move pay well past base.
- With experienceForeman or trainerExperienced line workers can move up to supervisor or trainer roles.
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Questions people ask
What is the median pay for a lineman?
BLS reports a median of $95,320 a year, or $45.83 an hour, for electrical power-line installers and repairers as of May 2025. The top 10 percent earned more than $128,690.
Do utility linemen earn more than contractor linemen?
On base pay, generally yes. BLS medians were $103,060 in utilities against $76,060 in utility system construction. Contractor jobs often make up some of the gap with overtime and travel work.
How much does a union journeyman lineman make an hour?
Public prevailing wage schedules give a good picture. New York lists $73.40 an hour on Long Island from July 2026, and California's August 2025 determination set $72.26 base, or $98.31 with benefits.
How much does storm work pay?
There's no fixed figure. Storm work pays your normal rate plus overtime, and some schedules pay double time for overtime hours. How much you earn depends on how many storms hit in a given year.
How much do apprentice linemen make?
Apprentices earn a share of the journeyman rate that rises as they log hours. On New York's Long Island schedule that runs from 60 percent in the first term to 90 percent in the seventh.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Electrical Power-Line Installers and Repairers, Occupational Outlook Handbook
- New York State Department of Labor: Prevailing wage schedule, Electrician Lineman District 4
- California Department of Industrial Relations: Electrical Utility Lineman prevailing wage determination
