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Boston Career Explorer

Installation, Maintenance, and Repair

Maintenance and Repair Workers, General

Perform work involving the skills of two or more maintenance or craft occupations to keep machines, mechanical equipment, or the structure of a building in repair. Duties may involve pipe fitting; HVAC maintenance; insulating; welding; machining; carpentry; repairing electrical or mechanical equipment; installing, aligning, and balancing new equipment; and repairing buildings, floors, or stairs.

Also called: Building Mechanic, Equipment Engineering Technician, Facilities Technician, Maintenance Engineer, Maintenance Journeyman, Maintenance Man

Compare with my current job (Pest Control Workers)
Median pay in Greater Boston
$59,670
$28.69/hr
Jobs in Greater Boston
21,030
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+5.2%
2,860 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
High school diploma or equivalent
plus Moderate-term on-the-job training

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$39,630$47,840$59,670$73,000$80,920

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Perform routine maintenance, such as inspecting drives, motors, or belts, checking fluid levels, replacing filters, or doing other preventive maintenance actions.
  • Inspect, operate, or test machinery or equipment to diagnose machine malfunctions.
  • Adjust functional parts of devices or control instruments, using hand tools, levels, plumb bobs, or straightedges.
  • Repair machines, equipment, or structures, using tools such as hammers, hoists, saws, drills, wrenches, or equipment such as precision measuring instruments or electrical or electronic testing devices.
  • Order parts, supplies, or equipment from catalogs or suppliers.
  • Diagnose mechanical problems and determine how to correct them, checking blueprints, repair manuals, or parts catalogs, as necessary.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Lower exposure16 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 15
  • Language-model AIOE 15
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 19

Observed AI use today: Little or none (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure for this job is lower, and observed AI use is little or none. AI tools may help with ordering parts, looking up repair information, or tracking maintenance schedules. Most of the work is hands-on, such as testing equipment, fixing machines, and repairing buildings, and AI tools do not do that work.

Likely to change

  • Ordering parts and supplies
  • Planning routine maintenance schedules

Still relies on people

  • Hands-on repairs with tools
  • Testing equipment to find faults

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

Next steps from here

Related jobs that build on what you already do.

  • Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters

    Pipe fitting and fixing equipment carry over. This apprenticeship path has a Boston median pay of $96,760 and 6.5% projected growth.

    Pay difference
    +$37,090 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +6.5%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

  • Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanics, Except Engines

    Repairing worn parts and testing equipment after repairs carry over. It offers higher median pay ($76,770) and long-term on-the-job training.

    Pay difference
    +$17,100 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +4.9%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

  • Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists

    Your hand tool, power tool, and inspection skills carry over to diesel and truck repair, which pays a median of $75,770 in Boston.

    Pay difference
    +$16,100 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +5.1%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

No college programs near Boston map to this job. Many people enter through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.

Talk to a career coach at the Office of Workforce Development about apprenticeships and City partner programs.

Related occupations

Talk to a career coach

A coach at the Office of Workforce Development can help you plan your next step, and connect you with training, apprenticeships and City partner programs that are not listed here.

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