Support Activities for Mining: NAICS 213

About the Support Activities for Mining subsector

The support activities for mining subsector is part of the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector.

Industries in the Support Activities for Mining subsector group establishments primarily providing support services, on a contract or fee basis, required for the mining and quarrying of minerals and for the extraction of oil and gas. Establishments performing exploration (except geophysical surveying and mapping) for minerals, on a contract or fee basis, are included in this subsector. Exploration includes traditional prospecting methods, such as taking core samples and making geological observations at prospective sites.

The activities performed on a contract or fee basis by establishments in the Support Activities for Mining subsector are also often performed in-house by mining operators.

North American Industry Classification System

The support activities for mining subsector consists of a single industry group, Support Activities for Mining: NAICS 2131.

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment in support activities for mining. These data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, mass layoffs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment and Layoffs


Data series	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013	Apr. 2013
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)	396.1	396.7	(P) 398.9	(P) 397.7
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees	306.7	311.7	(P) 313.8
Layoffs
Mass layoff events	(1) -	(1) -	5	3
Initial claimants for unemployment benefits	(1) -	(1) -	321	224
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Mass Layoff Statistics)

Extended Mass Layoffs


Data series	2nd quarter 2012	3rd quarter 2012	4th quarter 2012	1st quarter 2013
Extended mass layoff events	4	(1) -	(P) 13	(P) 3
Separations	490	(1) -	(P) 1,400	(P) 261
Initial claimants	465	(1) -	(P) 1,650	(P) 206
Footnotes (1) Data do not meet BLS or state agency disclosure standards. (P) Preliminary

(Source: Mass Layoff Statistics)

Employment by Occupation


Data series	Employment, 2012
Derrick operators, oil and gas	19,240
First-line supervisors/managers of construction trades and extraction workers	19,370
Rotary drill operators, oil and gas	19,670
Roustabouts, oil and gas	45,270
Service unit operators, oil, gas, and mining	47,990

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for support activities for mining.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in support activities for mining.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees


Data series	Dec. 2012	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013
Average hourly earnings	$28.53	$28.45	$28.33	(P) $28.54
Average weekly hours	42.8	41.5	43.3	(P) 42.7
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees


Data series	Dec. 2012	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013
Average hourly earnings	$26.25	$25.76	$26.25	(P) $26.50
Average weekly hours	46.6	44.5	46.6	(P) 46.6
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation


Data series	Wages, 2012
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Derrick operators, oil and gas	$22.38	$23.20	$46,550	$48,260
First-line supervisors/managers of construction trades and extraction workers	$32.36	$35.04	$67,320	$72,880
Rotary drill operators, oil and gas	$22.99	$27.08	$47,820	$56,330
Roustabouts, oil and gas	$16.66	$17.33	$34,650	$36,050
Service unit operators, oil, gas, and mining	$20.00	$22.88	$41,610	$47,590

(Source: Occupational Employment Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in support activities for mining. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.


Data series	2008	2009	2010	2011
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	104	59	100	105
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	3.2	2.3	2.2	2.3
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	2.2	1.3	1.4	1.4
Cases involving days away from work	1.4	0.8	0.9	0.8
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.9	0.4	0.5	0.6
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Prices

This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction.


Data series	Jan. 2013	Feb. 2013	Mar. 2013	Apr. 2013
Producer price index	(P) 117.1	(P) 116.7	(P) 117.5	(P) 117.7
Percent change from previous month	(P) 0.5%	(P) -0.3%	(P) 0.7%	(P) 0.2%
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Producer Price Indexes)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in support activities for mining.

Establishments


Data series	4th quarter 2011	1st quarter 2012	2nd quarter 2012	3rd quarter 2012
Number of establishments
Private industry	16,133	(P) 16,382	(P) 16,629	(P) 16,902
Local government	1	(P) 1	(P) 1	(P) 1
Footnotes (P) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Other BLS Resources

Career Guide to Industries

To learn about careers from an industry perspective, see the Career Guide to Industries.

Data extracted on: May 22, 2013

Industries at a Glance