SOC 53-7051
Industrial Truck & Tractor Operators
$22/hr median
25th–75th: $19–$25/hr
Hiring services
Find work
Unemployment across Vermont's five most-populous counties sits between 2.1% and 2.7% — every county under 3%, well below the U.S. average. Wages have moved with it. Here's what that means and what VEA tracks so you don't have to.
2.1%
Tightest market (Chittenden)
2.7%
Loosest market (Rutland)
218,000
Tracked labor force
5,028
Tracked unemployed
Seasonally adjusted, 2025-01. Lower rates = tighter labor markets = stiffer competition for talent. The bar shows each county's rate against a 4% reference line.
Rank #1 · tightest
Bar scale: 0–4%
Rate
2.1%
Labor force
96,500
~2,027 unemployed
Rank #2
Bar scale: 0–4%
Rate
2.3%
Labor force
32,800
~754 unemployed
Rank #3
Bar scale: 0–4%
Rate
2.4%
Labor force
30,900
~742 unemployed
Rank #4
Bar scale: 0–4%
Rate
2.5%
Labor force
27,600
~690 unemployed
Rank #5 · loosest
Bar scale: 0–4%
Rate
2.7%
Labor force
30,200
~815 unemployed
Methodology: Bureau of Labor Statistics Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS), released monthly by VTDOL. We track the five most-populous Vermont counties; the other nine (Addison, Bennington, Caledonia, Essex, Grand Isle, Lamoille, Orange, Orleans, Windham) are smaller and noisier month-to-month. Labor-force counts are approximate.
Median hourly wages from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Burlington-South Burlington VT MSA, 2024-05. Use these as your floor: if a posting is below median, expect a slow fill.
SOC 53-7051
$22/hr median
25th–75th: $19–$25/hr
SOC 51-4011
$25/hr median
25th–75th: $21–$29/hr
SOC 51-4121
$26/hr median
25th–75th: $22–$31/hr
SOC 51-2098
$20/hr median
25th–75th: $18–$23/hr
SOC 43-6014
$23/hr median
25th–75th: $19–$27/hr
SOC 43-4081
$18/hr median
25th–75th: $16–$21/hr
SOC 31-1131
$21/hr median
25th–75th: $19–$24/hr
SOC 47-2061
$22/hr median
25th–75th: $19–$27/hr
When unemployment runs near 2%, the candidates worth hiring are already employed. Posting on a job board and waiting won't reach them. A local agency with a pre-vetted pipeline reaches them in days, not months.
In a tight market, your best 30 candidates aren’t browsing job boards. They’re answering recruiter calls. VEA places in 48 hours because we’ve already screened them.
The wage benchmarks above are floors, not ceilings. Postings below median fill 3× slower in our experience. VEA flags below-market roles during intake.
Vermont Training Program grants can offset training costs for new hires. Most employers don’t know it exists.
How VTP pairs with VEA →VEA’s 2,400+ placements since 2011 are all Vermonters. We don’t import. Tight markets reward recruiters who already know the talent.
Data sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (LAUS and OEWS), reported by Vermont Department of Labor. Unemployment data as of 2025-01; wage data as of 2024-05. This page updates with each BLS release.