Enclose the work area first
Put up a closed-off space before any removal starts, so contamination stays inside the cleanup zone.
Career profile
Hazardous Materials Removal Worker
Hazmat workers remove asbestos, lead, and similar hazards, then prepare waste for safe disposal.
Before contaminated material comes out, an enclosure goes up. In this physical work, careful setup and accurate container records matter as much as removal.
A day in the life
Scrape and vacuum asbestos off surfaces
On an asbestos crew, you strip the material from building surfaces with scrapers and special vacuums.
Pack waste and move containers
Get the contaminated material ready to haul away, then shift full containers with machines such as a forklift.
Decontaminate your gear
Clean your gear after removal wraps up, so you can reuse it without spreading contamination.
Log containers and track storage
Log container counts, waste types, and amounts in a disposal record, and track where hazardous items are stored.
Quick facts
High school + job training
United States
$49,450/year
United States · May 2025
2% growth
United States · 2025–2035
Quick orientation
Preparation, pay & outlook
Preparation
High school + job trainingTraining depends on the material you remove; some work also requires a state license or permit.
Pay
$49,450/yearNational median, equivalent to $23.78 an hour.
Outlook
2% growthAbout 4,300 openings a year are projected, mostly to replace workers who leave.
Fit, tradeoffs & changing tools
You might like this if…
- You like physical work that also requires careful counting and recordkeeping.
- You can repeat a detailed procedure without skipping steps once it feels familiar.
- You enjoy learning how equipment works and keeping it clean enough to reuse.
Things to weigh
- Protective suits can feel hot and uncomfortable, sometimes for hours.
- Bending, lifting, and prolonged scrubbing can make a shift physically tiring.
- Emergency cleanup may bring overtime and travel that keeps you away from home for days or weeks.
Where AI may help
In some nuclear cleanup projects, small robots carry cameras and detectors through contaminated pipes, helping crews locate deposits before removal.
What people still lead
People interpret the inspection results and carry out the containment, removal, and waste-handling work around them.
What we can’t predict yet
How much more inspection and removal can happen remotely will depend on whether machines can reach the material and handle the site's conditions.
Pay in context
Earnings
The national midpoint is $49,450 a year, or $23.78 an hour. Your offer may differ with location, experience, and employer.
The national spread
The lowest-paid 10% earned below $38,460; the highest-paid 10% earned above $82,410. These are wage percentiles, not starting and senior pay grades.
Pay by employer industry
Annual medians were $49,610 in construction, $48,900 in remediation and other waste management services, and $48,650 in waste treatment and disposal.
Learning while earning
Apprentices earn less than fully trained workers, with pay increases as they advance through their program.
Openings beyond new jobs
Employment is projected to grow 2% during 2025–35. Most of the roughly 4,300 annual openings are expected to replace people leaving the occupation or workforce.
Getting started
Join a cleanup crew as a trainee
- What the route involves
- Combine technical lessons with fieldwork beside an experienced worker, learning protective equipment, cleanup tools, and site procedures.
- What it can lead to
- Build the skills needed to work on the employer's cleanup crew.
- What to check
- You must complete the training required for your job function before participating in covered hazardous-waste field operations; a trainee job does not bypass that requirement.
Train for asbestos removal
- What the route involves
- Find a state-approved asbestos worker course, complete the training, pass the required examination, and meet any additional state requirements.
- What it can lead to
- Earn worker accreditation for asbestos response work covered by the accreditation rules in schools and public and commercial buildings.
- What to check
- Worker accreditation is separate from inspector, project designer, and contractor/supervisor accreditation. Annual refresher training is required.
A high school diploma or equivalent is the usual starting point. You can learn through an employer or complete approved training for a particular kind of removal work.
After entry
Career paths
This starts where the entry routes leave off: early work, growing capability, and advancement or specialization. This path also has a credential or licensing boundary; see the requirements and limits.
Get established
Become reliable at setting up containment, preparing waste containers, and keeping the disposal record complete.
Build equipment skills
Develop your ability to move waste with handling equipment and decontaminate tools for reuse.
Move toward crew supervision
With experience and additional training, you may advance to a supervisor role coordinating cleanup work.
Where you can work
Buildings being renovated or demolished
Asbestos and lead crews work around existing walls, ceilings, and other structures. Tight spaces, work at height, and awkward removal positions can shape the day.
- Indoors
- Physical demands
- Safety-sensitive
Waste storage and disposal facilities
Work centers on incoming waste, sorting loads, moving containers, and keeping their locations straight. Forklifts or hoists may do the heavy moving.
- Physical demands
- Safety-sensitive
Nuclear-facility cleanup
Crews decontaminate equipment and package radioactive waste, including during plant closure. This specialty adds extensive radiation-safety training.
- Physical demands
- Safety-sensitive
Try it
See whether the job clicks before you commit to the path.
Make six paper cards representing sealed waste containers, each with an ID, contents, and storage location. Create a tracking sheet, move two cards to new locations, and update the record. Notice whether you enjoy making every container traceable.
Stay safe: Keep this a paper exercise; do not collect, open, or handle real waste or suspected hazardous material.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Hazardous Materials Removal Workers. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- O*NET OnLine. 47-4041.00 — Hazardous Materials Removal Workers. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 1910.120 — Hazardous waste operations and emergency response. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Asbestos Professionals. Accessed 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Department of Energy. Pipe Crawling Robot Helps Paducah Prepare for Demolition. Accessed 2026-10-03.