Riggers
Set up or repair rigging for construction projects, manufacturing plants, logging yards, ships and shipyards, or for the entertainment industry.
Also Known As:
Gantry Rigger
Hand Rigger
Heavy Lift Rigger
Machinery Erector
Machinery Mover
Marine Rigger
Motor Rigger
Rigger
Rigging Fabricator
Ship Rigger
Wages
Annual wages for Riggers in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
25,400
5% Change From 2023
Explore Riggers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Install ground rigging for yarding lines, attaching chokers to logs and to the lines.
- Load machines onto trucks to prepare for transportation.
- Manipulate rigging lines, hoists, and pulling gear to move or support materials, such as heavy equipment, ships, or theatrical sets.
- Test rigging to ensure safety and reliability.
- Signal or verbally direct workers engaged in hoisting and moving loads to ensure safety of workers and materials.
- Select gear, such as cables, pulleys, and winches, according to load weights and sizes, facilities, and work schedules.
- Align, level, and anchor machinery.
- Fabricate, set up, and repair rigging, supporting structures, hoists, and pulling gear, using hand and power tools.
- Clean and dress machine surfaces and component parts.
- Tilt, dip, and turn suspended loads to maneuver over, under, or around obstacles, using multi-point suspension techniques.
- Attach loads to rigging to provide support or prepare them for moving, using hand and power tools.
- Attach pulleys and blocks to fixed overhead structures, such as beams, ceilings, and gin pole booms, using bolts and clamps.
- Manipulate rigging lines, hoists, and pulling gear to move or support materials, such as heavy equipment, ships, or theatrical sets.
- Control movement of heavy equipment through narrow openings or confined spaces, using chainfalls, gin poles, gallows frames, and other equipment.
- Dismantle and store rigging equipment after use.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")