High paying construction jobs in West Virginia with no experience

The best paid construction occupations in West Virginia that require neither a degree nor prior experience in a related job. This is the narrowest cut on the site, so it is also the shortest list: where a field has only two or three such occupations, there is no page at all rather than a page pretending otherwise.

Cost of living: prices in West Virginia run 10.5% below the national average (2024), so a West Virginia salary is worth about 1.12× its face value in national terms. That scales every wage here by the same factor — it changes what the numbers mean, not their order. To see where a job pays a real premium, use jobs that pay more in West Virginia.

Wages: BLS OEWS, May 2025 · Cost of living: BEA regional price parities, 2024

Find construction jobs in West Virginia

OccupationMedian, West Virginia · Employed

1Roof Bolters, Mining$79,400
High school diploma or equivalent
$63,820 – $90,720970
2Continuous Mining Machine Operators$77,570
No formal educational credential
$59,840 – $90,690720
3Helpers--Extraction Workers$77,180
High school diploma or equivalent
$36,970 – $77,230360
4Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining$74,950
No formal educational credential
$64,120 – $81,1001,250
5Sheet Metal Workers$72,390
High school diploma or equivalent
$38,170 – $76,020540
6Underground Mining Machine Operators, All Other$65,610
No formal educational credential
$61,910 – $81,680240
7Electricians$64,810
High school diploma or equivalent
$43,620 – $95,1404,290
8Extraction Workers, All Other$63,550
High school diploma or equivalent
$60,750 – $72,350470
9Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters$56,980
High school diploma or equivalent
$36,010 – $83,1601,830
10Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators$56,660
High school diploma or equivalent
$46,940 – $71,010270
11Cement Masons and Concrete Finishers$51,950
No formal educational credential
$32,170 – $63,790760
12Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators$51,300
High school diploma or equivalent
$36,500 – $76,9707,830
13Roofers$51,170
No formal educational credential
$28,660 – $69,820440
14Carpenters$48,710
High school diploma or equivalent
$35,900 – $70,0603,670
15Highway Maintenance Workers$45,260
High school diploma or equivalent
$31,440 – $53,910730
16Painters, Construction and Maintenance$44,230
No formal educational credential
$29,200 – $63,640720
17Construction Laborers$42,670
No formal educational credential
$30,770 – $60,5506,620
18Helpers--Carpenters$33,760
No formal educational credential
$29,370 – $47,930320

Bars run from the 10th to the 90th percentile; the middle half is shaded darker, and the tick is the median.

#	Occupation	MedianWest Virginia	10th–90th percentilemiddle half shaded darker	Employed
1	Roof Bolters, MiningHigh school diploma or equivalent	$79,400	$63,820 – $90,720	970
2	Continuous Mining Machine OperatorsNo formal educational credential	$77,570	$59,840 – $90,690	720
3	Helpers--Extraction WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$77,180	$36,970 – $77,230	360
4	Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground MiningNo formal educational credential	$74,950	$64,120 – $81,100	1,250
5	Sheet Metal WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$72,390	$38,170 – $76,020	540
6	Underground Mining Machine Operators, All OtherNo formal educational credential	$65,610	$61,910 – $81,680	240
7	ElectriciansHigh school diploma or equivalent	$64,810	$43,620 – $95,140	4,290
8	Extraction Workers, All OtherHigh school diploma or equivalent	$63,550	$60,750 – $72,350	470
9	Plumbers, Pipefitters, and SteamfittersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$56,980	$36,010 – $83,160	1,830
10	Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$56,660	$46,940 – $71,010	270
11	Cement Masons and Concrete FinishersNo formal educational credential	$51,950	$32,170 – $63,790	760
12	Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment OperatorsHigh school diploma or equivalent	$51,300	$36,500 – $76,970	7,830
13	RoofersNo formal educational credential	$51,170	$28,660 – $69,820	440
14	CarpentersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$48,710	$35,900 – $70,060	3,670
15	Highway Maintenance WorkersHigh school diploma or equivalent	$45,260	$31,440 – $53,910	730
16	Painters, Construction and MaintenanceNo formal educational credential	$44,230	$29,200 – $63,640	720
17	Construction LaborersNo formal educational credential	$42,670	$30,770 – $60,550	6,620
18	Helpers--CarpentersNo formal educational credential	$33,760	$29,370 – $47,930	320

Ranked among the occupations common enough to employ roughly one in every three thousand workers in West Virginia. The rarer ones are real jobs — but a 1,190-person occupation at the top of a list answers a different question than the one most readers are asking.

More for West Virginia

Metro areas in West Virginia

Pay varies more between metros than between states — the spread inside one state is often wider than the gap between two.

By field in West Virginia

Without a degree

The same fields, narrowed to what you can enter without one. Fields missing here have too few such occupations in West Virginia to rank honestly.

High paying construction jobs in West Virginia with no experience

More for West Virginia

Metro areas in West Virginia

By field in West Virginia

Without a degree

High paying construction jobs in each state with no experience