Start with the answer
Highway Maintenance Workers pay in Iowa and Oregon
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Highway Maintenance Workers is $58,490 per year in Iowa. It is $65,330 per year in Oregon. Iowa is 10.5% below Oregon on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 47-4051 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 4,000 wage and salary jobs in Iowa and 1,650 in Oregon. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings
