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Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers pay in Kentucky and Washington
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers is $56,410 per year in Kentucky. It is $85,140 per year in Washington. Kentucky is 33.7% below Washington on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 53-4022 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 170 wage and salary jobs in Kentucky and 740 in Washington. 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