Illinois Hydropower jobs: 979 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, Illinois employs 979 people in the hydropower sector — about 1.7% of the U.S. total. That makes Illinois the 12th-largest state for hydropower jobs nationwide.
Hydropower Jobs in Illinois (2024)
National share: 1.69% of all U.S. hydropower jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
Illinois ranks 12th out of 51 U.S. states in hydropower employment. At 979 workers, the state sits above the 25th-ranked New Jersey’s tally by 657 jobs, and trails the national leader California by 9,655 hydropower workers.
1.1 Illinois’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The hydropower sector nationwide employs roughly 58,089 workers; Illinois accounts for 979 of them.
1.3 Where Illinois sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 89,878 | #5 |
| Wind | 9,216 | #2 |
| Solar | 7,158 | #15 |
| Electric Vehicles | 4,525 | #8 |
| Nuclear | 4,209 | #2 |
| Storage & Grid | 2,789 | #8 |
| Hydropower | 979 | #12 |
| Clean Fuels | 464 | #11 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in Illinois
Every hydropower-related sub-category reported for Illinois in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in Illinois
Illinois contributes 1.69% of the nation’s hydropower workforce. Within Illinois’s own clean-energy economy, hydropower accounts for 0.8% of total clean-energy jobs (979 of 119,217 workers).
Cost-of-living in Illinois is roughly 0.9% higher the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for hydropower roles in Illinois is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | Illinois-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydrologic / Civil Engineer | $95,890 | $96,753 | 4 |
| Water Treatment Plant Operator (Hydro) | $54,460 | $54,950 | 3 |
See all 2 hydropower occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
Illinois employers rate 17.2% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 28.0% as “somewhat difficult”) — easier than the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 45.2% of Illinois’s clean-energy roles see some level of hiring friction.
4.1 Employer hiring difficulty
4.2 Jobs by NAICS industry group
| Industry (NAICS group) | Jobs (2024) |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | 79,577 |
| Construction | 64,186 |
| Professional Services | 47,035 |
| Other Services | 45,006 |
| Trade | 32,565 |
| Utilities | 22,832 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 12,286 |
| Mining and Extraction | 3,986 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 2,939 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Data source: U.S. Department of Energy — 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report (reflecting 2024 employment); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics; O*NET Occupation Database 29.1.
Last updated: April 2026.