Pennsylvania Nuclear jobs: 4,107 employed (2024)
As of the 2025 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, Pennsylvania employs 4,107 people in the nuclear sector — about 7.1% of the U.S. total. That makes Pennsylvania the 3rd-largest state for nuclear jobs nationwide.
Nuclear Jobs in Pennsylvania (2024)
National share: 7.09% of all U.S. nuclear jobs.
Typical Median Wage
1. Employment Landscape
Pennsylvania ranks 3rd out of 51 U.S. states in nuclear employment. At 4,107 workers, the state sits above the 25th-ranked Arkansas’s tally by 3,129 jobs, and trails the national leader South Carolina by 199 nuclear workers.
1.1 Pennsylvania’s position vs. the top 10 and median states
1.2 Share of U.S. total
The nuclear sector nationwide employs roughly 57,942 workers; Pennsylvania accounts for 4,107 of them.
1.3 Where Pennsylvania sits in its own mix
| Sector | Jobs (2024) | National rank |
|---|---|---|
| Energy Efficiency | 76,289 | #11 |
| Solar | 6,914 | #16 |
| Nuclear | 4,107 | #3 |
| Wind | 3,314 | #11 |
| Electric Vehicles | 2,871 | #12 |
| Storage & Grid | 2,312 | #10 |
| Clean Fuels | 659 | #6 |
| Hydropower | 567 | #17 |
1.4 Sub-sector breakdown in Pennsylvania
Every nuclear-related sub-category reported for Pennsylvania in the USEER workbook, ranked by employment.
2. Pay & Career Roles in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania contributes 7.09% of the nation’s nuclear workforce. Within Pennsylvania’s own clean-energy economy, nuclear accounts for 4.2% of total clean-energy jobs (4,107 of 97,033 workers).
Cost-of-living in Pennsylvania is roughly 2.3% lower the U.S. average, so the state-adjusted median wage for nuclear roles in Pennsylvania is shown alongside the national BLS figure.
| Role | National median | Pennsylvania-adjusted | Job Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nuclear Engineer | $122,480 | $119,663 | 4 |
| Nuclear Power Reactor Operator | $120,350 | $117,582 | 3 |
See all 2 nuclear occupations with national wages and skills →
4. Hiring Difficulty & Industry Mix
Pennsylvania employers rate 27.5% of clean-energy hires as “very difficult” (plus 27.7% as “somewhat difficult”) — tighter than the ~22% national baseline. Combined, 55.2% of Pennsylvania’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) |
|---|---|
| Construction | 68,379 |
| Manufacturing | 60,115 |
| Other Services | 42,556 |
| Trade | 41,939 |
| Utilities | 21,411 |
| Professional Services | 20,736 |
| Mining and Extraction | 16,880 |
| Pipeline Transport & Commodity Flows | 10,083 |
| Agriculture and Forestry | 596 |
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.