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Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters: apprenticeship hours and pay
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Approved apprenticeship titles
2 apprenticeship titles on the Department of Labor's approved list fall under Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters, trained competency-based, hybrid, time-based. The shortest approved term is 2,000 hours, for Munitions Systems (competency-based).
| Title | RAPIDS code | Approach and term |
|---|---|---|
| Explosives and Weapons Technical Instructor | 2093 | Competency-Based: 2,500 hours |
| Munitions Systems | 1071 | Competency-Based: 2,000 hours Hybrid: 2,000 to 2,500 hours Time-Based: 2,000 hours |
Time-based programs count hours on the job; competency-based programs move on when the apprentice shows the skills; hybrid programs use both, within a range of hours (29 CFR 29.5(b)(2)). Each registered program sets its own term inside what the approved title allows.
What explosives workers, ordnance handling experts, and blasters earn, by state
New Jersey has the highest state median for explosives workers, ordnance handling experts, and blasters ($100,520) and Iowa the lowest ($39,520), across the 32 states with a published figure.
| State | Median pay | Hourly | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | $100,520 | $48.33 | Not published |
| New York | $96,940 | $46.61 | Not published |
| North Carolina | $85,630 | $41.17 | 160 |
| Wyoming | $85,070 | $40.90 | 60 |
| Pennsylvania | $84,400 | $40.58 | Not published |
| California | $80,370 | $38.64 | 220 |
| New Mexico | $78,960 | $37.96 | 80 |
| Tennessee | $74,190 | $35.67 | 70 |
| Florida | $69,780 | $33.55 | 90 |
| Colorado | $69,640 | $33.48 | 140 |
| Utah | $67,910 | $32.65 | 50 |
| Hawaii | $64,560 | $31.04 | 110 |
| Missouri | $64,040 | $30.79 | 150 |
| Virginia | $63,920 | $30.73 | 80 |
| Georgia | $61,480 | $29.56 | 70 |
| Illinois | $60,520 | $29.10 | 110 |
| Nevada | $60,500 | $29.09 | 260 |
| Idaho | $60,360 | $29.02 | Not published |
| Alabama | $59,820 | $28.76 | 100 |
| Maryland | $59,720 | $28.71 | Not published |
| Indiana | $59,110 | $28.42 | 330 |
| South Dakota | $56,780 | $27.30 | Not published |
| Texas | $56,600 | $27.21 | 460 |
| Oklahoma | $55,180 | $26.53 | 330 |
| Arkansas | $53,120 | $25.54 | 90 |
| Wisconsin | $52,400 | $25.19 | 60 |
| Kentucky | $50,360 | $24.21 | 380 |
| West Virginia | $49,630 | $23.86 | 50 |
| Mississippi | $47,060 | $22.63 | 40 |
| Ohio | $46,630 | $22.42 | 120 |
| Louisiana | $39,900 | $19.18 | 130 |
| Iowa | $39,520 | $19.00 | 90 |
Finding a program
The public sponsor file names the organizations that run registered apprenticeships but not the occupations each one trains, so this guide names no sponsor. Search apprenticeship.gov's Apprenticeship Finder for this title, or ask your American Job Center which local programs train it.
Apprenticeship sponsors by state (25,633) · All approved occupations
Sources: apprenticeship.gov approved occupations list (Last-Modified October 8, 2026); BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (all industries; blanks are figures BLS does not publish).