Hazardous Materials Removal Workers

Also Called:

Asbestos Abatement Worker,

Asbestos Remover,

Asbestos Worker,

Waste Handling Technician

What they do: Identify, remove, pack, transport, or dispose of hazardous materials, including asbestos, lead-based paint, waste oil, fuel, transmission fluid, radioactive materials, or contaminated soil. Specialized training and certification in hazardous materials handling or a confined entry permit are generally required. May operate earth-moving equipment or trucks.

Advanced Manufacturing, Energy & Natural Resources icon

Advanced Manufacturing, Energy & Natural Resources

Career Cluster

What do they typically do on the job?

  • Build containment areas prior to beginning abatement or decontamination work.
  • Remove asbestos or lead from surfaces, using hand or power tools such as scrapers, vacuums, or high-pressure sprayers.
  • Identify asbestos, lead, or other hazardous materials to be removed, using monitoring devices.

Personality

People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.

Stress Tolerance

Cautiousness

Integrity

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Perseverance

Interests

Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.

Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz

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Realistic

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Conventional

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Investigative

Abilities

Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.

Verbal

  • Listen and understand what people say

  • Communicate by speaking

Ideas and Logic

  • Notice when problems happen

  • Group things in different ways

Hand and Finger Use

  • Keep your arm or hand steady

  • Hold or move items with your hands

Controlled Movement

  • Quickly change the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat

Skills

People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.

Basic Skills

  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements

  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem

Problem Solving

  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it

Does this sound like something you'd like to do?

1. Do some research

  • Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
  • Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
  • Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career

2. Plan your next move

  • Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
  • Visit Idaho Launch
  • Search for available Hazardous Materials Removal Workers jobs on Idaho Works

Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop