Refuse and salvage occupations: salary in the UK
About £24,999 a year after tax (England, Wales and Northern Ireland, 2026/27)
median salary a year, full-time, +7.1% on last year
£2,486 a month About £2,083 a month after tax 17 thousand full-time jobs
Gross pay before tax, including bonuses, commission and overtime. Not included: benefits in kind such as a company car. About the data
Pay range
The dark part is the middle half of full-time employees (25% to 75%); the light bar runs from 10% to 90%. ONS doesn't publish the highest or lowest salary, and x means a figure wasn't published.
Pay by year
The median went from £21,110 in 2021 to £29,832 in 2026 (+41%); for all full-time employees in the UK it changed by +31% over the same years.
Figures by year
| P10 | P25 | Median | P75 | P90 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | £18,021 | £19,525 | £21,110 | £23,692 | x |
| 2022 | £19,519 | £20,728 | £22,067 | £24,590 | x |
| 2023 | £20,418 | £22,750 | £24,594 | £27,483 | x |
| 2024 | £22,160 | £24,345 | £26,283 | £29,261 | x |
| 2025 | £23,822 | £25,818 | £27,858 | £31,249 | x |
| 2026 | £25,296 | £27,336 | £29,832 | £33,429 | x |
ONS figures for each year, not adjusted for inflation. Years before 2021 used a different occupation classification, so they can't be compared. Earlier years are ONS's revised figures; the latest is provisional.
Half of full-time employees in this occupation earn less than £29,832 a year and half earn more. That is 27% less than the median for all full-time employees in the UK (£40,911).
The middle half earn between £27,336 and £33,429; one in ten earns less than £25,296.
Ranked by median, it is number 297 of the 362 occupations with a published figure.
At the median salary, take-home pay after Income Tax and National Insurance is about £2,083 a month in England, Wales or Northern Ireland and £2,086 in Scotland.
Percentiles
| Percentile | Annual | Monthly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th (P10) | £25,296 | £2,108 |
| 20th | £27,019 | £2,252 |
| 25th (P25) | £27,336 | £2,278 |
| 30th | £27,675 | £2,306 |
| 40th | £28,597 | £2,383 |
| Median (50th) | £29,832 | £2,486 |
| 60th | £30,819 | £2,568 |
| 70th | £32,433 | £2,703 |
| 75th (P75) | £33,429 | £2,786 |
| 80th | £35,811 | £2,984 |
| 90th (P90) | x | x |
Men and women
| Median | Mean | Jobs (thousands) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | £29,866 | £31,428 | 16 |
| Women | x | £31,147 | x |
Take-home pay at the median
| Where you live | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| England, Wales, NI | £24,999 | £2,083 |
| Scotland | £25,036 | £2,086 |
After Income Tax and National Insurance for 2026 to 2027, with the standard tax code and no pension or student loan. Work out your own take-home pay · Take-home pay on £30,000
Job titles in this occupation
ONS codes these 46 job titles to SOC 9225 Refuse and salvage occupations. Pay figures are for the whole occupation, not for each title.
- Bin lifter
- Bin man
- Binman
- Cleanser
- Cleansing inspector
- Cleansing superintendent
- District foreman
- Dust collector
- Dustman
- Estate officer
- Estates officer
- Foreman
- Hopper attendant
- Inspector
- Landfill operative
- Loader
- Paper recycler
- Recycler
- Recycling operative
- Recycling operator
- Recycling worker
- Refuse collector
- Refuse disposal officer
- Refuse disposal operative
- Refuse disposal operator
- Refuse disposal trimmer
- Refuse loader
- Refuse operative
- Refuse remover
- Refuse tipman
- Refuse worker
- Salvage collector
- Salvage foreman
- Salvage hand
- Salvage worker
- Sanitary superintendent
- Scavenger
- Scrap collector
- Scrap metal collector
- Site operative
- Tatter
- Tip attendant
- Waste collector
- Waste disposal operative
- Waste disposal operator
- Waste operative
Similar occupations
All jobs in Elementary occupations
Source: ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2026 provisional, Table 14.7a (full-time employees, gross annual pay, UK, tax year ending 5 April 2026). Provisional figures may be revised.