Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
US occupation · SOC 51-4031
Job titles people report: Die Setter, Fabrication Operator, Machine Operator, Machine Setter, Press Brake Operator, Press Operator, Punch Press Operator, Saw Operator, Setup Operator, Slitter Operator
Pay and outlook
- Median annual wage, May 2025
- $46,330
- Half earn more, half earn less
- Middle half earn
- $38,870 – $55,410
- 25th to 75th percentile
- People employed, May 2025
- 171,200
- Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)
- Projected change, 2025–35
- -10.5%
- Shrinking (below 0%)
- Openings a year (projected)
- 13,200
- New jobs plus replacing people who leave
- Typical education to enter
- High school diploma or equivalent
- BLS
- All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
- Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
- Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.
What the work involves
Set up, operate, or tend machines to saw, cut, shear, slit, punch, crimp, notch, bend, or straighten metal or plastic material.
Main tasks
- Measure completed workpieces to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometers, gauges, calipers, templates, or rulers.
- Examine completed workpieces for defects, such as chipped edges or marred surfaces and sort defective pieces according to types of flaws.
- Read work orders or production schedules to determine specifications, such as materials to be used, locations of cutting lines, or dimensions and tolerances.
- Start machines, monitor their operations, and record operational data.
- Set up, operate, or tend machines to saw, cut, shear, slit, punch, crimp, notch, bend, or straighten metal or plastic material.
- Test and adjust machine speeds or actions, according to product specifications, using gauges and hand tools.
- Load workpieces, plastic material, or chemical solutions into machines.
- Turn controls to set cutting speeds, feed rates, or table angles for specified operations.
Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.
Getting in
- Typical education to enter (BLS)
- High school diploma or equivalent
- Training once hired: moderate-term on-the-job training
- O*NET Job Zone 1–2
- Little to some preparation
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Interests it suits
The strongest of the six O*NET interest types for this occupation, highest first. The short glosses are ours.
- Realistic: hands-on work with tools, machines, plants or animals
- Conventional: organising information, records and procedures
- Investigative: research, analysis and solving problems with ideas
Fields of study that lead here
From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 2 programmes to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.
Fields
Our college matcher doesn't offer this field as a major, so we can't suggest colleges for it here.
Precision Production
- Machine Tool Technology/Machinist
- Sheet Metal Technology/Sheetworking
Related careers
Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.
- Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing
$43,380 median · -2.5% projected
- Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$52,800 median · -13.2% projected
- Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$46,550 median · -10.8% projected
- Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$50,140 median · -8.3% projected
- Forging Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$49,030 median · -17.2% projected
- Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
$47,180 median · +0.6% projected
Sources
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CollegeMatcher has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET 31.0 Database · CC BY 4.0
Changes: we show the core tasks in the O*NET database with the highest importance ratings (up to eight, in that order), the top three O*NET interest types by score, and shortened Job Zone names. Titles, descriptions and task text are unchanged.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Projections, typical entry education and training: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35. Fields of study: NCES and BLS CIP 2020–SOC 2018 Crosswalk. All public domain. OEWS · Employment Projections · CIP–SOC crosswalk