Load material and run computer-controlled machines that cut and shape metal parts, checking output against specs.
Machine shops and factories
Full-time, often shift work
May 2024–25 BLS wage data · 2024–34 BLS employment projections.
Openings a year counts new jobs plus the ones that open when people retire or move on — a truer picture of your odds than growth alone.
“Median” means half earn more and half earn less. Your city, employer, and years on the job move it a lot — that is what the 10th-to-90th range shows.
High school / no degree
Training path: On-the-job training, paid.
No license required to start in most places.
You can earn while you train. This field has a genuinely paid pathway in — an apprenticeship, a paid academy, or employer-funded training — so you draw a paycheck instead of taking on debt to learn it.
The modern shop-floor machining job — the software cuts openings, so learning setup and programming is what lasts.
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Standard Occupational Classification 51-9161. Pay, employment, and outlook from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS wage survey and 2024–34 employment projections). See something off? Tell us.