Career
Cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic
Run machines that cut and press metal and plastic.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- 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.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Measure completed workpieces to verify conformance to specifications, using micrometers, gauges, calipers, templates, or rulers.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Active Listening, Quality Control Analysis.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though moderate-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $46,330 a year and 13,200 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Machine Tool Technology/MachinistCIP 48.0501
- Sheet Metal Technology/SheetworkingCIP 48.0506
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders$46,570 · -0.9%
- Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing$43,380 · -2.5%
- Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$52,800 · -13.2%
- Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$46,550 · -10.8%
- Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic$50,140 · -8.3%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.