Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2003

51-4031 Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic

Set up, operate, or tend machines to saw, cut, shear, slit, punch, crimp, notch, bend, or straighten metal or plastic material.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
260,560 1.4 % $12.70 $26,410 0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.07 $9.75 $12.12 $15.00 $18.07
Annual Wage (2) $16,780 $20,290 $25,210 $31,200 $37,590

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Motor vehicle parts manufacturing 27,940 $14.57 $30,310 1 10
Architectural and structural metals mfg. 23,500 $12.58 $26,160 2 42
Plastics product manufacturing 20,680 $11.29 $23,480 3 74
Employment services 15,850 $9.16 $19,060 4 89
Forging and stamping 14,860 $12.69 $26,390 5 39

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Motor vehicle manufacturing 780 $21.81 $45,360 46 1
Pulp, paper, and paperboard mills 70 $18.62 $38,730 77 2
Motor vehicle and parts merchant wholesalers (6) $18.54 $38,560 (6) 3
Aerospace product and parts manufacturing 1,550 $15.57 $32,380 38 4
Iron and steel mills and ferroalloy mfg. 2,520 $15.43 $32,080 29 5

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Indiana 16,630 $13.86 $28,820 0.583% 464
Ohio 29,390 $13.18 $27,410 0.551% 545
Michigan 18,100 $13.77 $28,650 0.417% 519
Wisconsin 10,620 $13.56 $28,210 0.395% 500
Kentucky 6,710 $11.39 $23,690 0.390% 502

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Colorado 2,010 $14.99 $31,170 0.095% 430
Massachusetts 6,370 $14.38 $29,920 0.201% 522
Connecticut 4,190 $14.21 $29,560 0.255% 473
Indiana 16,630 $13.86 $28,820 0.583% 464
Michigan 18,100 $13.77 $28,650 0.417% 519

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Mansfield, OH MSA 1,670 $14.66 $30,490 2.185%
Elkhart-Goshen, IN MSA 1,830 $12.12 $25,210 1.584%
Benton Harbor, MI MSA 600 $12.01 $24,980 0.950%
Youngstown-Warren, OH MSA 1,920 $14.93 $31,050 0.851%
Grand Rapids-Muskegon-Holland, MI MSA 4,160 $15.07 $31,340 0.767%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Bloomington-Normal, IL MSA 120 $22.37 $46,540 0.153%
Gary, IN PMSA 770 $17.22 $35,830 0.309%
San Francisco, CA PMSA 770 $17.05 $35,460 0.079%
Brockton, MA PMSA 250 $16.75 $34,840 0.251%
Stamford-Norwalk, CT PMSA 130 $16.32 $33,950 0.065%

About May 2003 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

To see profiles of other occupations, select from the major groups below:

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(6) Estimates not released.

All Production Occupations

2003 May National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2003 May National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2003 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: May 7, 2004