Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood Salary: $47,379 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 43,140 sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood nationally earn a mean of $47,379. Employment in the series shown rose about 9% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 0.6% annual decline.
Key Statistics
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood: what the data shows
Common questions about sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood?
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 51-7041.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 43,140 workers.
What does a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Handling and Moving Objects, Controlling Machines and Processes, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood make?
BLS national median annual wage: $39,950 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $47,379 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $37,192 |
| 25th percentile | $38,864 |
| Median (50th) | $46,723 |
| 75th percentile | $53,494 |
| 90th percentile | $61,825 |
What education do you need?
For Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Critical Thinking, Troubleshooting, Quality Control Analysis, Monitoring, and knowledge areas including Production and Processing, Mechanical, Public Safety and Security, Mathematics. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, wood in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 0.6% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -2.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -5.8%.
Current U.S. headcount: 43,140.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do sawing machine setters, operators, and tenders, woods work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 43,140 | 20.1% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 43,090 | 20.1% |
| Manufacturing | 36,850 | 17.2% |
| Wood Product Manufacturing | 32,290 | 15.0% |
| Sawmills and Wood Preservation | 16,360 | 7.6% |
| Other Wood Product Manufacturing | 10,790 | 5.0% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood workforce.
Employment Over Time
43,140 Workforce in 2023
The Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$47,379 Average Wage
In 2023, Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood earned an average of $47,379.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Salary distribution for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Employment Growth Projections
-0.6% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
8,561 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -2.9%
8,311 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -5.8%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Wage Trends by Industry
7.7% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 2,500 employees, $46,180 avg wage
- NC: 2,290 employees, $39,540 avg wage
- GA: 2,180 employees, $38,750 avg wage
- AL: 2,160 employees, $39,790 avg wage
- PA: 2,060 employees, $41,950 avg wage
- OH: 2,030 employees, $44,260 avg wage
- OR: 2,000 employees, $48,980 avg wage
- TX: 1,970 employees, $36,720 avg wage
- IN: 1,800 employees, $41,750 avg wage
- VA: 1,730 employees, $38,240 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 640 employees, $41,580 avg wage
- Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA: 590 employees, $49,060 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 570 employees, $44,590 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 450 employees, $37,790 avg wage
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI: 440 employees, $49,740 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 400 employees, $50,890 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 400 employees, $45,050 avg wage
- Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN: 360 employees, $41,580 avg wage
- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA: 340 employees, $53,660 avg wage
- Tuscaloosa, AL: 330 employees, $39,960 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Diversity
Demographic information on Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood in 2023 was 43,140 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood in 2023 were Engineering, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood workers.
Education level distribution for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Skills
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood need many skills, but most especially Operation and Control, Operations Monitoring, Critical Thinking, Troubleshooting, Quality Control Analysis.
Required skills for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood include Production and Processing, Mechanical, Public Safety and Security, Mathematics, Education and Training.
Knowledge areas required for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood include Control Precision, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Near Vision, Manual Dexterity, Finger Dexterity.
Required abilities for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
Daily Activities
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood spend their time on activities such as Handling and Moving Objects, Controlling Machines and Processes, Performing General Physical Activities, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events.
Most important work activities for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood.
About
Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood
The average yearly wage for Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood was $47,379 in 2023.
SOC Code
51-7041 - Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood reports an average salary of $47,379.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 43,140 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -0.6%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.