Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing Salary: $46,456 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 63,350 woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing nationally earn a mean of $46,456. Employment in the series shown rose about 7% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 5.3% annual decline.
Key Statistics
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing: what the data shows
Common questions about woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing?
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 51-7042.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 63,350 workers.
What does a woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Controlling Machines and Processes, Handling and Moving Objects, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities, Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing make?
BLS national median annual wage: $40,440 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $46,456 — 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 | $38,351 |
| 25th percentile | $39,387 |
| Median (50th) | $46,189 |
| 75th percentile | $49,985 |
| 90th percentile | $57,978 |
What education do you need?
For Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing, 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 Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Quality Control Analysis, Monitoring, Troubleshooting, Critical Thinking, and knowledge areas including Mechanical, Production and Processing, Mathematics, Public Safety and Security. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 5.3% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -23.8%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -41.9%.
Current U.S. headcount: 63,350.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawings work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 63,350 | 20.5% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 63,300 | 20.5% |
| Manufacturing | 57,540 | 18.6% |
| Wood Product Manufacturing | 39,340 | 12.7% |
| Other Wood Product Manufacturing | 25,720 | 8.3% |
| Furniture and Related Product Manufacturing | 15,210 | 4.9% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing workforce.
Employment Over Time
63,350 Workforce in 2023
The Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$46,456 Average Wage
In 2023, Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing earned an average of $46,456.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Salary distribution for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Employment Growth Projections
-5.3% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
10,094 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -23.8%
7,696 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -41.9%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Wage Trends by Industry
2.5% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
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:
- MI: 4,810 employees, $44,480 avg wage
- IN: 3,980 employees, $42,840 avg wage
- NC: 3,870 employees, $38,690 avg wage
- CA: 3,440 employees, $45,280 avg wage
- PA: 3,190 employees, $43,180 avg wage
- WI: 3,090 employees, $42,790 avg wage
- AL: 2,750 employees, $37,300 avg wage
- OH: 2,650 employees, $43,980 avg wage
- GA: 2,520 employees, $40,050 avg wage
- TX: 2,370 employees, $35,760 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Grand Rapids-Wyoming-Kentwood, MI: 2,830 employees, $45,990 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 1,210 employees, $49,630 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 950 employees, $44,220 avg wage
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 940 employees, $43,160 avg wage
- Elkhart-Goshen, IN: 880 employees, $46,100 avg wage
- Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC: 830 employees, $39,830 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 810 employees, $37,090 avg wage
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC: 800 employees, $42,360 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 790 employees, $45,770 avg wage
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH: 570 employees, $48,920 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Diversity
Demographic information on Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing in 2023 was 63,350 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
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 Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing workers.
Education level distribution for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Skills
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing need many skills, but most especially Operations Monitoring, Operation and Control, Quality Control Analysis, Monitoring, Troubleshooting.
Required skills for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing include Mechanical, Production and Processing, Mathematics, Public Safety and Security, Building and Construction.
Knowledge areas required for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing include Near Vision, Reaction Time, Control Precision, Manual Dexterity, Oral Comprehension.
Required abilities for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
Daily Activities
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing spend their time on activities such as Controlling Machines and Processes, Handling and Moving Objects, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Getting Information, Performing General Physical Activities.
Most important work activities for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing.
About
Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing
The average yearly wage for Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing was $46,456 in 2023.
SOC Code
51-7042 - Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing reports an average salary of $46,456.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 63,350 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -5.3%, 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.