Lath hand vs engine lathe operator

The differences between lath hands and engine lathe operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an engine lathe operator has an average salary of $39,664, which is higher than the $31,284 average annual salary of a lath hand.

The top three skills for a lath hand include cnc mill, program set-up and aerospace. The most important skills for an engine lathe operator are engine lathes, RAN, and .

Lath hand vs engine lathe operator overview

	Lath Hand	Engine Lathe Operator
Yearly salary	$31,284	$39,664
Hourly rate	$15.04	$19.07
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	4,171	27,999
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 71%	Associate Degree, 42%
Average age	46	46
Years of experience	-	-

Lath hand vs engine lathe operator salary

Lath hands and engine lathe operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Lath Hand	Engine Lathe Operator
Average salary	$31,284	$39,664
Salary range	Between $20,000 And $46,000	Between $32,000 And $48,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between lath hand and engine lathe operator education

There are a few differences between a lath hand and an engine lathe operator in terms of educational background:

	Lath Hand	Engine Lathe Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 71%	Associate Degree, 42%
Most common major	Drafting And Design	Agricultural Mechanization
Most common college	-	-

Lath hand vs engine lathe operator demographics

Here are the differences between lath hands' and engine lathe operators' demographics:

	Lath Hand	Engine Lathe Operator
Average age	46	46
Gender ratio	Male, 95.7% Female, 4.3%	Male, 98.0% Female, 2.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 1.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.8% Asian, 3.7% White, 77.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 1.9% Hispanic or Latino, 11.8% Asian, 3.7% White, 77.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between lath hand and engine lathe operator duties and responsibilities

Lath hand example responsibilities.

Operate power and non-power tools to deburr after machining operations.
Polish to remove nicks and gouges.

Engine lathe operator example responsibilities.

Operate machines including lathes, cutters, shears, borers, millers, grinders, drills, jigs, heating machines.
Operate heavy duty lathes, boring machines and mills, planers, shapers and grinders.

Lath hand vs engine lathe operator skills

Common lath hand skills

CNC Mill, 63%
Program Set-Up, 25%
Aerospace, 12%

Common engine lathe operator skills

Engine Lathes, 71%
RAN, 29%

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Updated January 8, 2025

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