Lead production associate vs production technician

The differences between lead production associates and production technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a lead production associate and a production technician. Additionally, a production technician has an average salary of $37,550, which is higher than the $37,537 average annual salary of a lead production associate.

The top three skills for a lead production associate include safety regulations, computer system and data entry. The most important skills for a production technician are hand tools, preventative maintenance, and quality checks.

Lead production associate vs production technician overview

	Lead Production Associate	Production Technician
Yearly salary	$37,537	$37,550
Hourly rate	$18.05	$18.05
Growth rate	-	3%
Number of jobs	57,439	135,266
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	46	45
Years of experience	2	2

Lead production associate vs production technician salary

Lead production associates and production technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Lead Production Associate	Production Technician
Average salary	$37,537	$37,550
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $48,000	Between $28,000 And $49,000
Highest paying City	-	Frederick, MD
Highest paying state	-	Maryland
Best paying company	-	Cornerstone Research
Best paying industry	-	Health Care

Differences between lead production associate and production technician education

There are a few differences between a lead production associate and a production technician in terms of educational background:

	Lead Production Associate	Production Technician
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Stanford University	Stanford University

Lead production associate vs production technician demographics

Here are the differences between lead production associates' and production technicians' demographics:

	Lead Production Associate	Production Technician
Average age	46	45
Gender ratio	Male, 60.1% Female, 39.9%	Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 12.4% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 4.6% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.5% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.8% Asian, 7.5% White, 60.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between lead production associate and production technician duties and responsibilities

Lead production associate example responsibilities.

Lead targeted decision-making across fast-pace production operations for this growth-orient USDA food factory producing quality meat products.
Lead targeted decision-making across fast-pace production operations for this growth-orient USDA food factory producing quality meat products.
Perform process validation with QA for all job startups.
Oversee scheduling, receiving, shipping, ordering, quality and preventive maintenance of machinery and equipment (TPM).
Maintain a successful working relationship with USDA inspectors to facilitate timely resolutions to regulatory and procedural issues.

Production technician example responsibilities.

Relay to the oncoming shift everything accomplish and the projected workload through use of PowerPoint and excel.
Implement and develop safety standards and operations exceeding those require by OSHA.
Can demonstrate good manual dexterity.
Analyze QC test samples using multisizer machine.
Implement and oversee plant's safety program including LOTO program.
Test and repair rf system compponents of cellular test set.

Lead production associate vs production technician skills

Common lead production associate skills

Safety Regulations, 10%
Computer System, 9%
Data Entry, 9%
Safety Procedures, 9%
GMP, 9%
Production Numbers, 7%

Common production technician skills

Hand Tools, 7%
Preventative Maintenance, 6%
Quality Checks, 5%
Production Equipment, 5%
Basic Math, 5%
Safety Procedures, 5%

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Production and Manufacturing Industry
Lead Production Associate
Lead Production Associate vs Production Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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