Post job

Line leader vs supervisor

The differences between line leaders and supervisors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a line leader and a supervisor. Additionally, a supervisor has an average salary of $53,902, which is higher than the $36,217 average annual salary of a line leader.

The top three skills for a line leader include continuous improvement, customer service and safety procedures. The most important skills for a supervisor are customer service, safety procedures, and sales floor.

Line leader vs supervisor overview

Line LeaderSupervisor
Yearly salary$36,217$53,902
Hourly rate$17.41$25.91
Growth rate--
Number of jobs130,588224,920
Job satisfaction-5
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Average age4646
Years of experience22

What does a line leader do?

Production line leaders or production team leaders typically work in the manufacturing industry. These leaders undertake both mental and physical work, including filing reports and paperwork, helping in order completion, and managing production assembly lines. They physically contain construction materials to ensure correct handling. Also, they oversee the varying activities within the organization or department. Among their tasks include inventory control, data entry, and product quality.

What does a supervisor do?

Supervisors are responsible for overseeing the daily functions of employees in a specific team, department, or even a work shift. They create work schedules, organize work processes and workflows, train new hires, provide necessary reports related to the team function and the employees, monitor and evaluate employee performance, and ensure that goals of the specific team or department are met. When needed, supervisors also provide guidance to employees in terms of their career or even personal challenges. They also help in fostering harmonious work relationships by resolving interpersonal conflicts at work. To be successful in their role, they must have leadership skills, time management skills, decision-making capabilities, analytical skills, and problem-solving skills.

Line leader vs supervisor salary

Line leaders and supervisors have different pay scales, as shown below.

Line LeaderSupervisor
Average salary$36,217$53,902
Salary rangeBetween $23,000 And $55,000Between $31,000 And $92,000
Highest paying CityBoston, MANew York, NY
Highest paying stateMassachusettsAlaska
Best paying companyMicrosoftReed Smith
Best paying industryTechnologyHealth Care

Differences between line leader and supervisor education

There are a few differences between a line leader and a supervisor in terms of educational background:

Line LeaderSupervisor
Most common degreeHigh School Diploma, 43%Bachelor's Degree, 44%
Most common majorBusinessBusiness
Most common collegeStanford UniversityStanford University

Line leader vs supervisor demographics

Here are the differences between line leaders' and supervisors' demographics:

Line LeaderSupervisor
Average age4646
Gender ratioMale, 57.0% Female, 43.0%Male, 55.8% Female, 44.2%
Race ratioBlack or African American, 12.6% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 16.4% Asian, 4.7% White, 61.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%Black or African American, 12.2% Unknown, 4.1% Hispanic or Latino, 19.0% Asian, 4.6% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage6%6%

Differences between line leader and supervisor duties and responsibilities

Line leader example responsibilities.

  • Lead Kaizen event to establish best practices for estimating methodology and reporting templates.
  • Manage and develop associates base on organizational and developmental needs/conduct monthly one-on-ones with each employee to provide guidance and leadership.
  • Gain knowledge of USDA, OSHA, HACCP, VPP, and ISO regulations and requirements within a manufacturing environment.
  • Walk with QA and USDA around floor to ensure are that all areas are up to standards and ready for production.
  • Used SMT to place capacitors onto PCB.
  • Develop and maintain a safe manufacturing environment by assuring compliance with OSHA and CFR applicable as company policies.
  • Show more

Supervisor example responsibilities.

  • Lead continuous process improvement and six sigma teams to meet ISO 9001 and QS 9000 standards.
  • Manage and implement merchandising strategy for POS marketing and display inventory.
  • Lead comprehensive training for each new volunteer or court-mandate worker regarding OSHA regulations and warehouse procedure.
  • Organize care with 6 CNAs.
  • Coordinate lifeguard duty schedule for all pools.
  • Maintain cleanliness throughout kitchen, coolers, and freezer areas.
  • Show more

Line leader vs supervisor skills

Common line leader skills
  • Continuous Improvement, 9%
  • Customer Service, 9%
  • Safety Procedures, 8%
  • Quality Checks, 6%
  • Assembly Line, 5%
  • GMP, 4%
Common supervisor skills
  • Customer Service, 11%
  • Safety Procedures, 9%
  • Sales Floor, 9%
  • POS, 9%
  • Direct Supervision, 9%
  • Payroll, 5%

Browse production and manufacturing jobs