How to hire a manufacturing production technician

How to hire a manufacturing production technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step manufacturing production technician hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a manufacturing production technician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new manufacturing production technician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a manufacturing production technician do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your manufacturing production technician job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find a manufacturing production technician for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a manufacturing production technician to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a manufacturing production technician that fits the bill.

   This list presents manufacturing production technician salaries for various positions.

   Type of Manufacturing Production Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Manufacturing Production Technician		$11-17
   Technician	Technicians are skilled professionals who primarily work with technology in different industries. They are knowledgeable about the technical aspects of the various items they work with... Show more	$11-27
   Product Technician	Product technicians are skilled professionals who are responsible for evaluating manufactured goods to ensure quality and functionality before they are marketed to the general public. These technicians are required to perform equipment setup and adjustments while conducting minor preventative maintenance tasks to test for safety and productivity before they are put into production... Show more	$17-59

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Hand Tools
   • Production Equipment
   • Quality Standards
   • Assembly Line
   • Dexterity
   • Troubleshoot
   • GMP
   • Quality Checks
   • OSHA
   • Safety Equipment
   • Lean Manufacturing
   • FDA
   • Clean Room Environment
   • Production Processes

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Relay to the oncoming shift everything accomplish and the projected workload through use of PowerPoint and excel.
   • Work within a GMP environment.
   • Apply PPE correctly daily throughout shift.
   • Wash glassware and components per GMP procedures.
   • Follow FDA guidelines to insure quality products.
   • Program tooling offsets on CNC equipment and program adjustments.

   More manufacturing production technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your manufacturing production technician job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A manufacturing production technician salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, manufacturing production technicians' average salary in oklahoma is 34% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level manufacturing production technicians earn 38% less than senior-level manufacturing production technicians.
   • Certifications. A manufacturing production technician with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a manufacturing production technician's salary.

   Average manufacturing production technician salary

   $14.11hourly

   $29,352 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level manufacturing production technician salary

   $23,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 17, 2025

   Average manufacturing production technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Oregon	$32,809	$16
   2	Minnesota	$31,513	$15
   3	California	$31,142	$15
   4	Pennsylvania	$29,848	$14
   5	Utah	$29,832	$14
   6	Colorado	$28,938	$14
   7	Indiana	$27,842	$13
   8	Arizona	$26,817	$13
   9	Michigan	$26,355	$13
   10	Kansas	$26,298	$13
   11	Illinois	$26,196	$13
   12	Ohio	$25,941	$12
   13	Wisconsin	$25,599	$12
   14	Idaho	$25,467	$12
   15	Missouri	$25,458	$12
   16	Texas	$24,817	$12
   17	Virginia	$23,479	$11
   18	Tennessee	$23,465	$11
   19	Florida	$23,438	$11
   20	North Carolina	$22,689	$11

   Average manufacturing production technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	General Mills	$40,408	$19.43	11
   2	SC Johnson	$39,464	$18.97	1
   3	VIAVI Solutions	$37,326	$17.95	3
   4	A.W. Chesterton	$36,987	$17.78	1
   5	MTS Systems	$36,827	$17.71
   6	Cirrus Aircraft	$36,744	$17.67	15
   7	Hoffmann-LA Roche Inc	$36,328	$17.47	4
   8	Genentech	$35,848	$17.23	8
   9	Tempur Sealy International	$35,755	$17.19	29
   10	General Motors	$35,205	$16.93	41
   11	Sun Chemical	$34,759	$16.71
   12	Newpark	$34,408	$16.54
   13	McKesson	$33,759	$16.23	2
   14	International Paper	$33,329	$16.02	87
   15	Sumitomo Electric Wiring Systems	$33,295	$16.01
   16	EVRAZ North America	$33,159	$15.94
   17	AMETEK	$32,902	$15.82	22
   18	Ortho Clinical Diagnostics	$32,675	$15.71	5
   19	ITW	$31,642	$15.21	71
   20	MXL Industries	$31,267	$15.03

4. Writing a manufacturing production technician job description

   A job description for a manufacturing production technician role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a manufacturing production technician job description:

   Manufacturing production technician job description example

   Heavy Industrial Manufacturing/Production FULL-TIME
   $25/hr, plus $1000 new hire bonus, see details below These positions are eligible for a $1,000 sign on bonus.* Looking for safety minded individuals with a good attendance record and the ability to show up to work on time everyday. Multiple openings available in our Rolling Mill, Shipping, and Heat Treat departments. We are looking for mill machine operators, material handlers, groundmen for cranes in our Shipping bays, and industrial laborers to assist with processing incoming steel slab for our Mill. The starting wage for these roles is $25.00/hour with monthly incentive bonus opportunities. Our amazing benefits package starts on your very first day and includes low cost family medical, dental, and vision coverage, flexible spending and health savings accounts, paid vacation and paid holidays, a 401k plan with a 5% employer match, and an additional employer funded retirement savings account. If you are interested in learning more, please schedule a time to speak with a member of our Human Resources team.. *Sign-on bonus paid after successful completion of 90 day probation period. PDX-03 WS-03
   Schedule
   Shift start: 6:00AM or 6:00PM
   Shift length: 12 hours
   Rotating day and night shifts, one week off per month, one week of nights per month
   Benefits
   Health, dental, vision insurance Paid time off 401(k) plan
   Qualifications
   Must pass drug screen (cannabis excluded) Must pass background check Can lift 50 lbs Must be at least 18+ years old Must be able to read a tape measure Must be willing to work 12 hour shifts Must be available to work day, night, and/or weekend shifts
   
   $1000 new hire incentive
   Bonus paid upon successful completion of 90 day probation period. About EVRAZ
   EVRAZ is a leading North American producer of engineered steel products for rail, energy and industrial end markets. They deliver a broad selection of specialty steel solutions to meet customers demands in the United States and Canada.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find manufacturing production technicians for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any manufacturing production technicians they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level manufacturing production technicians with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your manufacturing production technician job on Zippia to find and recruit manufacturing production technician candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Recruiting manufacturing production technicians requires you to bring your A-game to the interview process. The first interview should introduce the company and the role to the candidate as much as they present their background experience and reasons for applying for the job. During later interviews, you can go into more detail about the technical details of the job and ask behavioral questions to gauge how they'd fit into your current company culture.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new manufacturing production technician

   Once you've found the manufacturing production technician candidate you'd like to hire, it's time to write an offer letter. This should include an explicit job offer that includes the salary and the details of any other perks. Qualified candidates might be looking at multiple positions, so your offer must be competitive if you like the candidate. Also, be prepared for a negotiation stage, as candidates may way want to tweak the details of your initial offer. Once you've settled on these details, you can draft a contract to formalize your agreement.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new manufacturing production technician. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire a manufacturing production technician?