How To Become A Nailer Operator: What It Is and Career Path

What is a nailer operator and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a nailer operator. For example, did you know that they make an average of $25.59 an hour? That's $53,220 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 8,200 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreNailer OperatorUS Average

Salary

4.2

Avg. Salary $53,220

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.9

Growth rate 3%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

8.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.41%

Asian 2.49%

Black or African American 8.30%

Hispanic or Latino 17.43%

Unknown 5.39%

White 65.98%

Gender

female 21.21%

male 78.79%

Age - 40

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 40

Stress level

5.9

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.1

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.4

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a nailer operator

Explore nailer operator education requirements

Most common nailer operator degrees

High School Diploma

62.5 %

Bachelor's

12.5 %

Diploma

12.5 %

Start to develop specific nailer operator skills

Skills	Percentages
Nail Guns	56.73%
Pallets	43.27%

Complete relevant nailer operator training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New nailer operators learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a nailer operator based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real nailer operator resumes.

Research nailer operator duties and responsibilities

Operate denailing machine to break down pallets.
Execute daily operations of repairing broken pallets to different specifications as needed.
Balance, fine-tune and troubleshot any problems to turn over new plant to cable company.

Prepare your nailer operator resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your nailer operator resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a nailer operator resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable nailer operator resume templates

Build a professional nailer operator resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your nailer operator resume.