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The differences between production employees and production technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a production technician has an average salary of $37,550, which is higher than the $32,872 average annual salary of a production employee.
The top three skills for a production employee include production floor, quality standards and safety standards. The most important skills for a production technician are hand tools, preventative maintenance, and quality checks.
| Production Employee | Production Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $32,872 | $37,550 |
| Hourly rate | $15.80 | $18.05 |
| Growth rate | - | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 75,730 | 135,266 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 34% |
| Average age | 43 | 45 |
| Years of experience | - | 2 |
In a manufacturing setting, a production employee is in charge of assembling and processing products, ensuring efficiency and timelines. Their responsibilities include adhering to guidelines and blueprints, monitoring the products for any defects or inconsistencies, operating machines and equipment, keeping an eye on the assembly line, and maintaining the cleanliness of work areas. Furthermore, as a production employee, it is essential to maintain an active communication line with co-workers, coordinating every step of the way, and alerting managers should there be any problems.
A production technician is an individual who is responsible for assembling and testing manufactured goods before they are marketed to the general public. Production technicians usually work with manufacturing and quality assurance personnel to ensure that high-quality work standards are implemented by workers. By maintaining high-quality work, production technicians must implement up-to-date, efficient methods of production as well as production equipment maintenance procedures. They also schedule training for workers and educate them regularly on health and safety regulations.
Production employees and production technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Production Employee | Production Technician | |
| Average salary | $32,872 | $37,550 |
| Salary range | Between $25,000 And $42,000 | Between $28,000 And $49,000 |
| Highest paying City | Cleveland, OH | Frederick, MD |
| Highest paying state | Minnesota | Maryland |
| Best paying company | Steel Dynamics | Cornerstone Research |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a production employee and a production technician in terms of educational background:
| Production Employee | Production Technician | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 34% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between production employees' and production technicians' demographics:
| Production Employee | Production Technician | |
| Average age | 43 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 69.6% Female, 30.4% | Male, 71.4% Female, 28.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 15.9% Asian, 7.9% White, 60.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | 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 | 5% | 6% |