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What is a production machinist and how to become one
Avg. Salary $40,934
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth rate 1%
Growth rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.54%
Asian 6.90%
Black or African American 4.72%
Hispanic or Latino 12.50%
Unknown 3.75%
White 71.59%
Genderfemale 7.33%
male 92.67%
Age - 49American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 49Stress level is manageable
7.1 - high
Complexity level is intermediate
7 - challenging
Work life balance is good
6.4 - fair
Production machinist career paths
Key steps to become a production machinist
Explore production machinist education requirements
Start to develop specific production machinist skills
Skills Percentages Hand Tools 12.06% Calipers 8.47% Operate CNC 7.96% CNC Machines 7.53% Manual Lathes 5.23% Complete relevant production machinist training and internships
Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New production machinists 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 production machinist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real production machinist resumes.Research production machinist duties and responsibilities
- Operate lathes, mills, cnc hurco mill, sinker edm, jig grinder, o.d.
- Set up and operate mills, lathes, VTL Bullards, surface grinding, band see.
- Operate, setup, and program wire and sinker EDM machines.
- Require to inspect work using various micrometers and optical comparators and scopes.
Prepare your production machinist resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your production machinist 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 production machinist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
Choose from 10+ customizable production machinist resume templates
Build a professional production machinist 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 production machinist resume.
Apply for production machinist jobs
Now it's time to start searching for a production machinist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How did you land your first production machinist job
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Average production machinist salary
The average production machinist salary in the United States is $40,934 per year or $20 per hour. Production machinist salaries range between $30,000 and $54,000 per year.
What am I worth?
How do production machinists rate their job?
Production machinist reviews
Constant Challenge making each day unique and fun. Not hard physical labor but mentally challenging. Constantly evolving skillset in an industry that is always changing and growing.
Some places are straight production shops and there will be limited opportunities to grow in them. When you make a mistake it can be huge and cost 10s of thousands of dollars to fix so you are often on edge.
I love the complexity and challenging, complex work involved in the Medical manufacturing sector. Mentoring younger machinists and problem solving and being hands on with complex CNC machines, including multi axis machines including 4&5 axis mills and multi axis mill-turn machines.
I work for RSI silicon I loved that l I was able to start from the beginning with the raw materials and work the whole process and I really Joyed that and I actually made pure silicon metal right out of the furnace 99.999% it was no need to do acid wash afterwards it was Soler grade right from the start
There was nothing I could say I didn't like about the job I had a lot of opportunity l was able to learn a lot and I really enjoyed it and it didn't feel like a job to me at the time
Updated January 8, 2025
