How to hire a quality control technician

How to hire a quality control technician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step quality control 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 quality control technician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new quality control technician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a quality control technician do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   First, determine the employments status of the quality control technician you need to hire. Certain quality control technician roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

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

   Yes

   No

   A quality control technician's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, quality control technicians from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of quality control technician salaries for various roles:

   Type of Quality Control Technician	Description	Hourly rate
   Quality Control Technician	Industrial engineering technicians help industrial engineers implement designs to use personnel, materials, and machines effectively in factories, stores, healthcare organizations, repair shops, and offices. They prepare machinery and equipment layouts, plan workflows, conduct statistical production studies, and analyze production costs.	$14-24
   Auditor/Quality	A quality auditor is responsible for inspecting the company's services and products, ensuring its adherence to business requirements and internal regulations. Quality auditors analyze the efficiency of operational functions and production processes to maintain high-quality deliverables with the utmost consideration for the safety and security of the production staff... Show more	$11-24
   Quality Lead	A quality assurance (QA) lead is responsible for organizing and managing the testing of products prior to its release. Your duties will include defining testing standards and strategies, establishing formal QA processes, and overseeing all aspects of QA, such as using best practices and establishing metrics... Show more	$30-61

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Lab Equipment
   • Quality Control Tests
   • Test Results
   • Asphalt
   • Quality Products
   • Quality Standards
   • GMP
   • Food Safety
   • Math
   • Customer Service
   • ISO
   • Test Procedures
   • OSHA
   • Calipers

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Direct and manage the release of FDA regulate and monitor bacterial cultures and vitamin additives for product development.
   • Aid in development and maintenance of SPC program achieving product performance stability and creating a platform for continuous improvement.
   • Work with personnel to ensure all food safety programs such as HACCP, SSOP, and GMP's, are follow.
   • Work on the structure of on-line supply info system base on HMI, PLC and SQL.
   • Calculate requirements, using basic math, geometry and trigonometry.
   • Use furnaces, band saws, blasters, torches, acids, and micrometers.

   More quality control technician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your quality control technician job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A quality control technician can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, quality control technicians' average salary in arkansas is 41% less than in rhode island.
   • Seniority. Entry-level quality control technicians 39% less than senior-level quality control technicians.
   • Certifications. A quality control technician with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a quality control technician's salary.

   Average quality control technician salary

   $40,337yearly

   $19.39 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level quality control technician salary

   $31,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average quality control technician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Maryland	$48,642	$23
   2	California	$47,425	$23
   3	Massachusetts	$47,370	$23
   4	New Jersey	$43,980	$21
   5	Oregon	$43,501	$21
   6	Minnesota	$43,376	$21
   7	Arizona	$43,366	$21
   8	Colorado	$43,217	$21
   9	New York	$42,528	$20
   10	Texas	$41,200	$20
   11	Kansas	$40,716	$20
   12	Illinois	$40,696	$20
   13	Nevada	$40,451	$19
   14	Pennsylvania	$40,297	$19
   15	Georgia	$40,152	$19
   16	Michigan	$39,863	$19
   17	Missouri	$39,103	$19
   18	Ohio	$39,069	$19
   19	Indiana	$37,867	$18
   20	Utah	$37,248	$18

   Average quality control technician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Boehringer Ingelheim	$63,922	$30.73	7
   2	Battelle	$61,921	$29.77	7
   3	BP America Inc	$60,289	$28.99
   4	Novo Nordisk	$59,483	$28.60	4
   5	Wiss Janney Elstner	$59,419	$28.57
   6	ABB	$59,163	$28.44	38
   7	Gilead Sciences	$58,459	$28.11	50
   8	Curtiss-Wright	$58,252	$28.01	50
   9	Elanco	$58,110	$27.94	10
   10	Zoetis	$58,085	$27.93	27
   11	General Electric	$57,343	$27.57	120
   12	Hoffmann-LA Roche Inc	$57,060	$27.43	2
   13	Granite Construction	$56,897	$27.35	24
   14	Genentech	$56,635	$27.23	12
   15	Baker Hughes	$56,495	$27.16	7
   16	Summit Career College, Colton	$56,326	$27.08
   17	AMETEK	$56,004	$26.93	35
   18	Church & Dwight Co.	$54,831	$26.36	6
   19	Cedars-Sinai	$54,372	$26.14	12
   20	VIVA USA	$53,613	$25.78

4. Writing a quality control technician job description

   A good quality control technician job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a quality control technician job description:

   Quality control technician job description example

   Eastman's current hiring policy encourages and prefers new hires be fully vaccinated before reporting to work in this role wh en possible .
   
   Founded in 1920, Eastman is a global specialty materials company that produces a broad range of products found in items people use every day. With the purpose of enhancing the quality of life in a material way, Eastman works with customers to deliver innovative products and solutions while maintaining a commitment to safety and sustainability. The company's innovation-driven growth model takes advantage of world-class technology platforms, deep customer engagement, and differentiated application development to grow its leading positions in attractive end markets such as transportation, building and construction, and consumables. As a globally inclusive and diverse company, Eastman employs approximately 14,000 people around the world and serves customers in more than 100 countries. The company had 2021 revenues of approximately $10.5 billion and is headquartered in Kingsport, Tennessee, USA. For more information, visit www.eastman.com.
   Responsibilities
   
   • Maintain, troubleshoot, repair, and verify/calibrate laboratory equipment. • Perform special/non-routine testing and data analysis on resin (round robin, gage R&R necessary to meet customer needs for information). • Carry out special analytical and investigational work requiring knowledge, skill, and techniques other than those needed for routine work, including but not limited to feedback to operations with understanding of the link between quality and process, taking initiative to provide assistance with root cause investigations, results interpretation and taking necessary actions when abnormal conditions are detected.
   
   Qualifications
   
   • Must be willing to work a rotating 12 hour shift, 4 days on, 4 days off. • Successful candidates must have working knowledge of college level Mathematics, Chemistry, Chemical Lab Techniques, Statistics • Consideration will be given to candidates with two or more years of related college coursework. Formal training or education in a science related field beyond high school is required (Mathematics, Chemistry, Chemical Lab Techniques, Statistics).
   
   Eastman Chemical Company is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status or any other characteristics protected by law.
   
   Eastman is committed to creating a powerfully diverse workforce and a broadly inclusive workplace, where everyone can contribute to their fullest potential each day.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right quality control technician for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with quality control technicians they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit quality control technicians who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

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

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with quality control technician candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates 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 quality control technician

   Once you've selected the best quality control technician candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is 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 quality control technician?