Set-up operator vs general machine operator

The differences between set-up operators and general machine operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a set-up operator has an average salary of $39,269, which is higher than the $32,414 average annual salary of a general machine operator.

The top three skills for a set-up operator include calipers, cnc machines and hand tools. The most important skills for a general machine operator are math, CNC, and safety procedures.

Set-up operator vs general machine operator overview

	Set-Up Operator	General Machine Operator
Yearly salary	$39,269	$32,414
Hourly rate	$18.88	$15.58
Growth rate	-8%	7%
Number of jobs	55,670	138,111
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 44%	High School Diploma, 50%
Average age	43	44
Years of experience	2	-

Set-up operator vs general machine operator salary

Set-up operators and general machine operators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Set-Up Operator	General Machine Operator
Average salary	$39,269	$32,414
Salary range	Between $28,000 And $53,000	Between $26,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	Rochester, NY	Oshkosh, WI
Highest paying state	New York	Wisconsin
Best paying company	Schneider Electric Industrial Services	Reckitt Benckiser
Best paying industry	Automotive	Finance

Differences between set-up operator and general machine operator education

There are a few differences between a set-up operator and a general machine operator in terms of educational background:

	Set-Up Operator	General Machine Operator
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 44%	High School Diploma, 50%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Set-up operator vs general machine operator demographics

Here are the differences between set-up operators' and general machine operators' demographics:

	Set-Up Operator	General Machine Operator
Average age	43	44
Gender ratio	Male, 85.6% Female, 14.4%	Male, 81.2% Female, 18.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.9% Unknown, 5.4% Hispanic or Latino, 14.8% Asian, 6.0% White, 68.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 11.9% Unknown, 3.4% Hispanic or Latino, 15.2% Asian, 7.3% White, 61.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	5%

Differences between set-up operator and general machine operator duties and responsibilities

Set-up operator example responsibilities.

Manage daily scheduling of production workload to be setup and run on machinery.
Use and replacement of drills, taps, broaches, and reamers.
Manufacture parts according to blueprints, work with stainless steel aluminum, brass and plastics.
Machine parts to specifications, using machine tools, such as lathes, milling machines, or grinders.
Use of exact measuring instruments as CMM, optical comparators, mics, bore gauges and many other tools.
Produce parts from different materials such as cold roll steel, stainless steel, no lead brass and regular brass.

General machine operator example responsibilities.

Lift work pieces to machines using hoists.
Control & troubleshoot automate extrusion line adjusting speed & feed, monitoring temperature, & finish material specification per customers order.
Overlook daily operations of single/twin screw extruders and packaging of finish product.

Set-up operator vs general machine operator skills

Common set-up operator skills

Calipers, 9%
CNC Machines, 7%
Hand Tools, 7%
Math, 6%
Quality Checks, 6%
Preventative Maintenance, 6%

Common general machine operator skills

Math, 12%
CNC, 10%
Safety Procedures, 10%
Troubleshoot, 9%
Production Process, 8%
Machine Operation, 6%

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Production and Manufacturing Industry
Set-Up Operator
Set-Up Operator vs General Machine Operator

Updated January 8, 2025

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