Careers / Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
Opens your browser print dialog — choose “Save as PDF”.
Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$50,270
United States, 2025
Employment
96,130
United States, 2025
Typical education
High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED)
Job Zone 2
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Set up, operate, or tend paper goods machines that perform a variety of functions, such as converting, sawing, corrugating, banding, wrapping, boxing, stitching, forming, or sealing paper or paperboard sheets into products.
- O*NET code
- 51-9196.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- Up to and including 1 month
Typical tasks
- Examine completed work to detect defects and verify conformance to work orders, and adjust machinery as necessary to correct production problems.
- Observe operation of various machines to detect and correct machine malfunctions such as improper forming, glue flow, or pasteboard tension.
- Start machines and move controls to regulate tension on pressure rolls, to synchronize speed of machine components, and to adjust temperatures of glue or paraffin.
- Disassemble machines to maintain, repair, or replace broken or worn parts, using hand or power tools.
- Install attachments to machines for gluing, folding, printing, or cutting.
- Cut products to specified dimensions, using hand or power cutters.
- Place rolls of paper or cardboard on machine feed tracks, and thread paper through gluing, coating, and slitting rollers.
- Monitor finished cartons as they drop from forming machines into rotating hoppers and into gravity feed chutes to prevent jamming.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$37,300
25th percentile
$44,920
75th percentile
$60,180
90th percentile
$70,320
Most important skills
- Operations Monitoring3.6
- Operation and Control3.3
- Quality Control Analysis3.1
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Active Listening3.0
- Speaking3.0
- Monitoring3.0
- Time Management3.0
- Equipment Maintenance2.9
- Active Learning2.9
- Social Perceptiveness2.9
- Coordination2.9
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 8 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
8
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operations Monitoring | 3.6 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Operation and Control | 3.3 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Monitoring | 3.0 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Quality Control Analysis | 3.1 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Active Listening | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Speaking | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Time Management | 3.0 | 2.6 | Not selected | 2.6 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
Related careers
Supplemental
National median $42,290
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $52,800
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $36,670
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $50,060
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $42,660
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $38,670
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $47,720
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $46,550
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $47,180
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersSupplemental
National median $43,220
Compare with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and TendersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cedar Rapids, IA | $83,470 | 260 | 2025 |
| Pittsfield, MA | $65,190 | 190 | 2025 |
| Terre Haute, IN | $65,110 | 40 | 2025 |
| Seattle, WA | $64,020 | 460 | 2025 |
| Albany, OR | $63,800 | 80 | 2025 |
| OK | $63,640 | 1,390 | 2025 |
| Glens Falls, NY | $61,830 | 340 | 2025 |
| ME | $61,780 | 740 | 2025 |
| Wausau, WI | $61,070 | 430 | 2025 |
| UT | $60,790 | 1,350 | 2025 |
| Provo, UT | $60,440 | 150 | 2025 |
| Hartford, CT | $59,980 | 240 | 2025 |
| Longview, WA | $59,770 | 590 | 2025 |
| Appleton, WI | $59,550 | 710 | 2025 |
| WA | $59,410 | 2,170 | 2025 |
| Green Bay, WI | $59,230 | 1,740 | 2025 |
| Modesto, CA | $59,150 | 370 | 2025 |
| Chicago, IL | $59,020 | 4,320 | 2025 |
| Bridgeport, CT | $59,010 | 130 | 2025 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | $59,000 | 440 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.