Careers / Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders
Shoe Machine 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
$35,650
United States, 2025
Employment
3,280
United States, 2025
Typical education
Less than a High School Diploma
Job Zone 2
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Operate or tend a variety of machines to join, decorate, reinforce, or finish shoes and shoe parts.
- O*NET code
- 51-6042.00
- Job zone
- 2
- Experience required
- None
Typical tasks
- Inspect finished products to ensure that shoes have been completed according to specifications.
- Align parts to be stitched, following seams, edges, or markings, before positioning them under needles.
- Operate or tend machines to join, decorate, reinforce, or finish shoes and shoe parts.
- Remove and examine shoes, shoe parts, and designs to verify conformance to specifications such as proper embedding of stitches in channels.
- Switch on machines, lower pressure feet or rollers to secure parts, and start machine stitching, using hand, foot, or knee controls.
- Draw thread through machine guide slots, needles, and presser feet in preparation for stitching, or load rolls of wire through machine axles.
- Study work orders or shoe part tags to obtain information about workloads, specifications, and the types of materials to be used.
- Perform routine equipment maintenance such as cleaning and lubricating machines or replacing broken needles.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$26,560
25th percentile
$29,090
75th percentile
$43,090
90th percentile
$47,700
Most important skills
- Reading Comprehension3.1
- Active Listening3.0
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Operations Monitoring3.0
- Operation and Control3.0
- Monitoring3.0
- Equipment Maintenance2.9
- Quality Control Analysis2.9
- Time Management2.8
- Troubleshooting2.8
- Speaking2.8
- Complex Problem Solving2.6
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 6 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
6
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 | 3.0 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Operation and Control | 3.0 | 3.0 | Not selected | 3.0 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Active Listening | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Monitoring | 3.0 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.0 | 2.5 | Not selected | 2.5 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
Related careers
Supplemental
National median $50,140
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $46,330
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $50,620
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $50,270
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $46,170
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $50,060
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $38,670
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $41,220
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersSupplemental
National median $35,060
Compare with Shoe Machine Operators and TendersHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York, NY | $48,530 | 40 | 2025 |
| NY | $48,420 | 40 | 2025 |
| CA | $47,730 | 30 | 2025 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $47,730 | 30 | 2025 |
| ME | $39,850 | 530 | 2025 |
| WI | $37,970 | 110 | 2025 |
| MN | $37,600 | 370 | 2025 |
| TX | $26,560 | 500 | 2025 |
| El Paso, TX | $23,070 | 170 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Shoe Machine 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.