Machinists are skilled metal workers who know the working properties of a variety of metals and use this knowledge to turn a block of metal into a precisely machined part. In addition to making metal parts for automobiles, machines, and other equipment, machinists also repair or make new parts for factory machinery.
Machinists work from blueprints or written specifications and use a variety of machine tools, precision instruments such as micrometers, and hand tools.
All factories employ machinists to handle repairs and maintenance on equipment and machinery. Others are employed in industries that manufacture large numbers of metal parts such as the auto industry. Independent machine shops of all sizes employ many machinists; the federal government employs many more in navy yards and other installations.
Machinists are usually union members, with most of them belonging to either the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, the International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America; the International Union of Electrical, Radio, and Machine Workers; the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; or the United Steelworkers of America. A related job is tool-and-die maker.
Places of Employment and Working Conditions
Machinists work in all parts of the United States but mainly in large industrial areas such as Boston, Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Houston.
Machinists work in well-lighted areas, but the work is often noisy and can be tedious and repetitious. They use grease and oil in the course of their work and often stand most of the day. Finger, hand, and eye injuries are possible from flying metal particles, and safety rules usually require the use of specially fitted eyeglasses, protective aprons, and short-sleeve shirts.
Qualifications, Education and Training
Anyone who wants to be a machinist should be mechanically inclined and temperamentally suited to doing work that requires concentration, precision, and physical effort. A machinist must also be able to work independently.
High school or vocational courses should include mathematics, physics, and machine shop classes, if available.
A formal apprenticeship is the best training for all-around machinist. Some companies offer shorter courses for machinists who will work on single-purpose machines; and some machinists do learn through on-the-job training. But those who complete a formal apprenticeship program usually have the best opportunities for advancement since they are capable of handling a wider variety of jobs.
A typical apprentice program consists of shop training and related classroom instruction in blueprint reading, mechanical drawing, and shop mathematics.
Some companies require experienced machinists to take additional courses in mathematics and electronics, at company expense, so that they qualify to service and operate numerically controlled (computerized) machine tools.
Potential and Advancement
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the field will grow by roughly 6% between 2014 and 2024, providing average job and advancement opportunities. Population growth will increase the demand for machined goods, but this demand will be increasingly met by imported products. Other factors decreasing the demand for machinists are improvements in metalworking technology and the growing substitution of nonmetal parts for metal parts.
Advancement in this field is to supervisory positions. With additional training, machinists can also become tool-and-die makers or instrument makers. Some experienced machinists open their own machine shops or take technical jobs in machine tooling and programming.
Income
Wages of machinists and tool and die makers differ with their ability and with the business and institution in which they work.
According to the US bureau of labor statistics, the median annual salary for a machinist in 2015 was $42,110.The pay of apprentices is tied to their proficiency level. As they advance and acquire more skills and reach particular levels of performance and experience, their pay increases.
Most machinists and tool and die makers work full time during regular business hours. Nevertheless, overtime is not rare. Also, many manufacturers operate machinery for double shifts, so they have shifts with evening and weekend work.
Related Jobs
Related jobs include industrial machinery mechanic, maintenance worker, metal and plastic machine worker, millwright, welder, cutter, solderer, and brazer.
