What is the average hourly pay for cnc operators in your state

[CNCDevil]

Why are we whinning about our livelihoods, our special little world is about to end. As long as i can make it to retirement. Our schools are no longer teaching metal shop, our colleges are not capable to teach CNC techniques for the real world. Everyone wants to make 20-25 dollars an hour out of high school. No one wants to put in the time it takes. We need to be patient and start a new movement in the US. Apprenticeship programs, get them young, High school or even younger, build back up the greatest manufacturing country in the world, take back what is ours. We need help though, state run schools, government run programs, will not get it done, too slow and not enough money for all the politicians to get their cut. Private sector schools, run by the industry, teaching real world techniques that make a graduate worth the money being paid to them and worth it to the Companies bankrolling the project. I'll get off the soapbox now, sorry for ranting, bottom line we need better qualified applicants.

A short history from Denmark


Our system (the state) finances most of all eduacations. I'm in the industry sector and everything is free, including the books.

I'm an apprentice in an all-round proffesion, where I mill, use the lathe, (we have both manual and CNC) sawing up tubes and steel parts, cuts sheet metal (up to 10mm) and bend it to profiles, weld sub-assemlies and puts it alltogether, on a weekly basis. I even do some of the 3D drawing sketches for the parts from time to time. Some of the side-jobs is to bring the parts to/from the paintstore and transport the smaller assemblies along the country to the customer. Quite relaxing, actually

The education lasts for 4½ years and it consists of woorking for my company and going back and forth to school which is combined theoretics/practice.

I like my job very much and an it's an absolute challenge in a good sense, because it is not getting tedious at all (I like "floating" around).

I admit that I'm still not any guru in any of the above listed jobs I do, but every day I (hopefully) get better and better. Some of the guys in the company excels pretty good in all the mentioned jobs and earns +40$/hr. As an apprentice, my current salery is 12$/hr. I don't think it's comparable to the US where the taxes are lover. I pay 40% (lovest tax) of my income, but that's due to our social-insurrance system.

We often have bigger project running and people are then set to work around on a sub-part of the whole assembly, but we usually do sidesteps from place to place, where we're needed. We do have people who just make single jobs everyday long, because they are very good at it and it helps to keep the track, but everybody can literally take over the other guys job. A big advantage in my opinion.

So, the system works the way that the danish government controls/takes care of all the education (payed by everyone via the tax) and the employer doesn't has to spend a lot of money to train a person to a high level of competence. We are like pre-fabricated to the employers demands...

Actually, employers aren't that concerned about paying people a good salery if they can achive a high industrial standard by having high-skilled, abstract thinking people who's able to multitask and think out of the box. The government and the emplyers has realised that it's the way to globally concour the market.

Maybe that's the way to go for America, but I guees it will never come true, at least not in my lifetime. I'm 26.


Brian


Look forward to check up on my up-comming steel-router, driven by homemade rotating nuts. I'll soon upload some drawings.

[porsche912]

I earn $22.50 an hour, my job is to run 5 NL1500, I download and edit programs, measure and inspect the parts coming out of the machine, there is not much of a set up to be done, we run 500 plus part numbers each with their own programs but actual tooling on the machines is the same, all we do is replace inserts and touch them off, my job title is senior CNC operator, I have been on the job for 1 year with little prior experince and no schooling, not a machinist by anymeans but I am mechanically inclinded and have what i call common sense, my emplyers have been kind enough to sponsor me to a trade school but in this market I have no doubt that i could leave my job today and find another one tomorrow for the same pay, cnc oparetor positions are everywhere.

[Dave Mc]

It was interesting to read the comments from CNCDEVIL in Denmark about how training is funded and planned. Here in the UK we have a massive shortage of skilled people because in the 1980's and 1990's most apprenticeships were stopped. This was also compounded by the decline in many traditional industries such as Ship Building, Steel making, Coal Mining, Arms Manufacture and many more. The causes were many but the real failure of government since then was to fail to plan for the future to ensure the country would have the right balance of workers from floor sweepers to brain surgeons. I see by many of the comments that the USA is heading the same way.
In the UK historicaly skilled people that work with their hands do not get the level of respect they deserve unlike Mainland Europe. Our successive governments have set in place policies through schools that have actively discouraged manual work, the message seems to be unless you go to College or University you are no good. What the country needs is the same as every business, a balanced workforce and that cannot be left to chance.

[robinhuxd]

That is why China is still good for employers. I pay my workers $1000 for the programmer,and $500 for the manager. But worker's gets $350 monthly. So, it is $2.08/hour.

Send you jobs to China...

[ridgerunninmfg]

WTF

[jjdon]

> Yes they may be able to use software XYZ to produce very effecient moves "IN THEORY" but in reality fail becuse they have had no accurate practical experience in machining

Interesting thread - not the money (to me), but the thoughts. I'm pro jeweler/amateur machinist - have Lathemaster mill/drill and 9x20 manual lathe. I had a client come in and I asked him what he did - just converstion - he said he was a CNC machinist, and I pointed to my stuff like, "Hey, we have something in common" and he told me he didn't know how to do that stuff. Well, I was just floored - a machinist who can't run a lathe? What's that about? As another said, the world is different now - you can't get a millionth on my chinese lathe, much less get the production. But I think it's a pretty sorry state when a "professional" machinist doesn't know where the power feed lever is. America is now #3 economy - EU, China, US. Since our glorious leader just recently LEARNED there's a thing called an economy, I'm not sure there's much hope in sight....

[allchevy]

chicago $6.50 and they dont speak english just press the cycle button......lol but they can read a print and micrometer and caliper check the parts thats all i need them for .....down side is they watch you like a hawk like they are gonna learn something .. but cant tell time with out looking at the sun ...lol too many days picking fruit

[chimera198609]

from west australia god help us all ,s--t happens! over here we have a rampant mining
industry billions involved in resources you name it we have it including energy good gov
will probally give it back to the indiginious folk, Im to old to care now but I wish these folk would pull thier weight including the good gov.As before trades folk were looked down on now aus has run out of them ,now $30 to $60 p/hr Some guys are making 1000.00 a day Toolmaker my self $ 38ph on ABN low but relaxed.Its the young ones Im con-cerned about ,homes 450k many have given up the aussie dream all because gov backed out on training now to little to late tv internet gaming great greed great speed you cant learn machining skills with 3 months tafe I have two cnc m/cs at home a mazak 10m-atc lathe. A rofu-rofu vmc vertimac b at present learning programing I hope my1 gigabite mind can cope. well i hope this site can help as an old boy i need it to make a living after retirement no one can live on an aussie pension the new poor the pensioner politicians pension 100k working man 12k you know the rules make your own
so ill keep posted

[ynnek]

Really has nothing to do with being a CNC Operator. I have no experience with CNC, yet. I have been a machinist for 25 years. I earn $24/hr. I can make alot of the parts we need on manual my machines but that tends to be a slow process of building special fixtures & such. Sometimes I will make one master pattern & use a router table with a flush trim bit to duplicate them. I also have IT experience with a degree from ITT Tech. I will be getting into the CNC soon As my company is gonna purchase a CNC router to make large plastic setup parts for liquid filling machines.

[ABno]

Hi all! Iam from hungary,carpenter industries,programming,setup and working on CNC machines (bima310,rover346,jet2000)

5dollar/hour - 40dollars/day (8hour)

[rdarlington]

60k a year in New Mexico (near the national labs) as a CNC machinist. I charge $50/hr to the national laboratories to pay my guys and the electricity, etc. We're a LOT cheaper than the competition!

[RandyJ]

In Houston I work in a small job shop I am expected to program and setup then run out my jobs on both mazatrol qt-10 and 20 also dyna 4500 medlas 300

we are earning 19.50-24.50