Pay · 51-4023
Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic earn $50,140 a year at the midpoint
The middle of the pay scale for rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic is $50,140. A typical start is nearer $44,020; the top tenth earn about $70,310.
National figures for rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic, 51-4023, from the 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.
- Read the spread, not the middle. The median is the midpoint across everyone in the occupation, most of them years into the work. A beginner starts nearer the 10th to 25th percentile, which is why the spread is published alongside it.
- What the figure counts. The figure counts base pay plus tips, commissions and production bonuses. It leaves out the self-employed, unpaid family workers, private household workers, and the value of benefits or profit sharing.
- The annual figure is arithmetic. For hourly occupations the annual figure is the hourly rate times 2080 hours. It is a calculation, not observed earnings: part time is the norm in retail and food service.
- Where you live moves it more than your resume does. National figures. A state or metro area can sit far from the national number, and that gap is usually larger than any difference a resume makes.
- Not in these numbers. Growth and annual openings are not in this dataset. They come from the separate Employment Projections tables, where an opening is a modelled ten year average and not a posted vacancy.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, 2025. Retrieved through the BLS Public Data API on 2026-08-13. bls.gov/oes “BLS.gov cannot vouch for the data or analyses derived from these data after the data have been retrieved from BLS.gov.”
Rolling machine operator earnings, from starting pay to the highest 10%
Pick the job, where you work and how long you have done it. The range comes from the published wage percentiles for that job.
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An estimate from survey percentiles, not an offer. Employer, industry, shift and credentials move pay within and beyond this range. Full wage page for this job →
Examples
Resumes written for this line of work.
Real sheets, filled in end to end — for this job and the ones beside it.
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No. 521 of 788 by median pay
Better paid than 34% of the occupations in the survey.
- 519 Highway Maintenance Workers $50,260
- 520 Travel Agents $50,160
- 521 Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic $50,140
- 522 Credit Authorizers, Checkers, and Clerks $50,080
- 523 Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners $50,060
A resume for rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic
Name the job in the builder and the duties, skills and credentials it is screened on are written in for you.
- Monitored machine cycles and mill operation to detect jamming and to ensure that products conform to specifications.
- Adjusted and corrected machine set-ups to reduce thicknesses, reshape products, and eliminate product defects.
- Started operation of rolling and milling machines to flatten, temper, form, and reduce sheet metal sections and to produce steel strips.
This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. The owner of tiersi.com has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.
Rolling machine operator pay rate, hourly to yearly
Starts at this job’s median. Change the rate or the hours; a full-time year is 40 hours for 52 weeks.
Rolling machine operator wages by state
The 28 states where the most people do this work, of 39 with a published figure: their medians range by 1.85 times. Figures are the 2025 survey.
| State | Median a year | Where most start | 10th to 90th | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa | $72,670 | $48,580 | $48,580 — $72,670 | 660 |
| Pennsylvania | $66,970 | $48,240 | $48,240 — $70,310 | 3,070 |
| Washington | $63,560 | $38,630 | $38,630 — $105,440 | 350 |
| Maryland | $61,470 | $48,420 | $48,420 — $64,410 | 310 |
| New York | $60,890 | $47,110 | $47,110 — $99,810 | 420 |
| Illinois | $54,180 | $37,360 | $37,360 — $62,980 | 550 |
| Alabama | $53,380 | $39,170 | $39,170 — $78,370 | 1,710 |
| Wisconsin | $51,370 | $39,810 | $39,810 — $71,820 | 290 |
| Kentucky | $50,400 | $38,530 | $38,530 — $60,560 | 1,120 |
| Ohio | $50,030 | $39,220 | $39,220 — $67,640 | 1,310 |
| Texas | $49,660 | $35,600 | $35,600 — $75,730 | 1,680 |
| Tennessee | $48,540 | $31,690 | $31,690 — $71,860 | 1,290 |
| North Carolina | $48,450 | $36,260 | $36,260 — $65,730 | 510 |
| Oklahoma | $48,330 | $34,670 | $34,670 — $57,420 | 290 |
| South Carolina | $48,210 | $38,840 | $38,840 — $64,000 | 820 |
| California | $48,040 | $37,690 | $37,690 — $75,570 | 1,150 |
| Massachusetts | $47,830 | $39,260 | $39,260 — $61,690 | 480 |
| Missouri | $47,390 | $31,400 | $31,400 — $56,970 | 180 |
| New Jersey | $46,980 | $38,500 | $38,500 — $76,740 | 250 |
| Florida | $46,810 | $35,690 | $35,690 — $78,580 | 310 |
| Virginia | $46,450 | $37,800 | $37,800 — $64,180 | 450 |
| Arkansas | $45,890 | $39,560 | $39,560 — $69,460 | 420 |
| Nebraska | $45,800 | $33,790 | $33,790 — $57,130 | 230 |
| Indiana | $45,430 | $36,860 | $36,860 — $64,240 | 2,750 |
| Georgia | $45,050 | $27,130 | $27,130 — $60,430 | 1,070 |
| Michigan | $44,090 | $37,570 | $37,570 — $63,020 | 1,480 |
| Kansas | $40,260 | $33,650 | $33,650 — $56,080 | 170 |
| Mississippi | $39,320 | $31,670 | $31,670 — $55,080 | 230 |
Questions people ask most
What is a rolling machine operator’s yearly income?
A rolling machine operator makes a median of $50,140 a year (2025 survey). The middle half earn between $44,020 and $61,880.
What is a rolling machine operator’s hourly pay rate?
The median pay rate is $24.10 an hour; the average is $53,220 a year.
What is the starting pay for a rolling machine operator?
Starting pay is usually near the 25th percentile, $44,020 a year, and sometimes as low as the 10th, $37,690.
Which state pays rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic the most?
Iowa, with a median of $72,670 a year.
How many people work as rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic?
About 25,250 in the United States — number 521 of 788 occupations by median pay.
Jobs that pay about the same
Median pay within $120 of what rolling machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic earn — $50,140 a year — but not always the same spread.
- $60 less Credit Authorizers, Checkers, and Clerks $50,080median a year 10th percentile: $30,260 90th percentile: $72,700
- $80 less Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners $50,060median a year 10th percentile: $35,350 90th percentile: $77,170
- $120 more Highway Maintenance Workers $50,260median a year 10th percentile: $36,230 90th percentile: $71,970