jobfacts

Metal working machine operatives

SOC 2020 8120

Metal working machine operatives operate machines to cut, shape, abrade and otherwise machine metal, use hand and power tools to remove surplus metal and rough surfaces from castings, forgings or other metal parts, and clean, smooth and polish metal workpieces.

Also calledDrill operatorCutterCleanerVice manLathe attendantNail makerand 403 more titles
Typical full-time pay£31,5002025 Provisional
People in the job28,000across the UK
Demand for workersElevated
New adverts a month1,000↓ 8.2%on last year · 185th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025

Half of full-time metal working machine operatives earn between £27,300 and £39,700 a year.

What full-time metal working machine operatives earn, 2025
£31,500 typical£24,600lowest 10%£27,30025%£39,70075%n/ptop 10%
Middle half (£27,300–£39,700)n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less than£24,600
Lowest 20% earn less than£26,200
25%£27,300
Median£31,500
75%£39,700
Top 20% earn more thanNot published
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
Typical pay by regionUK median £31,500
North West!£39,100
South West!£34,300
Yorkshire and The Humber!£33,100
Scotland!£32,600
London!£31,900
Wales!£31,500
West Midlands!£29,800
South East!£29,800
East Midlands!£29,400
North East!£25,000
East of EnglandNot published by ONS–
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
UK median, £31,500
North West£39,100 (small sample)
South West£34,300 (small sample)
Yorkshire and The Humber£33,100 (small sample)
Scotland£32,600 (small sample)
London£31,900 (small sample)
Wales£31,500 (small sample)
West Midlands£29,800 (small sample)
South East£29,800 (small sample)
East Midlands£29,400 (small sample)
North East£25,000 (small sample)
East of EnglandNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £31,300
  • 2024 £30,600
  • 2025 Provisional£31,500
↑ 0.7% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 1,000 jobs for metal working machine operatives are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as elevated.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (2 in all)
Show as table
Aug 20261,002
Jul 20261,104
Jun 2026Not published
May 2026993
Apr 20261,039
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 2026928
Jan 20261,147
Dec 2025566
Nov 20251,139
Oct 20251,187
Sept 20251,336
Aug 20251,175
Jul 20251,257
Jun 20251,221
May 20251,377
Apr 20251,239
Mar 20251,241
Feb 20251,144
Jan 20251,104
Dec 2024598
Nov 20241,026
Oct 20241,166
Sept 20241,282
Aug 20241,347
Jul 20241,254
Jun 20241,203
May 20241,406
Apr 20241,333
Mar 2024940
Feb 2024933
Jan 20241,064
Dec 2023777
Nov 2023624
Oct 2023686
Sept 2023696
Aug 2023932
Jul 2023765
Jun 20231,308
May 20231,319
Apr 20231,154
Mar 20231,286
Feb 20231,269
Jan 20231,535
Dec 20221,236
Nov 20221,335
Oct 20221,386
Sept 20221,351
Aug 20221,475
Jul 20221,480
Jun 20221,293
May 20221,514
Apr 20221,226
Mar 20221,420
Feb 20221,319
Jan 20221,594
Dec 20211,023
Nov 20211,332
Oct 20211,518
Sept 20211,367
Aug 20211,017
Jul 20211,181
Jun 20211,221
May 20211,121
Apr 2021899
Mar 20211,118
Feb 2021651
Jan 2021727
Dec 2020658
Nov 2020767
Oct 2020907
Sept 2020875
Aug 2020655
Jul 2020794
Jun 2020821
May 2020769
Apr 2020813
Mar 20201,286
Feb 20201,411
Jan 20201,269
Dec 20191,341
Nov 20191,963
Oct 20192,169
Sept 20191,478
Aug 20191,231
Jul 20191,222
Jun 20191,274
May 20191,254
Apr 2019871
Mar 20191,008
Feb 2019963
Jan 20191,163
Dec 2018752
Nov 20181,091
Oct 20181,173
Sept 20181,064
Aug 20181,229
Jul 20181,254
Jun 20181,425
May 20181,204
Apr 2018970
Mar 20181,065
Feb 20181,092
Jan 20181,233
Dec 2017813
Nov 20171,059
Oct 20171,163
Sept 20171,079
Aug 20171,134
Jul 20171,091
Jun 20171,473
May 20171,346
Apr 20171,381
Mar 20171,549
Feb 20171,241
Jan 20171,013
Is there a shortage of metal working machine operatives?
Elevated

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment; in 2024 it was not high.

  • Visas grantedUsual
  • Online job advertsWell above usual
  • Wage growthUsual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedAbove usual
Note: uncertain in multiple indicators: change in hourly wage, visa density.
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
32%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for process, plant and machine operatives, which includes metal working machine operatives. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London334
Leeds49
Birmingham49
Bristol, City of36
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole36
Manchester36
Buckinghamshire34
Wiltshire34
Tunbridge Wells34
North Yorkshire32
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where metal working machine operatives are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. Fewer than 10 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
WomenToo few in the survey to give a reliable figure
Age of metal working machine operatives
13%!
22%!
16%!
23%!
23%!
2%!
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
16–2413% (small sample)
25–3422% (small sample)
35–4416% (small sample)
45–5423% (small sample)
55–6423% (small sample)
65+2% (small sample)
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent!7.5%
Higher education below degree–
Not published
A levels or equivalent!26%
GCSEs or equivalent34%
Other qualifications!13%
No qualifications!14%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent7.5% (small sample)
Higher education below degreeNot published
A levels or equivalent26% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalent34%
Other qualifications13% (small sample)
No qualifications14% (small sample)

Main employers: manufacture of other parts and accessories for motor vehicles (4.9%), manufacture of tubes, pipes, hollow profiles and related fittings, of steel (4.5%), manufacture of air and spacecraft and related machinery (4.3%), manufacture of basic iron and steel and of ferro-alloys (3.7%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
7.5%
as their highest qualification
Most common qualification
GCSEs or equivalent
held by 34%
Apprenticeships
None
none leads directly into this work

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • secures workpiece in drilling, boring, milling, planing, grinding, lapping, honing, electrochemical, or other shaping machines, or loads metal stock on to press
  • sets controls, starts machine and operates controls to feed tool to workpiece or vice versa and repositions workpiece during machining as required
  • withdraws workpiece and examines accuracy using measuring instruments
  • operates burning, chipping and grinding equipment to remove defects from metal parts, and files, chisels, burns and saws off surplus metal
  • smooths rough surfaces with hand tools, abrasive belts and wheels, compressed air, jets of vapour, or blasting with shot, grit, sand or other abrasive material
  • selects and secures polishing head to machine tool, prepares head with emery, grease or other substance, sets speed and angle of polishing head, and operates controls to feed polishing head to workpiece or vice versa

Skills

  • perform test run
  • monitor automated machines
  • remove processed workpiece
  • supply machine
  • provide advice to technicians
  • consult technical resources
  • ensure equipment availability
  • inspect quality of products
  • remove inadequate workpieces
  • set up the controller of a machine
  • troubleshoot
  • record production data for quality control
  • perform machine maintenance
  • keep records of work progress

Knowledge

  • quality standards
  • types of metal
  • ferrous metal processing
  • types of metal manufacturing processes
  • quality and cycle time optimisation
  • manufacturing of weapons and ammunition
  • manufacturing of metal containers
  • cutting technologies

Suits people who like

  • Practical, hands-on work
  • Organising and following procedures

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for process, plant, machine and construction operatives, a group of 25 jobs that includes metal working machine operatives.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↑ 19%about 142,000 more jobs
Workers needed by 2035496,000including people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service 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. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

jobfacts is independent. It is not part of, affiliated with or endorsed by the Office for National Statistics, the Department for Education, Skills England, the National Careers Service, the Home Office, the European Commission or the U.S. Department of Labor.