Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
SOC 51-4072 · 2024-2034
Set up, operate, or tend metal or plastic molding, casting, or coremaking machines to mold or cast metal or thermoplastic parts or products.
How the U.S. Department of Labor describes this work. Published in English only.
Shrinking -5.3%
California projects this job will shrink over the next ten years. Fewer openings may mean a harder search.
What California expects of this job
- Typical pay in California
- $48,318per year
- Projected openings
- 9,400
- Projected change
- -5.3%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
Skills this work uses most
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, rates how important each of these is to this work, and they are listed in that order, most important first. The ratings themselves are not shown, because the data carries the number without the scale it was measured on. The names are as published, in English.
- Operations Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Reading Comprehension
- Time Management
Pay by region
| Region | Typical pay in California | Projected openings |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA (San Benito and Santa Clara Counties) | $53,823 | 300 |
| Vallejo MSA (Solano County) | $51,206 | 160 |
| Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) | $50,379 | 530 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD (Los Angeles County) | $47,511 | 2,090 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA (El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo Counties) | $47,431 | 260 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville MSA (Santa Cruz County) | $47,297 | 100 |
| Bakersfield-Delano MSA (Kern County) | $47,123 | 110 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA (Ventura County) | $46,918 | 260 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (San Diego County) | $46,795 | 730 |
| Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine MD (Orange County) | $46,563 | 1,360 |
| Modesto MSA (Stanislaus County) | $46,384 | 150 |
| Stockton-Lodi MSA (San Joaquin County) | $45,789 | 220 |
| Santa Rosa-Petaluma MSA (Sonoma County) | $45,461 | 280 |
| San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles MSA (San Luis Obispo County) | $44,189 | 60 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties) | $42,619 | 2,020 |
| Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) | $42,332 | 220 |
| Chico MSA (Butte County) | $41,870 | 30 |
What the pay actually ranges across
- The lowest-paid tenth earn under
- $37,629
- A quarter earn under
- $42,130
- Half earn under
- $48,318
- Three quarters earn under
- $53,105
- The highest-paid tenth earn over
- $62,873
A median is one point. These are the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2026 figures for California, and they say how far apart the people doing this job actually are. Read them as the spread across everyone already in the work — not as a starting wage and not as a promise about where anyone lands.
Similar work
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, names these as occupations involving work similar to this one — its own reading of the job, not a grouping by code. They keep O*NET's order, and only those California publishes a projection for are shown.
| Occupation | Typical pay in California | Projected openings | Projected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $46,927 | 3,620 | -5% |
| Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic | $50,312 | 5,510 | +2.3% |
| Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $47,878 | 3,160 | 0% |
| Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | $48,379 | 3,540 | -2.4% |
| Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $49,556 | 6,410 | -11.7% |
| Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | $49,136 | 930 | -9.1% |