Production Occupations in Louisiana, May 2024
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024 state estimates. BLS sorts every occupation into one of 22 major groups; this is the Production Occupations group in Louisiana. These are estimates of jobs and wages, not job openings.
The group’s own figures in Louisiana
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Occupation group code | 51-0000 |
| Employment | 102,150 |
| Jobs per 1,000 | 53.437 |
| Location quotient | 0.94 |
| Mean annual wage | $57,440 |
| Median annual wage | $48,980 |
| Mean hourly wage | $27.62 |
| Median hourly wage | $23.55 |
| 10th percentile annual wage | $28,240 |
| 25th percentile annual wage | $35,960 |
| 75th percentile annual wage | $73,150 |
| 90th percentile annual wage | $101,130 |
Detailed occupations in this group in Louisiana
Every detailed occupation BLS publishes for this group in Louisiana, sorted by employment. Rows where BLS publishes no employment estimate (**) come last. Click a column heading to sort. A cell that reads “not published annually” or “not published hourly” means BLS publishes that row on the other basis only. A cell showing * or # is BLS’s own footnote symbol, explained below the table. Each row is that occupation’s own BLS record for Louisiana.
| Occupation | Employment | Median annual wage | Mean annual wage | 10th percentile annual wage | 90th percentile annual wage | Median hourly wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers | 12,360 | $59,860 | $62,290 | $41,130 | $83,250 | $28.78 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers | 9,540 | $76,710 | $87,090 | $44,350 | $150,590 | $36.88 |
| Production Workers, All Other | 9,390 | $39,350 | $43,290 | $27,230 | $62,490 | $18.92 |
| Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders | 7,920 | $77,250 | $79,550 | $47,230 | $108,020 | $37.14 |
| Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers | 7,530 | $50,080 | $58,120 | $33,660 | $100,760 | $24.08 |
| Machinists | 4,980 | $58,710 | $58,350 | $38,900 | $77,670 | $28.23 |
| Food Processing Workers, All Other | 3,700 | $30,290 | $32,150 | $22,700 | $40,310 | $14.56 |
| Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators | 3,610 | $43,580 | $48,210 | $30,220 | $70,540 | $20.95 |
| Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | 3,520 | $98,930 | $90,720 | $48,940 | $107,000 | $47.56 |
| Chemical Plant and System Operators | 3,360 | $96,500 | $89,050 | $56,320 | $111,230 | $46.39 |
| Helpers--Production Workers | 3,090 | $36,910 | $37,440 | $26,890 | $49,330 | $17.74 |
| Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers | 3,050 | $27,270 | $27,640 | $21,000 | $35,970 | $13.11 |
| Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators | 2,230 | $38,690 | $43,440 | $29,760 | $61,350 | $18.6 |
| Butchers and Meat Cutters | 2,110 | $32,950 | $34,020 | $23,120 | $45,650 | $15.84 |
| Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters | 1,850 | $47,570 | $47,650 | $23,380 | $65,400 | $22.87 |
| Bakers | 1,720 | $28,930 | $30,230 | $21,550 | $38,700 | $13.91 |
| Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders | 1,480 | $30,670 | $34,720 | $21,650 | $49,690 | $14.74 |
| Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers | 1,370 | $27,180 | $27,540 | $19,110 | $38,290 | $13.07 |
| Gas Plant Operators | 1,120 | $105,030 | $91,430 | $50,430 | $110,130 | $50.49 |
| Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 930 | $62,690 | $64,780 | $45,970 | $84,310 | $30.14 |
| Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 860 | $50,610 | $68,310 | $34,210 | $105,120 | $24.33 |
| Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 810 | $48,050 | $54,150 | $35,250 | $74,920 | $23.1 |
| Sewing Machine Operators | 810 | $28,670 | $28,620 | $20,300 | $36,810 | $13.79 |
| Printing Press Operators | 800 | $36,810 | $37,630 | $22,950 | $50,240 | $17.7 |
| Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 760 | $49,290 | $62,080 | $33,450 | $110,030 | $23.7 |
| Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 740 | $43,580 | $45,150 | $32,410 | $59,840 | $20.95 |
| Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 730 | $47,160 | $48,570 | $34,210 | $61,340 | $22.67 |
| Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 730 | $46,490 | $48,400 | $35,710 | $62,300 | $22.35 |
| Slaughterers and Meat Packers | 580 | $38,860 | $34,600 | $22,990 | $38,860 | $18.68 |
| Power Plant Operators | 570 | $94,500 | $89,230 | $47,850 | $114,270 | $45.43 |
| Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators | 520 | $50,400 | $53,350 | $37,440 | $66,210 | $24.23 |
| Plant and System Operators, All Other | 480 | $59,720 | $66,520 | $37,400 | $104,490 | $28.71 |
| Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood | 450 | $43,140 | $41,220 | $29,420 | $51,490 | $20.74 |
| Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing | 440 | $46,040 | $45,930 | $36,440 | $58,000 | $22.13 |
| Electrical, Electronic, and Electromechanical Assemblers, Except Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers | 410 | $35,860 | $37,610 | $30,860 | $47,040 | $17.24 |
| Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters | 390 | $43,920 | $44,180 | $31,110 | $49,540 | $21.12 |
| Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators | 390 | $49,090 | $50,120 | $38,230 | $60,460 | $23.6 |
| Dental Laboratory Technicians | 340 | $36,720 | $39,860 | $20,560 | $65,910 | $17.65 |
| Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians | 340 | $36,360 | $37,250 | $30,030 | $49,020 | $17.48 |
| Woodworkers, All Other | 310 | $45,140 | $47,060 | $36,810 | $55,380 | $21.7 |
| Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 290 | $46,170 | $52,190 | $39,930 | $72,300 | $22.2 |
| Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 260 | $45,460 | $46,360 | $31,490 | $59,890 | $21.86 |
| Print Binding and Finishing Workers | 260 | $34,030 | $35,680 | $28,390 | $48,660 | $16.36 |
| Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials | 240 | $29,600 | $28,510 | $19,480 | $34,140 | $14.23 |
| Food Batchmakers | 230 | $34,140 | $34,120 | $23,490 | $44,920 | $16.41 |
| Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers | 230 | $29,910 | $31,740 | $24,050 | $43,340 | $14.38 |
| Welding, Soldering, and Brazing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 200 | $66,660 | $61,000 | $32,970 | $80,120 | $32.05 |
| Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers | 190 | $50,990 | $49,160 | $22,730 | $73,170 | $24.51 |
| Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders | 180 | $46,350 | $48,200 | $30,720 | $62,150 | $22.29 |
| Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 180 | $37,440 | $37,840 | $26,110 | $47,750 | $18 |
| Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 150 | $48,950 | $46,860 | $27,480 | $73,020 | $23.54 |
| Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders | 150 | $57,070 | $57,470 | $40,710 | $67,540 | $27.44 |
| Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 130 | $42,990 | $44,530 | $35,670 | $59,120 | $20.67 |
| Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic | 130 | $48,280 | $51,250 | $35,820 | $74,570 | $23.21 |
| Plating Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 130 | $31,540 | $33,830 | $26,080 | $46,390 | $15.16 |
| Textile Knitting and Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 130 | $35,740 | $36,060 | $28,600 | $40,260 | $17.18 |
| Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand | 120 | $32,120 | $34,480 | $30,930 | $38,900 | $15.44 |
| Upholsterers | 120 | $41,600 | $43,920 | $30,640 | $58,550 | $20 |
| Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers | 100 | $59,060 | $58,490 | $44,770 | $74,580 | $28.4 |
| Lathe and Turning Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 100 | $48,920 | $52,290 | $36,200 | $73,820 | $23.52 |
| Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 90 | $40,060 | $45,900 | $32,170 | $69,000 | $19.26 |
| Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders | 80 | $36,720 | $36,470 | $28,760 | $43,820 | $17.65 |
| Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 80 | $64,010 | $61,250 | $29,440 | $78,050 | $30.77 |
| Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers | 60 | $37,140 | $36,500 | $22,580 | $47,060 | $17.86 |
| Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners | 60 | $50,900 | $52,360 | $43,010 | $64,230 | $24.47 |
| Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers | 50 | $55,720 | $52,560 | $33,610 | $73,600 | $26.79 |
| Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders | 40 | $45,270 | $46,420 | $37,750 | $60,580 | $21.77 |
| Prepress Technicians and Workers | 30 | $38,030 | $37,700 | $27,910 | $44,740 | $18.28 |
| Cutters and Trimmers, Hand | ** | $23,890 | $23,470 | $17,960 | $29,250 | $11.49 |
| Engine and Other Machine Assemblers | ** | $44,450 | $48,530 | $37,810 | $66,790 | $21.37 |
| Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders | ** | $37,570 | $39,850 | $17,620 | $58,930 | $18.06 |
| Metal Workers and Plastic Workers, All Other | ** | $44,200 | $44,450 | $37,650 | $53,750 | $21.25 |
| Tool and Die Makers | ** | $45,220 | $47,590 | $38,850 | $60,370 | $21.74 |
Symbols (BLS wording, workbook sheet Field Descriptions sheet): ** indicates that an employment estimate is not available · * indicates that a wage estimate is not available · # indicates a wage equal to or greater than $115.00 per hour or $239,200 per year. A wage shown as a symbol is not zero and not a blank: BLS publishes no number there.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024 state estimates. Record: state_M2024_dl.xlsx!AREA=22&OCC_CODE=51-0000. the group row is AREA 22 / OCC_CODE 51-0000, and each table row is its own detailed record for this area, AREA 22 / OCC_CODE 51-xxxx. Reference period: May 2024. Fetched October 2026 from https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24st.zip.