Production Occupations in Montana, 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 Montana. These are estimates of jobs and wages, not job openings.
The group’s own figures in Montana
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Occupation group code | 51-0000 |
| Employment | 18,320 |
| Jobs per 1,000 | 35.922 |
| Location quotient | 0.63 |
| Mean annual wage | $52,500 |
| Median annual wage | $46,910 |
| Mean hourly wage | $25.24 |
| Median hourly wage | $22.55 |
| 10th percentile annual wage | $32,600 |
| 25th percentile annual wage | $37,900 |
| 75th percentile annual wage | $60,790 |
| 90th percentile annual wage | $81,470 |
Detailed occupations in this group in Montana
Every detailed occupation BLS publishes for this group in Montana, 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 Montana.
| Occupation | Employment | Median annual wage | Mean annual wage | 10th percentile annual wage | 90th percentile annual wage | Median hourly wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers | 2,010 | $65,140 | $72,500 | $43,290 | $108,440 | $31.32 |
| Miscellaneous Assemblers and Fabricators | 1,540 | $40,980 | $44,000 | $29,870 | $63,880 | $19.7 |
| Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers | 1,340 | $51,280 | $56,310 | $40,080 | $78,290 | $24.66 |
| Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers | 1,110 | $36,640 | $36,500 | $28,980 | $44,420 | $17.62 |
| Bakers | 880 | $35,720 | $36,550 | $26,230 | $47,990 | $17.17 |
| Butchers and Meat Cutters | 780 | $40,770 | $42,040 | $29,510 | $55,020 | $19.6 |
| Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators | 690 | $59,960 | $60,310 | $43,870 | $78,860 | $28.83 |
| Machinists | 680 | $61,230 | $57,740 | $36,070 | $72,980 | $29.44 |
| Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders | 620 | $41,200 | $42,440 | $33,280 | $55,280 | $19.81 |
| Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers | 610 | $57,520 | $63,480 | $37,480 | $100,560 | $27.66 |
| Cabinetmakers and Bench Carpenters | 570 | $47,170 | $48,190 | $33,560 | $63,700 | $22.68 |
| Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers | 570 | $97,840 | $97,030 | $74,710 | $119,210 | $47.04 |
| Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 390 | $47,740 | $49,750 | $38,350 | $62,950 | $22.95 |
| Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Operators | 390 | $47,210 | $48,890 | $37,630 | $62,400 | $22.7 |
| Production Workers, All Other | 390 | $39,390 | $43,360 | $32,850 | $58,060 | $18.94 |
| Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing | 350 | $47,940 | $46,140 | $35,360 | $56,520 | $23.05 |
| Printing Press Operators | 340 | $38,640 | $40,960 | $33,280 | $49,420 | $18.58 |
| Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 300 | $46,490 | $49,520 | $32,330 | $63,970 | $22.35 |
| Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 300 | $49,090 | $49,010 | $35,200 | $60,420 | $23.6 |
| Sawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Wood | 270 | $48,950 | $50,100 | $39,710 | $58,030 | $23.54 |
| Electrical, Electronic, and Electromechanical Assemblers, Except Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers | 210 | $44,750 | $43,420 | $31,060 | $55,220 | $21.52 |
| Sewing Machine Operators | 210 | $37,240 | $37,250 | $23,850 | $45,910 | $17.91 |
| Plant and System Operators, All Other | 200 | $78,850 | $73,930 | $56,080 | $82,830 | $37.91 |
| Helpers--Production Workers | 190 | $42,100 | $41,860 | $33,430 | $50,540 | $20.24 |
| Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 180 | $37,630 | $42,370 | $33,690 | $59,130 | $18.09 |
| Dental Laboratory Technicians | 170 | $50,540 | $56,050 | $34,510 | $89,630 | $24.3 |
| Food Batchmakers | 160 | $42,640 | $41,320 | $29,050 | $47,990 | $20.5 |
| Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 160 | $38,090 | $41,390 | $31,180 | $53,760 | $18.31 |
| Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 140 | $45,910 | $46,500 | $37,120 | $61,620 | $22.07 |
| Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 140 | $43,690 | $44,540 | $33,400 | $61,250 | $21 |
| Power Plant Operators | 130 | $102,610 | $96,350 | $54,410 | $115,830 | $49.33 |
| Slaughterers and Meat Packers | 130 | $46,180 | $43,910 | $31,680 | $49,340 | $22.2 |
| Chemical Plant and System Operators | 120 | $65,190 | $72,630 | $52,480 | $98,040 | $31.34 |
| Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators | 120 | $67,130 | $72,070 | $48,780 | $104,710 | $32.28 |
| Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 100 | $48,290 | $49,040 | $32,070 | $67,660 | $23.22 |
| Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders | 100 | $29,330 | $37,560 | $24,870 | $55,240 | $14.1 |
| Jewelers and Precious Stone and Metal Workers | 100 | $44,920 | $53,300 | $34,640 | $79,630 | $21.6 |
| Food Processing Workers, All Other | 90 | $41,200 | $43,480 | $33,850 | $66,520 | $19.81 |
| Metal Workers and Plastic Workers, All Other | 80 | $50,540 | $46,390 | $27,500 | $68,220 | $24.3 |
| Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders | 70 | $47,320 | $49,280 | $41,410 | $59,010 | $22.75 |
| Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians | 70 | $38,690 | $38,950 | $35,650 | $43,180 | $18.6 |
| Print Binding and Finishing Workers | 70 | $38,210 | $41,340 | $36,170 | $46,830 | $18.37 |
| Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers | 60 | $59,680 | $65,350 | $45,190 | $86,520 | $28.69 |
| Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers | 60 | $37,950 | $37,090 | $33,880 | $40,960 | $18.25 |
| Woodworkers, All Other | 60 | $46,020 | $47,970 | $34,510 | $67,390 | $22.12 |
| Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders | 50 | $40,650 | $37,560 | $23,550 | $45,830 | $19.54 |
| Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 40 | $58,060 | $53,080 | $36,820 | $66,260 | $27.91 |
| Prepress Technicians and Workers | 40 | $48,210 | $47,640 | $34,890 | $53,760 | $23.18 |
| Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers | 40 | $39,250 | $39,960 | $29,050 | $51,220 | $18.87 |
| Upholsterers | 40 | $38,190 | $49,450 | $31,720 | $59,600 | $18.36 |
| Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators | 30 | $45,240 | $42,840 | $34,430 | $47,170 | $21.75 |
| Etchers and Engravers | ** | $39,520 | $41,310 | $36,330 | $47,350 | $19 |
| Gas Plant Operators | ** | $77,630 | $80,880 | $61,610 | $97,750 | $37.32 |
| Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic | ** | $49,350 | $52,250 | $45,160 | $61,120 | $23.73 |
| Tailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers | ** | $36,030 | $35,570 | $32,250 | $42,740 | $17.32 |
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=30&OCC_CODE=51-0000. the group row is AREA 30 / OCC_CODE 51-0000, and each table row is its own detailed record for this area, AREA 30 / OCC_CODE 51-xxxx. Reference period: May 2024. Fetched October 2026 from https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24st.zip.