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Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic: apprenticeship hours and pay
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Approved apprenticeship titles
15 apprenticeship titles on the Department of Labor's approved list fall under Multiple Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic, trained competency-based, hybrid, time-based. The shortest approved term is 2,000 hours, for MACHINE OPERATOR I (competency-based).
| Title | RAPIDS code | Approach and term |
|---|---|---|
| FOUR-SLIDE-MACHINE SETTER | 0208 | Competency-Based: 4,000 hours Hybrid: 4,000 to 5,000 hours Time-Based: 4,000 hours |
| GEAR HOBBER SETUP OPERATOR | 0241 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| GEAR-CUTTING-MACH SETUP OPERATOR | 0234 | Competency-Based: 6,000 hours Hybrid: 6,000 to 7,500 hours Time-Based: 6,000 hours |
| GEARCUT-MACHNIST SET-UP OPER. TOOL | 0664 | Competency-Based: 6,000 hours Hybrid: 6,000 to 7,500 hours Time-Based: 6,000 hours |
| GUNSMITH | 0229 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| MACHINE OPERATOR I | 0511 | Competency-Based: 2,000 hours Hybrid: 2,000 to 2,500 hours Time-Based: 2,000 hours Time-Based (V2): 2,000 hours |
| MACHINE SET-UP OPERATOR | 0958 | Competency-Based: 4,000 hours Hybrid: 4,000 to 5,000 hours Time-Based: 4,000 hours |
| MACHINE SETTER (Any Ind) | 0938 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| MACHINE SETTER (Clock) | 0317 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| MACHINE SETTER (Mach Shop) | 0263 | Competency-Based: 6,000 hours Hybrid: 6,000 to 7,500 hours Time-Based: 6,000 hours |
| MACHINE TRYOUT SETTER | 0659 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| ORNAMENTAL METAL WORKER | 0374 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| SPRING MAKER | 0532 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| SPRING-MANUFTRG SET-UP TECHNICIAN | 0534 | Competency-Based: 8,000 hours Hybrid: 8,000 to 10,000 hours Time-Based: 8,000 hours |
| TOOL MACHINE SET-UP OPERATOR | 0588 | Competency-Based: 6,000 hours Hybrid: 6,000 to 7,500 hours Time-Based: 6,000 hours |
Time-based programs count hours on the job; competency-based programs move on when the apprentice shows the skills; hybrid programs use both, within a range of hours (29 CFR 29.5(b)(2)). Each registered program sets its own term inside what the approved title allows.
What multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic earn, by state
West Virginia has the highest state median for multiple machine tool setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastic ($76,080) and Puerto Rico the lowest ($28,770), across the 46 states with a published figure.
| State | Median pay | Hourly | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Virginia | $76,080 | $36.58 | 1,920 |
| Kentucky | $54,960 | $26.42 | 5,510 |
| Missouri | $53,160 | $25.56 | 7,220 |
| Maryland | $51,780 | $24.90 | 400 |
| Nebraska | $50,960 | $24.50 | 1,250 |
| Virginia | $50,600 | $24.33 | 1,030 |
| Washington | $50,540 | $24.30 | 830 |
| Vermont | $50,450 | $24.25 | 110 |
| Idaho | $50,410 | $24.24 | 480 |
| New York | $49,890 | $23.99 | 3,660 |
| North Dakota | $49,190 | $23.65 | 490 |
| Texas | $49,050 | $23.58 | 10,540 |
| Minnesota | $48,980 | $23.55 | 2,540 |
| Iowa | $48,910 | $23.51 | 4,460 |
| Kansas | $48,450 | $23.29 | 290 |
| Massachusetts | $48,230 | $23.19 | 1,390 |
| Pennsylvania | $48,070 | $23.11 | 7,960 |
| Wisconsin | $47,700 | $22.93 | 3,570 |
| Oregon | $47,470 | $22.82 | 1,120 |
| North Carolina | $47,320 | $22.75 | 3,200 |
| California | $46,810 | $22.50 | 3,190 |
| Maine | $46,710 | $22.46 | 300 |
| Oklahoma | $46,470 | $22.34 | 2,180 |
| Ohio | $46,420 | $22.32 | 11,170 |
| Louisiana | $46,210 | $22.22 | 900 |
| Colorado | $46,160 | $22.19 | 220 |
| Michigan | $45,920 | $22.08 | 9,350 |
| South Carolina | $45,740 | $21.99 | 4,520 |
| New Hampshire | $45,710 | $21.98 | 600 |
| Indiana | $45,100 | $21.68 | 7,480 |
| South Dakota | $44,700 | $21.49 | 120 |
| Illinois | $44,350 | $21.32 | 6,090 |
| Arkansas | $44,080 | $21.19 | 1,570 |
| Alabama | $43,800 | $21.06 | 1,680 |
| Tennessee | $43,630 | $20.97 | 930 |
| Utah | $43,550 | $20.94 | 1,340 |
| Arizona | $43,090 | $20.71 | 1,760 |
| Connecticut | $42,580 | $20.47 | 2,150 |
| New Jersey | $41,390 | $19.90 | 3,090 |
| Florida | $41,220 | $19.82 | 2,530 |
| Nevada | $40,310 | $19.38 | Not published |
| Wyoming | $40,000 | $19.23 | 110 |
| Georgia | $38,810 | $18.66 | 2,980 |
| Rhode Island | $38,720 | $18.62 | 680 |
| Mississippi | $36,330 | $17.47 | 1,070 |
| Puerto Rico | $28,770 | $13.83 | 670 |
Finding a program
The public sponsor file names the organizations that run registered apprenticeships but not the occupations each one trains, so this guide names no sponsor. Search apprenticeship.gov's Apprenticeship Finder for this title, or ask your American Job Center which local programs train it.
Apprenticeship sponsors by state (25,633) · All approved occupations
Sources: apprenticeship.gov approved occupations list (Last-Modified October 8, 2026); BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (all industries; blanks are figures BLS does not publish).