How to become a woodworking machine setter, operators, and tenders, except sawing

Q: How do I become a woodworking machine setter, operators, and tenders, except sawing?

The typical entry-level education is usually requires a high school diploma or ged, though some occupations may not..

Q: How much does a woodworking machine setter, operators, and tenders, except sawing make?

The median pay in the United States is $43,380 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025).

Set up, operate, or tend woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, and wood nailing machines. May operate computer numerically controlled (CNC) equipment.

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.Typical entry-level education

$43,380Median pay a year

Steps to get there

Most employers expect usually requires a high school diploma or ged, though some occupations may not..Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.

What woodworking machine setters, operators, and tenders, except sawing do

Start machines, adjust controls, and make trial cuts to ensure that machinery is operating properly.
Secure woodstock against a guide or in a holding device, place woodstock on a conveyor, or dump woodstock in a hopper to feed woodstock into machines.
Inspect pulleys, drive belts, guards, or fences on machines to ensure that machines will operate safely.
Monitor operation of machines and make adjustments to correct problems and ensure conformance to specifications.
Install and adjust blades, cutterheads, boring-bits, or sanding-belts, using hand tools and rules.
Feed stock through feed mechanisms or conveyors into planing, shaping, boring, mortising, or sanding machines to produce desired components.

Skills that matter most

Monitoring
Speaking
Critical Thinking
Active Listening
Reading Comprehension
Active Learning
Mathematics
Learning Strategies

Is woodworking machine setter, operators, and tenders, except sawing a good career?

On the numbers, this job is close to the average across occupations. Median pay is 15% below the all-occupation median. Whether it fits you depends on the work itself, the schooling you are willing to do and where you want to live.

Where it pays most

Washington $52,980
Minnesota $51,540
Iowa $51,200
New Jersey $49,680
Oregon $49,480

Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing salary by state and city

Sources: O*NET® 31.0 (CC BY 4.0, USDOL/ETA) and BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025.