Sewing Machine Operators
What Sewing Machine Operators Do
Operate or tend sewing machines to join, reinforce, decorate, or perform related sewing operations in the manufacture of garment or nongarment products.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 11.2%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 2 of 5Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Job training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- English Languageimportance 2.7/5
- Production and Processingimportance 2.5/5
- Mathematicsimportance 2.3/5
- Education and Trainingimportance 2.2/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 2.2/5
- Public Safety and Securityimportance 2.1/5
- Mechanicalimportance 2.1/5
- Administration and Managementimportance 2.0/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls4.7/5
- Spend Time Sitting4.4/5
- Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions4.4/5
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.0/5
- Time Pressure3.8/5
- Indoors, Environmentally Controlled3.6/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Slaughterers and Meat Packers94% skill match
- Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers93% skill match
- Locomotive Engineers93% skill match
- Machine Feeders and Offbearers93% skill match
- Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers93% skill match
- Foundry Mold and Coremakers92% skill match
- Fiberglass Laminators and Fabricators92% skill match
- Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders92% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 2.8/5
- Operations Monitoringimportance 2.8/5
- Quality Control Analysisimportance 2.8/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 2.8/5
- Time Managementimportance 2.8/5
- Operation and Controlimportance 2.6/5
- Coordinationimportance 2.5/5
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 2.4/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Other Software Used
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Cautiousness
- Perseverance
- Stress Tolerance
- Cooperation
- Achievement Orientation
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- RealisticHigh
- ConventionalMedium
- ArtisticLow
- InvestigativeLow
- SocialLow
- EnterprisingLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where sewing machine operators make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Mayaguez, PR67.30× national avg
- 2Arecibo, PR43.14× national avg
- 3Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC17.88× national avg
- 4Dalton, GA10.05× national avg
- 5Greensboro-High Point, NC5.93× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Machine Feeders and OffbearersCareer Change
- Laundry and Dry-Cleaning WorkersLateral Move
- Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and WeighersLateral Move
- Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and BrazersLateral Move