Job Placement · Skilled Trades & Mfg · Machinist / Technician
Machinists cut parts to tolerance on CNC equipment, 287,050 of them nationally at a $58,750 median. Industrial machinery mechanics keep the equipment running instead, 439,640 of them at a $64,520 median in an occupation projected to grow 18 percent by 2035. Both fall under the same job title on a typical posting and neither is interchangeable with the other. BEG recruits against the specific track on Tier II milestone billing, $9,381 to $11,257.
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TL;DR
Machinist and technician postings collapse two different BLS occupations into one title. Machinists cut and shape parts to tolerance on CNC equipment, 287,050 of them at a $58,750 median, in a craft BLS projects to grow just 1 percent through 2035 as tool and die making shrinks 9 percent alongside it. Industrial machinery mechanics keep the equipment running instead, 439,640 of them at a $64,520 median, projected to grow 18 percent as automated machinery and conveyors need more upkeep. Millwrights, a related 3 to 4 year apprenticed trade, earn the most of the three at $65,700. BEG recruits against the correct track on Tier II milestone billing, $9,381 to $11,257.
One Job Title, Two Occupations
Because the posting says machinist or technician without saying whether the work is cutting parts to tolerance or keeping equipment running, and those are two different BLS occupations with different training and pay.
What The Search Establishes
Four checks, starting with which of the two tracks the seat actually is, since the rest of the search depends on getting that right.
| Check | What it requires | Where it stalls |
|---|---|---|
| Which occupation the seat actually is | Cutting parts to tolerance is SOC 51-4041; keeping equipment running is SOC 49-9041, with different pay bands and different candidates. | A posting titled "machinist" that actually needs equipment upkeep interviews CNC operators for a mechanical repair job and hires none of them. |
| CAD/CAM and CNC fluency, for the machinist track | Entry is typically a high school diploma plus an employer apprenticeship of several years, often starting as a machine operator. | A candidate who ran a manual lathe for a decade is screened out by a requisition assuming CNC-only experience, or vice versa. |
| Apprenticeship depth, for the mechanic and millwright track | Millwrights complete a 3 to 4 year apprenticeship with at least 144 hours of instruction and up to 2,000 hours of paid work a year. | A firm hires a general maintenance background into a millwright-level role and discovers the training gap on the first major rebuild. |
| Pay benchmarked to the right industry | Transportation equipment manufacturing pays machinists a median of $61,920 against $39,830 in employment services, the staffing channel. | A requisition priced off the staffing-channel figure loses every candidate already working in transportation or machinery manufacturing. |
The specific problem of a role titled "maintenance technician" but budgeted at general maintenance pay for industrial mechanic work is covered on its own page, the maintenance technician search. For the crew authority above both tracks, see foreman and team lead, or the skilled trades placement service page.
The Adjacent Craft That Is Shrinking
Tool and die makers, the precision craft most closely related to machining, are projected to fall from 56,700 jobs in 2025 to 51,500 by 2035, a 9 percent decline, at a median of $64,050. Combined with the flat machinist outlook, the two occupations together still produce about 30,400 openings a year, almost entirely from replacing workers who retire or leave, which means the candidate pool is not expanding to meet even flat demand.
Milestone Billing Against Two Different Medians
At the $58,750 machinist median, a 20 percent contingency fee runs $11,750 and BEG's Tier II range of $9,381 to $11,257 is 80 to 96 percent of that figure, a modest saving. At the $64,520 industrial machinery mechanic median, a 20 percent fee runs $12,904 and the same BEG range is 73 to 87 percent of it, a better saving. Getting the track right before sourcing changes which comparison actually applies.
Covering The Production Floor
Three ways to fill this seat, and they answer different questions about who is accountable when the wrong track gets hired.
| Model | Who employs the worker | How you pay | Right when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Industrial or light manufacturing staffing agency | The staffing agency | Hourly bill rate including markup, for the length of the assignment | You need CNC or mechanical hands for a defined production run with no ongoing headcount. |
| Direct hire through your own posting | You, from day one | No placement fee, but your team has to correctly identify the track before screening | You already know precisely whether the seat is machining or equipment upkeep and can screen for it. |
| BEG permanent placement | You | Tier II milestone fee of $9,381 to $11,257, fixed before sourcing | You want the track confirmed and the pay benchmarked to the right industry before the first interview. |
Industrial staffing firms can put CNC or mechanical hands on the floor faster than a permanent search, which is real value on a production deadline. BEG is not a staffing agency and does not describe itself as one. We place a permanent hire your company employs, at a fee fixed before sourcing, with a 45 day replacement guarantee and 50% off a repeat search for the same seat. For the shift authority this floor reports to, see production supervisor.
FAQ
On BEG’s active searches, 23 to 35 days on average from discovery call to placed hire, with an 86 percent fill rate. The first step is establishing which of the two tracks below the role actually is.
A machinist cuts and shapes metal parts to tolerance on CNC equipment. An industrial machinery mechanic keeps the equipment, conveyors and production line running. They are different BLS occupations, SOC 51-4041 and SOC 49-9041, with different pay and different training paths.
BLS OEWS counted 287,050 machinists in May 2025 at a median of $58,750, a mean of $59,320, and a range from $39,200 at the 10th percentile to $80,010 at the 90th.
Barely. BLS projects 1 percent growth to 291,200 jobs by 2035. Tool and die makers, a closely related craft, are projected to fall 9 percent. Together the two occupations still produce about 30,400 openings a year, almost all from replacing workers who leave.
CAD/CAM software, CNC machine tools and computerized measuring machines, working to tolerances as tight as .0001 of an inch. Entry is typically a high school diploma plus on-the-job training or an employer-sponsored apprenticeship of several years, often starting as a machine operator. CNC or CAD/CAM certification is optional, not required.
BLS OEWS counted 439,640 industrial machinery mechanics at a median of $64,520, roughly $5,770 above the machinist median for work that keeps equipment running rather than producing parts directly.
Yes, faster than almost anything else in this vertical. BLS projects 18 percent growth, from 446,900 to 526,600 jobs by 2035, and the wider group including millwrights and maintenance workers adds about 51,900 openings a year as automated machinery and conveyors need upkeep.
A millwright installs and maintains heavy industrial machinery, and most complete a 3 or 4 year apprenticeship with at least 144 hours of technical instruction and up to 2,000 hours of paid on-the-job training per year. Millwrights earn the highest median of the three related titles, $65,700.
For machinists, transportation equipment manufacturing pays the highest industry median at $61,920, ahead of machinery manufacturing at $59,590 and fabricated metal at $54,910; employment services, the staffing channel, pays the least at $39,830. For mechanics, the manufacturing industry median is $65,220.
On average, yes. Installation, maintenance and repair occupations, which cover industrial machinery mechanics, paid union members $1,571 a week against $1,140 nonunion in 2025, with 12.5 percent unionized. Production occupations, closer to the machinist track, paid $1,161 against $945, with 11.9 percent unionized.
A Tier II search at $9,381 to $11,257. At the $58,750 machinist median that range runs 80 to 96 percent of a 20 percent contingency fee, a modest saving. At the $64,520 industrial mechanic median it runs 73 to 87 percent, a better one, detailed in the math section above.
No. A staffing agency employs the machinist or mechanic and bills you an hourly rate for the length of an assignment. BEG places a permanent hire your company employs directly, on a fixed milestone fee with a 45 day replacement guarantee and 50% off a repeat search for the same seat.
Building out the floor? See maintenance technician, production supervisor and foreman and team lead, or all skilled trades placement.
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