High school diploma or equivalent

5 years or more

Chefs and Head Cooks oversee the daily food preparation at restaurants and other places where food is served. They direct kitchen staff and handle any food-related concerns.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Cooling and Freezing Equipment Operators and Tenders operate or tend equipment such as cooling and freezing units, refrigerators, batch freezers, and freezing tunnels, to cool or freeze products, food, blood plasma, and chemicals.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Molders, Shapers, and Casters mold, shape, form, cast, or carve products such as food products, figurines, tile, pipes, and candles consisting of clay, glass, plaster, concrete, stone, or combinations of materials.

No formal educational credential

None

Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers use hands or hand tools to perform routine cutting and trimming of meat, poultry, and seafood.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend woodworking machines, such as drill presses, lathes, shapers, routers, sanders, planers, and wood nailing machines.

No formal educational credential

None

Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers apply finishes, often using machines, to products such as cars, jewelry, and ceramics.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders operate or tend machines to prepare industrial or consumer products for storage or shipment. This category includes cannery workers who pack food products.

No formal educational credential

None

Machine Feeders and Offbearers feed materials into or remove materials from machines or equipment that is automatic or tended by other workers.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, and tend continuous flow or vat-type equipment, filter presses, shaker screens, centrifuges, condenser tubes, precipitating, fermenting, or evaporating tanks, scrubbing towers, or batch stills. These machines extract, sort, or separate liquids, gases, or solids from other materials to recover a refined product. This category includes dairy processing equipment operators.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders operate or tend heating equipment other than basic metal, plastic, or food processing equipment. This category includes activities such as annealing glass, drying lumber, curing rubber, removing moisture from materials, or boiling soap.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Mixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines to mix or blend materials, such as chemicals, tobacco, liquids, color pigments, or explosive ingredients.

No formal educational credential

None

Butchers and Meat Cutters cut, trim, and package meat for retail sale.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines to crush, grind, or polish materials, such as coal, glass, grain, stone, food, or rubber.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend paper goods machines that perform a variety of functions, such as converting, sawing, corrugating, banding, wrapping, boxing, stitching, forming, or sealing paper or paperboard sheets into products.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Set Up, Operate, or Tend Machines that cut or slice materials, such as glass, stone, cork, rubber, tobacco, food, paper, or insulating material.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers construct, decorate, or repair leather and leather-like products, such as luggage, shoes, and saddles. May use hand tools.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines, such as glass-forming machines, plodder machines, and tuber machines, to shape and form products such as glassware, food, rubber, soap, brick, tile, clay, wax, tobacco, or cosmetics.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Textile Cutting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines that cut textiles.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Synthetic and Glass Fiber Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines that extrude and form continuous filaments from synthetic materials, such as liquid polymer, rayon, and fiberglass.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Metal and Plastic Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend grinding and related tools that remove excess material or burrs from surfaces, sharpen edges or corners, or buff, hone, or polish metal or plastic work pieces.

High school diploma or equivalent

None

Metal and Plastic Rolling Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders set up, operate, or tend machines to roll steel or plastic. This process forms bends, beads, knurls, rolls, or plate or flattens, tempers, or reduces gauge of material.

No formal educational credential

None

Food and Tobacco Roasting, Baking, and Drying Machine Operators and Tenders operate or tend food or tobacco roasting, baking, or drying equipment, including hearth ovens, kiln driers, roasters, char kilns, and vacuum drying equipment.

No formal educational credential

None

Hand Cutters and Trimmers use hand tools or hand-held power tools to cut and trim a variety of manufactured items, such as carpet, fabric, stone, glass, or rubber.