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Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 333

About the Machinery Manufacturing subsector

The machinery manufacturing subsector is part of the manufacturing sector.

Industries in the Machinery Manufacturing subsector create end products that apply mechanical force, for example, the application of gears and levers, to perform work. Some important processes for the manufacture of machinery are forging, stamping, bending, forming, and machining that are used to shape individual pieces of metal. Processes, such as welding and assembling are used to join separate parts together. Although these processes are similar to those used in metal fabricating establishments, machinery manufacturing is different because it typically employs multiple metal forming processes in manufacturing the various parts of the machine. Moreover, complex assembly operations are an inherent part of the production process.

North American Industry Classification System

The machinery manufacturing subsector consists of these industry groups:

Agriculture, Construction, and Mining Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 3331
Industrial Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 3332
Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 3333
Ventilation, Heating, Air-Conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration Equipment Manufacturing: NAICS 3334
Metalworking Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 3335
Engine, Turbine, and Power Transmission Equipment Manufacturing: NAICS 3336
Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing: NAICS 3339

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment and unemployment in machinery manufacturing. While most data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys, information on industry unemployment comes from a national survey of households. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, the unemployment rate of those previously employed in the industry, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment and Unemployment


Data series	Aug. 2024	Sep. 2024	Oct. 2024	Nov. 2024
Employment (in thousands)
Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)	1,129.4	1,132.0	(p)1,132.0	(p)1,134.7
Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees (seasonally adjusted)	720.7	720.6	(p)719.5	(p)724.4
Unemployment
Unemployment rate	3.4%	3.2%	1.6%	2.7%
Footnotes (p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics, Current Population Survey

Employment by Occupation


Data series	Employment, 2023
Computer-controlled machine tool operators, metal and plastic	40,510
Engine and other machine assemblers	14,450
Machinists	56,800
Mechanical engineers	42,450
Team assemblers	150,580
Tool and die makers	13,060
Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers	68,430

(Source: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for machinery manufacturing.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in machinery manufacturing.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees


Data series	Aug. 2024	Sep. 2024	Oct. 2024	Nov. 2024
Average hourly earnings	$36.56	$36.93	(p)$37.13	(p)$37.04
Average weekly hours	40.5	40.5	(p)40.4	(p)40.5
Footnotes (p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees


Data series	Aug. 2024	Sep. 2024	Oct. 2024	Nov. 2024
Average hourly earnings	$29.57	$29.65	(p)$29.98	(p)$30.19
Average weekly hours	40.1	40.0	(p)39.6	(p)39.8
Footnotes (p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation


Data series	Wages, 2023
	Hourly		Annual
	Median	Mean	Median	Mean
Computer-controlled machine tool operators, metal and plastic	24.83	25.39	51,640	52,810
Engine and other machine assemblers	22.69	23.14	47,200	48,130
Machinists	24.34	25.45	50,620	52,940
Mechanical engineers	43.29	45.61	90,040	94,870
Team assemblers	20.80	21.27	43,260	44,230
Tool and die makers	28.95	28.20	60,220	58,660
Welders, cutters, solderers, and brazers	23.28	24.25	48,430	50,430

(Source: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in machinery manufacturing. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.


Data series	2019	2020	2021	2022
Fatalities
Number of fatalities	27	27	14	27
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.


Data series	2023
Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers
Total recordable cases	2.7
Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer	1.5
Cases involving days away from work	0.8
Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction	0.7
Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Prices

This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction. The import price index reflects the percentage change in prices paid to foreign producers for their goods and services within the U.S., while the export price index measures the percentage change in prices received by U.S. producers for goods and services sold outside the U.S.


Data series	Jul. 2024	Aug. 2024	Sep. 2024	Oct. 2024
Producer price index	(p)184.504	(p)184.917	(p)184.811	(p)185.108
Percent change from previous month	(p)0.1%	(p)0.2%	(p)-0.1%	(p)0.2%
Import index	132.0	132.3	132.4	132.5
Percent change from previous month	0.1%	0.2%	0.1%	0.1%
Export index	153.2	153.2	(r)153.3	153.9
Percent change from previous month	0.1%	0.0%	(r)0.1%	(r)0.4%
Footnotes (p) Preliminary (r) Revised

(Source: Producer Price Indexes, International Price Program)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in machinery manufacturing. Also included in this section is information on productivity, presented as the rate of change in output per hour of workers in the industry.

Establishments


Data series	3rd quarter 2023	4th quarter 2023	1st quarter 2024	2nd quarter 2024
Number of establishments
Private industry	33,935	34,141	(p)34,545	(p)34,863
Local government
Footnotes (p) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Productivity

This section presents productivity and related data for the industry, presented as the percent change from the previous year. Measures of labor productivity, or output per hour, compare the growth in output to the growth in hours worked. Growth in unit labor costs represent the annual change in the labor cost of producing one unit of output.


Data series	2020	2021	2022	2023
Labor productivity, output per hour	-3.1	6.5	-2.0	-3.6
Hours worked	-8.6	1.7	7.0	0.1
Output	-11.4	8.3	4.8	-3.5
Unit labor costs	8.3	-3.7	4.4	10.2

(Source: Productivity)

Data extracted on: December 11, 2024