[mmerriman]

In my area of Ohio I would say that 10 to 14/hr is about the start pay for most machine shops. In my shop, I make 15, have four years experience and am expected to setup and run two small mills, and two lathes. I do not have to run all four all the time, but am usually responsible for scheduling work through my cell so that it gets out the door on time. Our operators are also responsible for checking, altering, and/or writing programs(usually not from scratch though) and checking off on each others work. To make things worse, my direct supervisor has no knowledge of machining at all, so hasn't a clue what can and can't be done, and in which machines. Oh yeah, they also just announced that they are closing the doors in March and we are all out of a job, even though we've been making money all year, when most places have't been. I have really enjoyed my four years as a machinist, and would really like to continue in this field, but where's the respect for what we do? If I can't make a decent living for myself and my family how can I stay in any field, even one that continues to challenge me?

[Mach2]

Alot of the cnc operators in my state, Michigan ,do not make an hourly wage anymore, They get an allowence from the Michigan unemployment commision.

[nwrepair1]

I'm afraid the individual machinist is no longer going to make a living wage. There are to many immigrants legal or not that consider $15.00 an hour a good wage. I see too many of them working 12 to 14 hours a day without overtime in way to many small shops in southern California. I'm sure this happens in many major cities throughout the US. I started a phenolic and plastic cutting board business in 2003 as a way to get out of repairing equipment which was beating up my body (turned 62 this month). Worked well until last year. This year it didn't even cover the rent. So I gave up and dismantled the routers and sold the majority of the parts. There are so many used machines, wood and metal types, on the market that I wouldn't be able to sell mine before my lease expired. Now I will just work part time repairing restaurant equipment. That's right. Restaurant equipment, not cnc machines. It's something I learned as a handyman 20 years ago. I quit that job 15 years ago because I couldn't get past $15/hr.! Now my body is worn out. Six bad discs that need to be fused. Point of this is that I will make more than $60/hr. fixing greasy restaurant equipment with little investment but my friend in the same building with:violin: 2 new Haas machines is having a hard time getting steady work at $55 an hour. He's always getting underbid by the low paying shops.

[Big-tex]

I have not worked in machine shop but had my business since 1998 until 2008 and let me tell ya All those company's hiring illegals south of the border started killing me about 5 years back, now that was something I could still deal with, Until that labor turned around and started on their own under bidding at rate that if I had to pay my employee and materials I would be upside down.

BUT what piss.....es me off that gov does not help us at all, we are not big corporations after all.

[Sprint 77]

I have not worked in machine shop but had my business since 1998 until 2008 and let me tell ya All those company's hiring illegals south of the border started killing me about 5 years back, now that was something I could still deal with, Until that labor turned around and started on their own under bidding at rate that if I had to pay my employee and materials I would be upside down.

BUT what piss.....es me off that gov does not help us at all, we are not big corporations after all.

What part of Texas are you from I am in east Texas.

[Big-tex]

I am in DFW

[fanuc-support.c]

Not enough in England - roughly $22

[CharlieD]

I've been on salary past 3 years or so, also have not had a raise since then. Job market is hard nowadays. Could quite, but after some 30 years in machine shops there is not much else i can do. Make about $26 bucks on average, if there is no overtime, because if there is I make less per hour, and i cannot say no, I have to do it. So thank G-d there no overtime at this time.

[CharlieD]

2 things are needed in this country very very badly! Teaching common sense, and a law that states you can not have more than 2 children. Im freakin tired of seeing kids running around the grocery store knocking down crap with no parents around. These people with 5 and 10 kids that are on wellfare are really pissing me off. They should also ban ANY racially bias shows on any channel or network. Im sick of black people blaming white people for slavery and this and that. What they forgot was that black africans SOLD other black africans to the settlers off the west coast of africa. Im in no way condoning racism or slavery b/c it is completely wrong. If people cannot put the past behind them and move forward, no progession and progress will ever ever happen! You cant fix the past, just LEARN from it and move the F on! This is freakin 2009, not 1965 or even 1995!

If you have problem with parents who are not doing their job it's one thing, but don't blame everything on people with 4-5-6 kids. Some 40-50 yras ago it was praktically a norm. And father manega to support the whole family, mothers did not work. I have 5 kids, both my wife and I work full time + and we can barely make it. Never took a penny from the state or even a charity organosations. Blame people who promote welfare and welfare state, state that decides for you what to do, and how to live, including your medical care. Blamme liberals that are destroing this country. Start with our president. make a right choice next time you vote. I do agree about slavary thing you said, get to work, enough blaming.

[KodyJack]

i make less than half of some of you guys. i have been in training for 2 months now for cnc mandrel bending, i make 10.50 hr and i can fab and tig weld, almost anything including aluminum. I live just north of portland oregon

[ihavenofish]

i make less than half of some of you guys. i have been in training for 2 months now for cnc mandrel bending, i make 10.50 hr and i can fab and tig weld, almost anything including aluminum. I live just north of portland oregon

where is that? minimum wage here is $10.25. thats what walmart greeters make.

[KodyJack]

8.40 in oregon

[pike88]

$20/hour average..

My Equipment:
Gerber Edge II www.gspinc.com
Gerber envision
Vortech Router www.vortechcnc.com
Roland Versacamm www.rolanddg.com

My Software:
Corel X3
Vectric Vcarve Pro www.vectric.com
Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop
Mach 3 www.machsupport.com
Gerber Omega

[tano]

2,3$ per hour
eguipment:
Mitsui Seiki
Mori Seiki MV40
Schaublin CNC33 X 2
Chiron FZ12
Brother cnc taping center

software:
Inventor 2010
Mastercam X
Rhinoceros
Corel X4
Solid Works 2007
Rhinocam

[Cdat]

Boy, I sure am glad I only do CNC as a hobby. I couldn't afford to live with what you guys make.(flame2)

[RandyJ]

I am the lead machinist here i am running 3 cnc machines 2 lathes and one integrex, I program setup and operate I earn 27.00 and our operators only make 10 to 12

[FRAKENTOE1]

I program 2 mills, 2 lathes, quote jobs & order all materials for Machine and Fab. and I earn $30.00 per hour

[pike88]

Not enough. Thanks obama.

[Larken]

Not enough. Thanks obama.

Obama ? why blame him He's only been in for a year.

Its Thanks to greedy Unions for striking for every little thing and forcing companies to go overseas for labour.

The bad news is in 20 years the wealth of the world is going to level out Northamerica will get poorer and china and india will get richer.

[donkk]

Im a manual Jigbore Machinist. I make $42 dollars per hr. The regular cnc machinist can not come close to the things i am asked to do, which is usually clean up the messes they make.
My tols are usually + - .00012. For those of you who dont know what that is, Its one tenth twenty millionths. Many times i am asked to take less that this amount out of a bore when the button Jocks miss read there mics.
Im not saying all CNC machinists are bad, there are some very good ones, but, some of the ones I have seen remind me of monkeys pushing buttons and sitting in there chairs