Also called: Footwear Production Worker, Lasting Machine Operator
Runs the machines that stitch, last, glue and sole shoes and boots in one of the few U.S. footwear factories.
You pull a stitched leather upper tight over a foot-shaped form called a last on your machine, tack it down, and pass it on for the sole. Factories in Maine, Wisconsin and Missouri make work boots, military boots and classic sneakers.
BLS shoe machine operators and tenders.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
High school diploma, about 0 years after high school. High school diploma; trained on the job.
Ways in: On-the-job training. Training cost: Get paid while you train.
Shrinking (about -5% over 10 years). Small, shrinking occupation.
Medium risk in 5 years, high in 10. Footwear lines are automating with 3D knitting and robotic gluing; few US factories remain.
Age 18+. One way to start: Apply at US boot and shoe factories or through a staffing agency; new hires are trained on the job
Classes: Shop class, Art.
Official data: O*NET occupation 51-6042.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.