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Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders

Production · SOC 51-9111

0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$43,220
Median Annual Salary
Average
O*NET Outlook
46,700
Proj. Annual Openings
379,060
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-0.5%/yr
Empl. growth (2019–2025)
100/100
AI Resiliency Score

AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.

Decision card

Career Evidence Passport

SOC 51-9111 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.

Proxy / seed data labeledDescriptive-only
SOC exposure
0.0%
Low · Anthropic AEI
Automation friction
52/100
Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
Wages
$43,220
H-1B offered wage $42,000; LCAs are filings.
Projected openings
46,700
BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change +4.5%.
Observed/proxy demand
1
FY2025 certified LCAs; 54,003 postings in 2025.

Skill evidence

Operations MonitoringMonitoringActive ListeningCoordinationOperation and Control

Transition context

  • H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
  • Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
  • Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
  • This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.

AI Exposure Analysis

AI Exposure0.0%
AI Resiliency100/100
Exposure BandLow
Sector Avg. Exposure0.7%

Across AI measures

Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.

13.4%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI0%
AI ability · AIOE40.3%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne98%

Top Skills

1.Operations Monitoring
2.Monitoring
3.Active Listening
4.Coordination
5.Operation and Control

H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand

View full H-1B trends →

Certified H-1B Labor Condition Applications naming this occupation, FY2016–FY2025. A descriptive high-skill labor-demand signal — employer filings, not visa approvals or individual outcomes. Note: one LCA can cover multiple worker positions.

3
Decade Total (Certified LCAs)
1
FY2025 Volume
0% of all H-1B filings in FY2025
$42,000
Median Offered Wage (Latest Year)
#557 of 776
Rank by Total Volume
H-1B filing volume, FY2016–FY2025

O*NET occupation profile

What this work involves

Operate or tend machines to prepare industrial or consumer products for storage or shipment. Includes cannery workers who pack food products.

Common titles: Bundler, Closing Machine Operator, Computer Numerical Control Machine Operator (CNC Machine Operator), Filler Operator, Machine Operator, Packaging Operator

Representative Tasks

  • Attach identification labels to finished packaged items, or cut stencils and stencil information on containers, such as lot numbers or shipping destinations.
  • Sort, grade, weigh, and inspect products, verifying and adjusting product weight or measurement to meet specifications.
  • Stop or reset machines when malfunctions occur, clear machine jams, and report malfunctions to a supervisor.
  • Observe machine operations to ensure quality and conformity of filled or packaged products to standards.
  • Remove finished packaged items from machine and separate rejected items.

Detailed Work Activities

  • Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information.
  • Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading.
  • Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
  • Weigh finished products.
  • Remove products or workpieces from production equipment.

Tools & Technologies

Microsoft Excel · hotMicrosoft Outlook · hotMicrosoft PowerPoint · hotSAP software · hotEmail softwareLabel printing software

Employment Projections & AI Exposure

15
Occupations Shown
0.5%
Avg AI Exposure
1
Bright Outlook
Horizontal bar chart showing occupations with the highest projected annual openings. Each bar length represents annual projected openings. Color uses a gradient from violet (lower) to cyan (higher). Summary statistics are shown above the chart.

Employment & Wage Trend

BLS OEWS, 2019–2025


Occupation Employment & Wage TrendMulti-year BLS OEWS history for SOC 51-9111: 2019 — employment: 390,540, median wage: $30,990; 2020 — employment: 370,910, median wage: $32,640; 2021 — employment: 358,640, median wage: $35,960; 2022 — employment: 369,330, median wage: $36,750; 2023 — employment: 371,600, median wage: $38,330; 2025 — employment: 379,060, median wage: $43,220.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.

Sector Comparison

MetricThis CareerSector Average
AI Exposure0.0%0.7%
OutlookAverage4% Bright
Median Salary$43,220N/A
AI Resiliency100/100N/A