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Adhesive Bonding Machine Operators and Tenders

Production · SOC 51-9191

0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$46,460
Median Annual Salary
Average
O*NET Outlook
2,100
Proj. Annual Openings
11,500
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-3.1%/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 51-9191 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
$46,460
No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
Projected openings
2,100
BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change +1.0%.
Observed/proxy demand
FY— certified LCAs; 2,273 postings in 2025.

Skill evidence

Operation and ControlOperations MonitoringActive ListeningSpeakingMonitoring

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%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI6.5%
AI ability · AIOE32.4%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne95%

Top Skills

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

H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand

View full H-1B trends →

No H-1B certified LCA filings recorded for this occupation in FY2016–FY2025.

O*NET occupation profile

What this work involves

Operate or tend bonding machines that use adhesives to join items for further processing or to form a completed product. Processes include joining veneer sheets into plywood; gluing paper; or joining rubber and rubberized fabric parts, plastic, simulated leather, or other materials.

Common titles: Coater Operator, Glue Line Operator, Glue Reel Operator, Gluer Machine Operator, Gluing Pressman, Machine Operator

Representative Tasks

  • Align and position materials being joined to ensure accurate application of adhesive or heat sealing.
  • Adjust machine components according to specifications such as widths, lengths, and thickness of materials and amounts of glue, cement, or adhesive required.
  • Monitor machine operations to detect malfunctions and report or resolve problems.
  • Start machines, and turn valves or move controls to feed, admit, apply, or transfer materials and adhesives, and to adjust temperature, pressure, and time settings.
  • Fill machines with glue, cement, or adhesives.

Detailed Work Activities

  • Align parts or workpieces to ensure proper assembly.
  • Adjust equipment controls to regulate flow of production materials or products.
  • Notify others of equipment repair or maintenance needs.
  • Watch operating equipment to detect malfunctions.
  • Adjust temperature controls of ovens or other heating equipment.

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 51-9191: 2019 — employment: 13,890, median wage: $34,340; 2020 — employment: 12,400, median wage: $36,280; 2021 — employment: 12,510, median wage: $37,630; 2022 — employment: 11,320, median wage: $38,780; 2023 — employment: 12,510, median wage: $43,540; 2025 — employment: 11,500, median wage: $46,460.

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$46,460N/A
AI Resiliency100/100N/A