Occupational Employment Statistics

DETAILED OCCUPATION DATA

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51-5112 Printing Press Operators

Occupational Description:
Set up and operate digital, letterpress, lithographic, flexographic, gravure, or other printing machines. Includes short-run offset printing presses.

Occupational Employment Statistics(OES) Wage Data
First Quarter 2026

Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Percentiles
Geography	Employment	Emp SE*	Mean	10th	25th	Median	75th	90th
Minnesota	4,960	382	$25.76/hr	$18.18/hr	$20.43/hr	$23.88/hr	$30.23/hr	$36.23/hr
U S	144,260	1,731	$23.29/hr	$16.40/hr	$18.39/hr	$22.51/hr	$27.41/hr	$31.24/hr

Leading Industries for Printing Press Operators

Industry	OES Employment (Statewide)	OES Median Wage (Statewide)
Manufacturing	3,820	$24.07/hr
Trade, Transportation and Utilities	260	$22.27/hr
Information	220	$24.14/hr
Financial Activities	N/A	N/A
Professional and Business Services	620	$22.62/hr
Education and Health Services	30	$33.95/hr
Public Administration	10	$30.61/hr

Other Regional Data for Printing Press Operators

Geography	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Northeast Balance of State	N/A	N/A	N/A
Grand Forks ND-MN MSA	20	$19.37/hr	N/A
Duluth MN-WI MSA	80	$22.14/hr	N/A
Northeast Minnesota	80	$20.30/hr	-12.0%
Rochester MN MSA	90	$29.11/hr	N/A
Fargo ND-MN MSA	160	$18.32/hr	N/A
St Cloud MN MSA	170	$24.20/hr	N/A
Southwest Balance of State	190	$21.61/hr	N/A
Northwest Balance of State	260	$22.32/hr	N/A
Southeast Balance of State	270	$22.53/hr	N/A
Northwest Minnesota	280	$22.32/hr	-3.8%
La Crosse WI-MN MSA	300	$22.37/hr	N/A
Southeast Minnesota	330	$22.53/hr	-1.6%
Central Minnesota	380	$23.12/hr	-2.3%
Mankato-North Mankato MN MSA	430	$22.12/hr	N/A
Southwest Minnesota	600	$22.12/hr	-2.6%
Seven County Mpls-St Paul, MN	3,210	$24.76/hr	-3.2%
Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington MN-WI MSA	3,390	$24.67/hr	N/A
Minnesota	4,960	$23.88/hr	-3.0%

Related Occupations

Occupations	Employment	Median Wage	Projections % Change 2022-2032
Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders	1,130	$28.65/hr	1.9%
Paper Goods Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders	1,960	$28.60/hr	-5.6%
Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	1,400	$25.47/hr	-4.0%
Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	220	$27.15/hr	N/A
Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic	6,130	$24.48/hr	-3.5%
Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers	410	$25.87/hr	N/A
Tool Grinders, Filers, and Sharpeners	90	$25.57/hr	-9.1%
Semiconductor Processing Technicians	N/A	$28.41/hr	14.6%
Print Binding and Finishing Workers	1,710	$23.79/hr	-8.9%
Adhesive Bonding Machine Operators and Tenders	120	$27.80/hr	N/A

Task for Printing Press Operators

Monitor environmental factors, such as humidity and temperature, that may impact equipment performance and make necessary adjustments.
Collect and inspect random samples during print runs to identify any necessary adjustments.
Start presses and pull proofs to check for ink coverage and density, alignment, and registration.
Download or scan files to be printed, using printing production software.
Clean ink fountains, plates, or printing unit cylinders when press runs are completed.
Monitor automated press operation systems and respond to fault, error, or alert messages.
Secure printing plates to printing units and adjust tolerances.
Direct or monitor work of press crews.
Maintain time or production records.
Download or scan files to be printed, using printing production software.