Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers
Occupation · SOC 51-1011.00
Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of production and operating workers, such as inspectors, precision workers, machine setters and operators, assemblers, fabricators, and plant and system operators. Excludes team or work leaders.
Also called: Assembly Supervisor · Manufacturing Supervisor · Production Manager · Production Supervisor · Line Supervisor · Molding Supervisor · Plant Supervisor · Quality Assurance Supervisor (QA Supervisor) · Abattoir Supervisor · Abrasive and Polished Products Supervisor · Acid Supervisor · Aerosol Supervisor
Job family: Production Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-51-1011-00/context.md directly.
AI work map
A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+1.2% by 2034)
- 67,700 openings/yr
- High AI exposure
- Median pay $71,190/yr
- Work is mostly on-site (not teleworkable)
- A reversal from 2013 — rated low automation risk then (12th), high AI task-overlap now (59th)
59th-percentile task overlap — yet about 67,700 openings a year (+1.2% projected, BLS) . What exposure means →
AI & job outlook
What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.
Exposure to current AI
Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.
| Measure | Rank vs all occupations | Percentile | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Moderate | 46th | -0.1 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate | 53rd | 0.7 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) High | 80th | 0.3 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.2), with simple added tooling (β 0.4), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.7). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.
This job mostly cannot be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman) — its hands-on tasks sit outside what software-based AI reaches.
Historical automation estimate (2013)
A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
Frey–Osborne probability 0.0 · 12th percentile among occupations · Low
How AI is actually used in this job
Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.
| Set up and adjust machines and equipment. | 0.2% | |
| Plan and develop new products and production processes. | 0.2% |
Job outlook
Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.
| Outlook | About average · +1.2% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 67,700 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 698,600 → 706,900 |
“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.
Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient
The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international 3 occupations below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers sits at the 55th percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure eased from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
29% mean task exposure (2025)
55th percentile of 427 placed occupations
−4 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing Supervisors · 3122 | 35% | Minimal |
| Power Production Plant Operators · 3131 | 28% | Not exposed |
| Incinerator and Water Treatment Plant Operators · 3132 | 27% | Not exposed |
Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.
Tasks
All 20 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Enforce safety and sanitation regulations. Core · importance 4.5
- Inspect materials, products, or equipment to detect defects or malfunctions. Core · importance 4.2
- Keep records of employees' attendance and hours worked. Core · importance 4.2
- Read and analyze charts, work orders, production schedules, and other records and reports to determine production requirements and to evaluate current production estimates and outputs. Core · importance 4.2
- Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals. Core · importance 4.2
- Confer with other supervisors to coordinate operations and activities within or between departments. Core · importance 4.2
- Interpret specifications, blueprints, job orders, and company policies and procedures for workers. Core · importance 4.0
- Direct and coordinate the activities of employees engaged in the production or processing of goods, such as inspectors, machine setters, or fabricators. Core · importance 4.0
- Observe work and monitor gauges, dials, and other indicators to ensure that operators conform to production or processing standards. Core · importance 4.0
- Conduct employee training in equipment operations or work and safety procedures, or assign employee training to experienced workers. Core · importance 4.0
- Evaluate employee performance. Core · importance 4.0
- Confer with management or subordinates to resolve worker problems, complaints, or grievances. Core · importance 4.0
- Determine standards, budgets, production goals, and rates, based on company policies, equipment and labor availability, and workloads. Core · importance 3.9
- Calculate labor and equipment requirements and production specifications, using standard formulas. Core · importance 3.9
- Maintain operations data, such as time, production, and cost records, and prepare management reports of production results. Core · importance 3.8
- Recommend or implement measures to motivate employees and to improve production methods, equipment performance, product quality, or efficiency. Core · importance 3.8
- Requisition materials, supplies, equipment parts, or repair services. Core · importance 3.7
- Recommend or execute personnel actions, such as hirings, evaluations, or promotions. Core · importance 3.6
- Set up and adjust machines and equipment. Core · importance 3.6
- Plan and develop new products and production processes. Core · importance 3.1
Work activities
- Instruct workers to use equipment or perform technical procedures.
- Record operational or production data.
- Perform human resources activities.
- Evaluate employee performance.
- Enforce rules or regulations.
- Direct operational or production activities.
- Study blueprints or other instructions to determine equipment setup requirements.
- Exchange information with colleagues.
- Plan production or operational procedures or sequences.
- Inspect production equipment.
- Monitor equipment operation to ensure proper functioning.
- Confer with others to resolve production problems or equipment malfunctions.
- Determine metal or plastic production methods.
- Advise others on ways to improve processes or products.
- Order materials, supplies, or equipment.
- Adjust equipment to ensure optimal performance.
- Install equipment attachments or components.
- Calculate specific material, equipment, or labor requirements for production.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Knowledge
Abilities
| Oral Comprehension | 4.0 | |
| Oral Expression | 4.0 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 4.0 | |
| Written Comprehension | 3.8 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.8 | |
| Speech Recognition | 3.8 | |
| Speech Clarity | 3.8 | |
| Written Expression | 3.6 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.6 | |
| Information Ordering | 3.3 | |
| Category Flexibility | 3.3 | |
| Near Vision | 3.3 | |
| Fluency of Ideas | 3.1 | |
| Originality | 3.1 | |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.1 |
Essential skills
| Active Listening | 3.9 | |
| Speaking | 3.9 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.8 | |
| Monitoring | 3.8 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.5 | |
| Writing | 3.1 | |
| Active Learning | 3.1 | |
| Learning Strategies | 3.1 |
Transferable skills
Skills in demand
Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.
Showing the top 40 of 49.
Tools & technology
Showing the top 40 of 51.
Work context
How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.
How to get in
- Job zone
- Zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
- Education
- Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
- Typical entry-level education
- High school diploma or equivalent · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement
- Related experience
- Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
- Preparation level
- SVP (6.0 to < 7.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.
What to study: Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.
Education of current workers
Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.
| High School Diploma | 32.8% | |
| Some College Courses | 15.0% | |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 14.2% | |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 13.6% | |
| Bachelor's Degree | 12.0% | |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 11.6% | |
| Master's Degree | 0.9% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Enterprising | 6.3 | |
| Conventional | 5.0 | |
| Realistic | 4.3 | |
| Social | 2.9 |
Interest areas
Work styles
| Dependability | 3.0 | |
| Leadership Orientation | 2.8 | |
| Attention to Detail | 2.1 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $45,790 |
| 25th percentile | $56,330 |
| Median (50th) | $71,190 |
| 75th percentile | $86,770 |
| 90th percentile | $106,960 |
| People employed | 685,140 |
Industries that employ this occupation
Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.
| Industry | Workers | National median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing · Sector | 497,140 | $72,800 |
| Retail Trade · Sector | 38,940 | $50,800 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 32,660 | $67,920 |
| Other Services (except Public Administration) · Sector | 14,770 | $57,800 |
| Machine Shops · National industry | 12,960 | $75,400 |
| Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services · Sector | 12,050 | $77,740 |
| Utilities · Sector | 11,810 | $126,140 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 11,680 | $59,860 |
| Construction · Sector | 9,470 | $76,370 |
| Transportation and Warehousing · Sector | 8,310 | $76,260 |
| Accommodation and Food Services · Sector | 4,600 | $51,490 |
| Temporary Help Services · National industry | 4,310 | $49,030 |
Where this work is most concentrated
Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).
| Industry | Concentration | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Biomass Electric Power Generation · National industry | 14.68× | 120 |
| Machine Shops · National industry | 11.23× | 12,960 |
| Nuclear Electric Power Generation · National industry | 10.79× | 1,780 |
| Jewelry and Silverware Manufacturing · National industry | 9.04× | 800 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 8.77× | 497,140 |
| Fossil Fuel Electric Power Generation · National industry | 8.65× | 2,740 |
| Hydroelectric Power Generation · National industry | 8.55× | 260 |
| Utilities · Sector | 4.59× | 11,810 |
Related occupations
Part of the Advanced Manufacturing career cluster.
- First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers · 49-1011.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers · 47-1011.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Helpers, Laborers, and Material Movers, Hand · 53-1042.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators · 53-1043.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers · 45-1011.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers · 43-1011.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Passenger Attendants · 53-1044.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Housekeeping and Janitorial Workers · 37-1011.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers · 35-1012.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Security Workers · 33-1091.00 Compare →
- Industrial Engineers · 17-2112.00 Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Non-Retail Sales Workers · 41-1012.00 Compare →
Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.
What you can do with this
Options the data surfaces for First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.
Skills that travel
Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
- First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Helpers, Laborers, and Material Movers, Hand Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators Compare →
- First-Line Supervisors of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers Compare →
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- High school diploma or equivalent · typical entry level
- Job zone 3 — Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed · preparation tier
- Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services · field of study
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 55th percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers show 59th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 67,700 annual U.S. openings
- First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers rank in the 59th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
- The occupation is projected to see about 67,700 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- BLS projects employment to be about average (+1.2%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $71,190, across about 685,140 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers show 59th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 67,700 annual U.S. openings • First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers rank in the 59th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE) • The occupation is projected to see about 67,700 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • BLS projects employment to be about average (+1.2%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $71,190, across about 685,140 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-1011-00 Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom
Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-1011-00
APA
Singulariki. (2026). First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-1011-00
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-51-1011-00,
title = {First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-51-1011-00}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.