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Date: 04/19/2026

Sewing Machine Operators

Operate or tend sewing machines to join, reinforce, decorate, or perform related sewing operations in the manufacture of garment or nongarment products.

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    Work Activities

    Work Activities

    • Select supplies such as fasteners and thread, according to job requirements.
    • Guide garments or garment parts under machine needles and presser feet to sew parts together.
    • Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using rulers.
    • Attach buttons, hooks, zippers, fasteners, or other accessories to fabric, using feeding hoppers or clamp holders.
    • Remove holding devices and finished items from machines.
    • Remove holding devices and finished items from machines.
    • Record quantities of materials processed.
    • Draw markings or pin appliques on fabric to obtain variations in design.
    • Match cloth pieces in correct sequences prior to sewing them, and verify that dye lots and patterns match.
    • Repair or alter items by adding replacement parts or missing stitches.
    • Inspect garments, and examine repair tags and markings on garments to locate defects or damage, and mark errors as necessary.
    • Monitor machine operation to detect problems such as defective stitching, breaks in thread, or machine malfunctions.
    • Turn knobs, screws, and dials to adjust settings of machines, according to garment styles and equipment performance.
    • Mount attachments, such as needles, cutting blades, or pattern plates, and adjust machine guides according to specifications.
    • Tape or twist together thread or cord to repair breaks.
    • Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines.
    • Perform specialized or automatic sewing machine functions, such as buttonhole making or tacking.
    • Cut excess material or thread from finished products.
    • Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines.
    • Position items under needles, using marks on machines, clamps, templates, or cloth as guides.
    • Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines.
    • Inspect garments, and examine repair tags and markings on garments to locate defects or damage, and mark errors as necessary.
    • Position and mark patterns on materials to prepare for sewing.
    • Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components.
    • Fold or stretch edges or lengths of items while sewing to facilitate forming specified sections.
    • Attach tape, trim, appliques, or elastic to specified garments or garment parts, according to item specifications.
    • Cut materials according to specifications, using blades, scissors, or electric knives.
    • Baste edges of material to align and temporarily secure parts for final assembly.
    • Mount attachments, such as needles, cutting blades, or pattern plates, and adjust machine guides according to specifications.
    • Start and operate or tend machines, such as single or double needle serging and flat-bed felling machines, to automatically join, reinforce, or decorate material or articles.
    • Position material or articles in clamps, templates, or hoop frames prior to automatic operation of machines.
    • Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components.
    • Position and mark patterns on materials to prepare for sewing.

    Skills

    • Management of Personnel Resources

      Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.

    • Science

      Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.

    • Negotiation

      Bringing people together to solve differences.

    • Judgment and Decision Making

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.

    • Writing

      Writing things for co-workers or customers.

    • Operations Analysis

      Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.

    • Coordination

      Changing what is done based on other people's actions.

    • Mathematics

      Using math to solve problems.

    • Installation

      Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.

    • Reading Comprehension

      Reading work-related information.

    • Complex Problem Solving

      Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.

    • Time Management

      Managing your time and the time of other people.

    • Programming

      Writing computer programs.

    • Management of Material Resources

      Managing equipment and materials.

    • Critical Thinking

      Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.

    • Instructing

      Teaching people how to do something.

    • Technology Design

      Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

    • Troubleshooting

      Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.

    • Social Perceptiveness

      Understanding people's reactions.

    • Active Learning

      Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.

    • Service Orientation

      Looking for ways to help people.

    • Operation and Control

      Using equipment or systems.

    • Systems Analysis

      Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    • Speaking

      Talking to others.

    • Equipment Maintenance

      Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.

    • Management of Financial Resources

      Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.

    • Learning Strategies

      Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.

    • Operations Monitoring

      Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.

    • Equipment Selection

      Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.

    • Quality Control Analysis

      Testing how well a product or service works.

    • Systems Evaluation

      Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.

    • Persuasion

      Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.

    • Repairing

      Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.

    • Active Listening

      Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.

    • Monitoring

      Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.

    WorkKeys®

    Applied Math
    3
    Workplace Documents
    3
    Graphic Literacy
    3

    Abilities

    • Speech Recognition

      Recognizing spoken words.

    • Selective Attention

      Paying attention to something without being distracted.

    • Static Strength

      Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.

    • Night Vision

      Seeing at night or under low light.

    • Multilimb Coordination

      Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.

    • Rate Control

      Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.

    • Written Comprehension

      Reading and understanding what is written.

    • Gross Body Equilibrium

      Keeping your balance or staying upright.

    • Reaction Time

      Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.

    • Fluency of Ideas

      Coming up with lots of ideas.

    • Wrist-Finger Speed

      Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.

    • Spatial Orientation

      Knowing where things are around you.

    • Time Sharing

      Doing two or more things at the same time.

    • Explosive Strength

      Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.

    • Gross Body Coordination

      Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.

    • Peripheral Vision

      Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.

    • Deductive Reasoning

      Using rules to solve problems.

    • Mathematical Reasoning

      Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.

    • Perceptual Speed

      Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.

    • Problem Sensitivity

      Noticing when problems happen.

    • Glare Sensitivity

      Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.

    • Speech Clarity

      Speaking clearly.

    • Flexibility of Closure

      Seeing hidden patterns.

    • Auditory Attention

      Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.

    • Hearing Sensitivity

      Telling the difference between sounds.

    • Oral Comprehension

      Listening and understanding what people say.

    • Finger Dexterity

      Putting together small parts with your fingers.

    • Sound Localization

      Noticing the direction that a sound came from.

    • Oral Expression

      Communicating by speaking.

    • Response Orientation

      Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.

    • Speed of Limb Movement

      Quickly moving your arms and legs.

    • Extent Flexibility

      Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Visual Color Discrimination

      Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.

    • Dynamic Strength

      Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.

    • Written Expression

      Communicating by writing.

    • Memorization

      Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

    • Originality

      Creating new and original ideas.

    • Control Precision

      Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness

      Keeping your arm or hand steady.

    • Manual Dexterity

      Holding or moving items with your hands.

    • Trunk Strength

      Using your lower back and stomach.

    • Near Vision

      Seeing details up close.

    • Category Flexibility

      Grouping things in different ways.

    • Stamina

      Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.

    • Far Vision

      Seeing details that are far away.

    • Number Facility

      Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.

    • Visualization

      Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.

    • Information Ordering

      Ordering or arranging things.

    • Depth Perception

      Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.

    • Dynamic Flexibility

      Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

    • Speed of Closure

      Quickly knowing what you are looking at.

    • Inductive Reasoning

      Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.

    Knowledge

    • Food Production

      Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.

    • Chemistry

      Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.

    • Biology

      Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.

    • Therapy and Counseling

      Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.

    • Transportation

      Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.

    • Public Safety and Security

      Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.

    • Medicine and Dentistry

      Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

    • Mechanical

      Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.

    • Physics

      Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.

    • Foreign Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.

    • Law and Government

      Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.

    • Philosophy and Theology

      Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.

    • Education and Training

      Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.

    • Sociology and Anthropology

      Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.

    • Communications and Media

      Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.

    • Economics and Accounting

      Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.

    • Computers and Electronics

      Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.

    • Production and Processing

      Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.

    • Sales and Marketing

      Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.

    • Building and Construction

      Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.

    • Engineering and Technology

      Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.

    • Personnel and Human Resources

      Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

    • Mathematics

      Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

    • English Language

      Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.

    • Administrative

      Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.

    • Administration and Management

      Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.

    • Customer and Personal Service

      Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

    • Geography

      Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.

    • Design

      Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.

    • Psychology

      Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

    • Telecommunications

      Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.

    • Fine Arts

      Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.

    • History and Archeology

      Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    Career Video

    Additional videos and more information available on CareerOneStop

    Pay

    • Ohio Annual Salary 35400/yr
    • Typical Salary
    • Ohio Hourly Wage 17.02/hr
    • Typical Hourly Wage

    Ohio Employment Trends

    • Currently Employed 4,160
    • Yearly Projected Openings 450

    Typical Education

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions.They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness

    Tools

    • Awls
    • Bobbins or bobbin holders
    • Bodkin
    • Buttonhole machines
    • Domestic clothing irons
    • Embroidery hoops
    • Hand clamps
    • Hand sander
    • Needle threader
    • Pattern cutting mats or boards
    • Rotary paper or fabric cutter
    • Rulers
    • Seam ripper
    • Serrated pattern tracing wheel
    • Sewing machine needles
    • Sewing machines
    • Sewing patterns
    • Shears
    • Stitch bonding machines
    • Straight pins
    • Tape measures
    • Utility knives

    Technology

    • Electronic mail software
    • Internet browser software
    • Office suite software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software

    Tags

    • Apprenticeships are available for this occupation. These programs can help you get hands-on experience and build your skills.

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