Manufacturing Supervisors

Overview

Manufacturing Supervisors

Introduction

Manufacturing supervisors, sometimes known as industrial production managers, monitor employees and their working conditions and effectiveness in production plants and factories. They ensure that work is carried out correctly and on schedule by promoting high product quality and output levels. In addition to balancing the budget and other bookkeeping duties, supervisors maintain employee work schedules, train new workers, and issue warnings to workers who violate established rules.

Quick Facts


Median Salary

$90,000

Employment Prospects

Fair

Minimum Education Level

Bachelors Degree


Experience

Two to five years manufacturing production experience


Skills

Business Management|Leadership|Organizational


Personality Traits

Enterprising|Organized|Realistic

Earnings

Salaries for manufacturing supervisors vary depending on the factory or plant in which they work, the area of production that they supervise, and their years of experience in the position. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reports that the median annual salary for first-line supervisors of production and operating workers was $65,930 in May 2023. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $43,540,...

Work Environment

Most supervisors work on the manufacturing or factory floor and in offices. When on the factory floor, they may be on their feet most of the time, which can be tiring, and work near loud and hazardous machines. Supervisors may begin their day early so that they arrive before their workers, and they may stay later than lower-level workers. Some may work for plants that operate around the clock a...

Outlook

Corporate downsizing, the use of computers for tasks such as creating production schedules and budget plans, increasing automation in the manufacturing industry, and the increasing number of manufactured products that are being imported into the United States from foreign countries have creating a diminishing need for supervisors. However, there will be a need to replace job-changing or retirin...