Sewing Machine Operators
Production Occupations- O*NET-SOC code
- 51-6031.00
Operate or tend sewing machines to join, reinforce, decorate, or perform related sewing operations in the manufacture of garment or nongarment products.
- Data source: BLSPublished: 2026-08
Low· relative
LowFour relative bandsVery highGroup-level value
Scale, basis and source
Four relative bands (Low / Moderate / High / Very high)
831 detailed occupations in the BLS Employment Projections table. Assigned per National Employment Matrix (NEM) code, so occupations sharing a NEM code carry the same band
- Data source: AnthropicPublished: 2026-03
0.000
0.000Range of values carried here0.745Scale, basis and source
Observed exposure index, 0–1 as published
Mapped onto O*NET tasks
Published per SOC 2018 occupation; every O*NET occupation with the same SOC 2018 code carries this value
- Data source: ILOPublished: 2025
0.15
0.09Range of values carried here0.70Group-level value
Scale, basis and source
Generative AI exposure index, 0–1 as published
Published per ISCO-08 unit group. Linked to this occupation, wholly or in part, by applying U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (ISCO-08 to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to 2018 SOC) as published
What kind of figure this source publishes
The BLS category is a relative rank, not an absolute level, and it is not a first-hand measurement: it groups an occupation's percentile ranks across several published studies into four bands. It is not an employment or wage forecast, not a probability of adoption, and it does not separate automation from augmentation.
Task-level exposure
Exposed tasks only26 rated tasks · 3 tasks with β ≥ 0.5 (11.5%)
β = direct exposure (E1) + 0.5 × exposure when tools are available (E2), per the source repository's definition.
- Source unit: O*NET 27.2 tasks → O*NET 31.0 occupation code
- All rated tasks are in the O*NET 31.0 task list.
- Source
- OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" exposure rubric
- Release
- gh-main-0471612
- License
- MIT License, Copyright (c) 2024 OpenAI
Values in this tab are predicted labels, not observations. Eloundou et al. (2023) published two rating regimes — human raters and GPT-4 — and the β shown here is derived from the GPT-4 rater basis alone; the same task can take a different value under the other regime.
| Task (O*NET 27.2) | βE1 + 0.5 × E2 |
|---|---|
Record quantities of materials processed.O*NET Task ID 12155 | 1.0 |
Inspect garments, and examine repair tags and markings on garments to locate defects or damage, and mark errors as necessary.O*NET Task ID 12156 | 0.5 |
Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using rulers.O*NET Task ID 12162 | 0.5 |
Monitor machine operation to detect problems such as defective stitching, breaks in thread, or machine malfunctions.O*NET Task ID 12149 | 0.0 |
Position items under needles, using marks on machines, clamps, templates, or cloth as guides.O*NET Task ID 12150 | 0.0 |
Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components.O*NET Task ID 12151 | 0.0 |
Match cloth pieces in correct sequences prior to sewing them, and verify that dye lots and patterns match.O*NET Task ID 12152 | 0.0 |
Guide garments or garment parts under machine needles and presser feet to sew parts together.O*NET Task ID 12153 | 0.0 |
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.O*NET Task ID 12154 | 0.0 |
Select supplies such as fasteners and thread, according to job requirements.O*NET Task ID 12157 | 0.0 |
Mount attachments, such as needles, cutting blades, or pattern plates, and adjust machine guides according to specifications.O*NET Task ID 12158 | 0.0 |
Cut excess material or thread from finished products.O*NET Task ID 12159 | 0.0 |
Fold or stretch edges or lengths of items while sewing to facilitate forming specified sections.O*NET Task ID 12160 | 0.0 |
Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines.O*NET Task ID 12161 | 0.0 |
Turn knobs, screws, and dials to adjust settings of machines, according to garment styles and equipment performance.O*NET Task ID 12163 | 0.0 |
Repair or alter items by adding replacement parts or missing stitches.O*NET Task ID 12164 | 0.0 |
Cut materials according to specifications, using blades, scissors, or electric knives.O*NET Task ID 12165 | 0.0 |
Remove holding devices and finished items from machines.O*NET Task ID 12166 | 0.0 |
Position and mark patterns on materials to prepare for sewing.O*NET Task ID 12167 | 0.0 |
Position material or articles in clamps, templates, or hoop frames prior to automatic operation of machines.O*NET Task ID 12168 | 0.0 |
Attach tape, trim, appliques, or elastic to specified garments or garment parts, according to item specifications.O*NET Task ID 12169 | 0.0 |
Perform specialized or automatic sewing machine functions, such as buttonhole making or tacking.O*NET Task ID 12170 | 0.0 |
Attach buttons, hooks, zippers, fasteners, or other accessories to fabric, using feeding hoppers or clamp holders.O*NET Task ID 12171 | 0.0 |
Baste edges of material to align and temporarily secure parts for final assembly.O*NET Task ID 12172 | 0.0 |
Tape or twist together thread or cord to repair breaks.O*NET Task ID 12173 | 0.0 |
Draw markings or pin appliques on fabric to obtain variations in design.O*NET Task ID 12174 | 0.0 |
β = E1 + 0.5 × E2 · E1 = tasks where direct LLM access alone cuts time by at least 50%, E2 = tasks where software built on top of an LLM cuts time by at least 50%. Values take only 0 / 0.5 / 1.0.
Data sources & licenses — O*NET®, Eloundou et al. (2023): see full notices on the Credits page
All O*NET 31.0 task statements (26)
All O*NET 31.0 task statements for this occupation (English, as published; task type core or supplemental). Exposure values are not listed here; they are in the table above, next to each task statement as worded in the O*NET version each source used.
| Task (O*NET 31.0) | Type |
|---|---|
| Monitor machine operation to detect problems such as defective stitching, breaks in thread, or machine malfunctions. | Core |
| Position items under needles, using marks on machines, clamps, templates, or cloth as guides. | Core |
| Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components. | Core |
| Match cloth pieces in correct sequences prior to sewing them, and verify that dye lots and patterns match. | Core |
| Guide garments or garment parts under machine needles and presser feet to sew parts together. | Core |
| 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. | Core |
| Record quantities of materials processed. | Core |
| Select supplies such as fasteners and thread, according to job requirements. | Core |
| Mount attachments, such as needles, cutting blades, or pattern plates, and adjust machine guides according to specifications. | Core |
| Cut excess material or thread from finished products. | Core |
| Fold or stretch edges or lengths of items while sewing to facilitate forming specified sections. | Core |
| Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines. | Core |
| Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using rulers. | Core |
| Turn knobs, screws, and dials to adjust settings of machines, according to garment styles and equipment performance. | Core |
| Repair or alter items by adding replacement parts or missing stitches. | Core |
| Remove holding devices and finished items from machines. | Core |
| Attach tape, trim, appliques, or elastic to specified garments or garment parts, according to item specifications. | Core |
| Inspect garments, and examine repair tags and markings on garments to locate defects or damage, and mark errors as necessary. | Supplemental |
| Cut materials according to specifications, using blades, scissors, or electric knives. | Supplemental |
| Position and mark patterns on materials to prepare for sewing. | Supplemental |
| Position material or articles in clamps, templates, or hoop frames prior to automatic operation of machines. | Supplemental |
| Perform specialized or automatic sewing machine functions, such as buttonhole making or tacking. | Supplemental |
| Attach buttons, hooks, zippers, fasteners, or other accessories to fabric, using feeding hoppers or clamp holders. | Supplemental |
| Baste edges of material to align and temporarily secure parts for final assembly. | Supplemental |
| Tape or twist together thread or cord to repair breaks. | Supplemental |
| Draw markings or pin appliques on fabric to obtain variations in design. | Supplemental |
0.88/ 3· Robot exposure index
Scale, basis and source
Each physical task is graded 0–3 by the setting in which robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated could do it (0 none · 1 purpose-built robot settings such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line · 2 structured facilities such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port · 3 unstructured settings such as a private home or a construction site), and the grades are averaged by share of working time
Physical tasks among this occupation's O*NET 29.3 tasks
Anthropic estimated the grades and time shares with Claude Opus 5 using web search, as of 2026.
The robot exposure index is a different measure from the AI exposure figures on this site and cannot be added to or compared with them. It does not measure actual adoption or cost, and 0 also covers occupations with no physical tasks.
Tier of each physical task
Robot environment tiers (E0–E3)
E0 noneDetails
Rated not doable by robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated, even in a purpose-built setting
E1 purpose-built robot settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting built around the machine, such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line
E2 structured facilitiesDetails
Rated doable in a human work facility that an institution keeps to a working standard, such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port
E3 unstructured settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting that no institution keeps to a working standard, such as a private home or a construction site
Only tasks classified as physical are listed; other tasks have no tier in the source.
| Task (O*NET 29.3) | Robot environment tier |
|---|---|
| Position items under needles, using marks on machines, clamps, templates, or cloth as guides. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Place spools of thread, cord, or other materials on spindles, insert bobbins, and thread ends through machine guides and components. | E0 none |
| Match cloth pieces in correct sequences prior to sewing them, and verify that dye lots and patterns match. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Guide garments or garment parts under machine needles and presser feet to sew parts together. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| 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. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Select supplies such as fasteners and thread, according to job requirements. | E2 structured facilities |
| Mount attachments, such as needles, cutting blades, or pattern plates, and adjust machine guides according to specifications. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Cut excess material or thread from finished products. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Fold or stretch edges or lengths of items while sewing to facilitate forming specified sections. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Perform equipment maintenance tasks such as replacing needles, sanding rough areas of needles, or cleaning and oiling sewing machines. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using rulers. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Turn knobs, screws, and dials to adjust settings of machines, according to garment styles and equipment performance. | E2 structured facilities |
| Repair or alter items by adding replacement parts or missing stitches. | E0 none |
| Remove holding devices and finished items from machines. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Attach tape, trim, appliques, or elastic to specified garments or garment parts, according to item specifications. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Inspect garments, and examine repair tags and markings on garments to locate defects or damage, and mark errors as necessary. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Cut materials according to specifications, using blades, scissors, or electric knives. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Position and mark patterns on materials to prepare for sewing. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Position material or articles in clamps, templates, or hoop frames prior to automatic operation of machines. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Perform specialized or automatic sewing machine functions, such as buttonhole making or tacking. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Attach buttons, hooks, zippers, fasteners, or other accessories to fabric, using feeding hoppers or clamp holders. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Baste edges of material to align and temporarily secure parts for final assembly. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Tape or twist together thread or cord to repair breaks. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
| Draw markings or pin appliques on fabric to obtain variations in design. | E1 purpose-built robot settings |
Occupation information
Employment outlook (BLS)
- Employment, 2025
- 117K
- Projected employment, 2035
- 100K
- Change (2025–35)
- -15.1%
- Median annual wage, 2025
- $36,670
- Typical education needed for entry
- No formal educational credential
Korea classification links (KSCO)
Links from the current release of the Korea Occupation Direct Crosswalk v1.1, made by AI Changing Work. Relation values are read from the O*NET-SOC occupation side.
| KSCO code | KSCO title | Relation | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 72131 | 직물 재봉사 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 72132 | 가죽 및 모피 재봉사 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 72133 | 신발 재봉사 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 72134 | 기계 자수사 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 72139 | 그 외 재봉사 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
| 82293 | 자동 재봉 설비 조작원 | This occupation is broader | confirmed |
Relation and status definitions(kr-direct v1.1)
ILO occupational description
AI Changing Work links the ISCO-08 unit groups below to this occupation by applying the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (2018 SOC to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to ISCO-08) as published, without case-by-case selection; each link may be whole or partial.
- ISCO-08 8153Sewing Machine Operators
Sources: ILO ISCO-08 — details: Credits
ESCO occupational vocabulary
Each entry below is matched to this occupation in the published ESCO-O*NET Crosswalk (version 1, 2022). The match types are that crosswalk's; the wording is AI Changing Work's.
- sewing machine operatorESCO 8153.1Same scope
Sewing machine operators tend specific sewing machines in the industrial production chain of wearing apparel. They perform operations such as joining, assembling, reinforcing, repairing, and altering of wearing apparel.
- embroidery machine operatorESCO 8153.1.3This occupation is broader
Embroidery machine operators decorate wearing apparel by tending embroidery machines varying in their technology in order to embroider and ornamental wearing apparel.
- leather goods stitching machine operatorESCO 8153.1.4This occupation is broader
Leather goods stitching machine operators join the cut pieces of leather and other materials to produce the leather goods, using tools and a wide range of machines, such as flat bed, arm and one or two columns They also handle tools and monitoring machines for preparing the pieces to be stitched, and operate the machines. They select threads and draw thread through guides and needles. They select threads and needles for the stitching machines, place pieces in the working area, and operate with the machine guiding parts under the needle, following seams, edges or markings or moving edges of parts against the guide.
- sewing machinistESCO 7533.5This occupation is broader
Sewing machinists sew components of wearing apparel together. They can repair and renovate wearing apparel by hand or by using a different sewing machines.
- clothing alteration machinistESCO 8153.1.1Overlapping, not the same
Clothing alteration machinists ensure the alteration of finished garments in line with business demands. They are responsible for the quality of any alterations or customisations and brand generic stock in line with customer branding guidelines.
- clothing sample machinistESCO 8153.1.2Overlapping, not the same
Clothing sample machinist create the first made-up sample of a garment design. They resolve regarding the makeup of garments taking into consideration bulk production to ensure sealing samples are ready on time. They press finished garments and make quality control checks.
- embroidererESCO 7533.2Overlapping, not the same
Embroiderers puch designs and decorate textile surfaces by hand or by using an embroidery machine. They apply a range of traditional stitching techniques to produce intricate designs on clothing, accessories, and home decor items. Professional embroiderers combine traditional sewing skills with current software programs to design and construct embellishments on an item.
Source: European Commission, DG EMPL — ESCO API 2026-08-08 (bridge v1.2.1)
License: CC BY 4.0 (EU Reuse Notice)
ESCO reuse terms and the modification notice are in Credits.
France classification links (ROME)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and ROME 4.0 job profiles, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side. Links marked “provisional” were adopted on the judgments of two judges from the same model family (Claude) alone, or by an operator rule applied to their judgments, so they rest on weaker evidence than confirmed links.
| ROME code | ROME title (French) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| H2402 | Couturier industriel / Couturière industrielle de l'habillement | This occupation is broaderprovisional |
| H2423 | Mécanicien / Mécanicienne industrie textile et de l'habillement | This occupation is broaderprovisional |
| H2401 | Opérateur / Opératrice de fabrication industrie des cuirs, peaux et matériaux associés | Related, not a matchprovisional |
Source: France Travail — Répertoire Opérationnel des Métiers et des Emplois (ROME 4.0), version 61, last updated 15 June 2026 (https://www.data.gouv.fr/datasets/repertoire-operationnel-des-metiers-et-des-emplois-rome). Licence Ouverte 2.0.
ROME codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET-SOC occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a France Travail correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: fr-direct v1)
Spain classification links (CNO-11)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and CNO-11 occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| CNO-11 code | CNO-11 title (Spanish) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 8153 | Operadores de máquinas de coser y bordar | Same scope |
Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), National Classification of Occupations 2011 (CNO-11, Royal Decree 1591/2010) — www.ine.es · Licensed CC BY 4.0. CNO-11 codes and Spanish titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not an INE correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: es-direct v1)
Germany classification links (KldB)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and KldB occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| KldB code | KldB title (German) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 28222 | Berufe in der Bekleidungs-, Hut- und Mützenherstellung - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten | This occupation is narrower |
| 28221 | Berufe in der Bekleidungs-, Hut- und Mützenherstellung - Helfer-/Anlerntätigkeiten | Related, not a match |
| 28232 | Technische Konfektionäre/Konfektionärinnen, Segelmacher/innen - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten | Related, not a match |
Source: © Statistik der Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Klassifikation der Berufe 2010 – überarbeitete Fassung 2020, https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. KldB codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own mapping (eigene Zuordnung) and are not a Bundesagentur für Arbeit correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: de-direct v1)
Japan classification links (JSCO)
AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and JSCO occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.
| JSCO code | JSCO title (Japanese) | Relation |
|---|---|---|
| 535 | 紡織・衣服・繊維製品製造従事者 | This occupation is narrower |
| 539 | その他の製品製造・加工処理従事者（金属製品を除く） | Related, not a match |
Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), Japan Standard Occupational Classification (Dec. 2009, MIC Notification No. 555). JSCO codes and Japanese titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a MIC correspondence.
(AI Changing Work link release: jp-direct v1)
Sources, licenses and AI Changing Work's modification and translation notices for this page: Credits & sources