Printing Press Operators

Overview

Printing Press Operators has a national median salary of $45,780 per year, with -8.7% projected job growth from 2025–2035. The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical education needed to enter this occupation.

Description

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

Work Values

• Support
• Achievement
• Independence

Work Styles

Responsibilities

Tasks

• Start presses and pull proofs to check for ink coverage and density, alignment, and registration.
• Examine job orders to determine quantities to be printed, stock specifications, colors, or special printing instructions.
• Adjust ink fountain flow rates.
• Verify that paper and ink meet the specifications for a given job.
• Collect and inspect random samples during print runs to identify any necessary adjustments.

Work Activities

• Controlling Machines and Processes
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Getting Information
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
• Scheduling Work and Activities
• Handling and Moving Objects
• Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
• Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment
• Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment
• Training and Teaching Others

Detailed Work Activities

• Using either control mechanisms or direct physical activity to operate machines or processes (not including computers or vehicles).
• Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
• Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
• Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
• Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
• Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
• Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
• Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
• Running, maneuvering, navigating, or driving vehicles or mechanized equipment, such as forklifts, passenger vehicles, aircraft, or watercraft.
• Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.

T-A-S-K

Technology, Abilities, Skills & Knowledge

Education

Education Levels of Current Workers

The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical education needed to enter this occupation. The chart below shows the highest level of education held by people already working in this field, ages 25 and older. It includes workers who earned more education than the job requires and workers who entered the field under earlier requirements, so the largest bar is not the entry requirement. For example, if someone finished a bachelor's degree and then started working in this field, they are counted under “Bachelor's degree” here, but the job itself typically asks for a high school diploma or equivalent.

Certificates

Certifications applicable to Printing Press Operators:

Video Resources