SOC 51-4052.00

    Pourers and Casters, Metal

    Operate hand-controlled mechanisms to pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds to produce castings or ingots.

    Median pay
    $51,810
    Growth
    -5.0%
    Decline
    Openings a year
    400
    Typical education
    High school diploma

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

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    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $38,480
    Median
    $51,810
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $72,040
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    4,560 people work in this occupation.

    What pourers and casters, metal do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Operate hand-controlled mechanisms to pour and regulate the flow of molten metal into molds to produce castings or ingots.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    100 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    24 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    2 / 100
    Social (S)
    1 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    0 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    46 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCI. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Performing General Physical Activities
    77
    Controlling Machines and Processes
    76
    Handling and Moving Objects
    69
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    67
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    67
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    66
    Operating Vehicles, Mechanized Devices, or Equipment
    64
    Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
    61
    Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment
    60
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    59
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Operation and Control
    • Operations Monitoring
    • Active Listening
    • Critical Thinking
    • Judgment and Decision Making
    • Monitoring
    • Coordination
    • Quality Control Analysis
    • Time Management
    • Equipment Maintenance

    Knowledge

    • English Language
    • Production and Processing
    • Education and Training
    • Mechanical
    • Administration and Management
    • Mathematics
    • Transportation
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Chemistry
    • Engineering and Technology

    Abilities

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Control Precision
    • Manual Dexterity
    • Multilimb Coordination
    • Near Vision
    • Perceptual Speed
    • Reaction Time
    • Category Flexibility
    • Finger Dexterity
    • Oral Comprehension

    Work styles

    • Cautiousness
    • Dependability
    • Attention to Detail
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Self-Control
    • Perseverance
    • Integrity
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Self-Confidence
    • Cooperation

    Also called

    Aluminum Pourer · Billet Header · Brass Pourer · Buggy Ladle Tender · Bull Ladle Tender · Busher · Caster · Casting Machine Operator · Casting Operator · DC Caster (Direct Chill Caster)

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    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.