Textile Knitting and Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
Set up, operate, or tend machines that knit, loop, weave, or draw in textiles.
Most important skills
- Operations Monitoring
- Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Operation and Control
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Quality Control Analysis
- Reading Comprehension
Key knowledge
- Production and Processing
- English Language
- Mechanical
- Public Safety and Security
- Education and Training
- Computers and Electronics
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administration and Management
What the work involves
- Remove defects in cloth by cutting and pulling out filling.
- Inspect products to ensure that specifications are met and to determine if machines need adjustment.
- Observe woven cloth to detect weaving defects.
- Thread yarn, thread, and fabric through guides, needles, and rollers of machines for weaving, knitting, or other processing.
- Examine looms to determine causes of loom stoppage, such as warp filling, harness breaks, or mechanical defects.
- Notify supervisors or repair staff of mechanical malfunctions.
- Start machines, monitor operations, and make adjustments as needed.
- Inspect machinery to determine whether repairs are needed.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) (94.7% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 1 year, up to and including 2 years (23.6%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 1 month, up to and including 3 months (31.3%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 2: Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Textile Knitting and Weaving Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Very low | Lower on contact with others than 87% of occupations compared | 38% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very low | Lower on dealing with the public than 98% of occupations compared | 72% of surveyed respondents chose “Not important at all” |
| Teamwork | Very low | Lower on teamwork than 86% of occupations compared | 34% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | Low | Lower on freedom to make decisions than 76% of occupations compared | 41% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom” |
| Time pressure | High | Higher on time pressure than 66% of occupations compared | 50% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Very low | Lower on conflict situations than 89% of occupations compared | 40% of surveyed respondents chose “Never” |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Low | Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 74% of occupations compared | 42% of surveyed respondents chose “Never” |
| Consequence of error | Very low | Lower on consequence of error than 83% of occupations compared | 31% of surveyed respondents chose “Not serious at all” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: high
- Conflict situations: very low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: low
- Consequence of error: very low
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 5.91%
- Occasional contact with others: 6.18%
- Contact with others about half the time: 32.96%
- Contact with others most of the time: 17.24%
- Constant contact with others: 37.71%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 72.27%
- Fairly important: 12.17%
- Important: 14.75%
- Very important: 0.82%
- Extremely important: 0%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 8.29%
- Fairly important: 12.74%
- Important: 18.2%
- Very important: 27.16%
- Extremely important: 33.61%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 17.57%
- Limited freedom: 13.98%
- Some freedom: 40.66%
- A lot of freedom: 27.78%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Time pressure
- Never: 7.28%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 8.81%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 4.46%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 29.46%
- Every day: 49.99%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Conflict situations
- Never: 39.61%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 19.21%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 27.32%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 10.5%
- Every day: 3.37%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 42.26%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 17.2%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 3.64%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 34.36%
- Every day: 2.55%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 31.13%
- Fairly serious: 29.96%
- Serious: 25.18%
- Very serious: 8.09%
- Extremely serious: 5.64%
n = 21, Incumbent 08/2023
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O*NET-SOC 51-6063.00 · SOC 51-6063 (exact, high confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8