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What They Do
About This Career
Presses or shapes articles by hand or machine.
This career is part of the Human Services cluster Personal Care Services pathway.
A person in this career:
- Hangs, folds, packages, and tags finished articles for delivery to customers.
- Operates steam, hydraulic, or other pressing machines to remove wrinkles from garments and flatwork items, or to shape, form, or patch articles.
- Straightens, smooths, or shapes materials to prepare them for pressing.
- Removes finished pieces from pressing machines and hangs or stacks them for cooling, or forwards them for additional processing.
- Finishes pleated garments, determining sizes of pleats from evidence of old pleats or from work orders, using machine presses or hand irons.
- Lowers irons, rams, or pressing heads of machines into position over material to be pressed.
- Shrinks, stretches, or blocks articles by hand to conform to original measurements, using forms, blocks, and steam.
- Identifies and treats spots on garments.
- Finishes fancy garments such as evening gowns and costumes, using hand irons to produce high quality finishes.
- Pushes and pulls irons over surfaces of articles to smooth or shape them.
Working Conditions and Physical Demands
People who do this job report that:
- You would often handle loads up to 10 lbs., sometimes up to 20 lbs. You might do a lot of walking or standing, or you might sit but use your arms and legs to control machines, equipment or tools.
- Work in this occupation involves using your hands to hold, control, and feel objects more than one-third of the time
- Work in this occupation involves making repetitive motions more than one-third of the time
- Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time
Working in this career involves (physical activities):
- Seeing clearly up close
- Using abdominal and lower back muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring
Work Hours and Travel
- Regular working hours and limited travel
Specialty and Similar Careers
Careers that are more detailed or close to this career:
- Boarder
- Dry Cleaner Presser
- Ironing Machine Operator
- Ironing Worker
- Pants Presser
- Presser
- Pressing Machine Operator
- Shirt Presser
- Silk Presser
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts national surveys of wage data by occupation in every state and in all industry divisions. These surveys are conducted through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program.
The statistics collected for one year are published the next fall. For example, 2013 wage information was published in the fall of 2014.
There are over 800 occupations in the surveys, and these occupations cover the entire U.S. labor market. The surveys ask for reports in a scale of ranges for both hourly wages and annual wages.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics for a broad category, be aware that the salary data for a specific career may differ.
For more details about how wage information is collected and calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm.
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts a national survey of over 400,000
employers in every state and in all industry divisions. This survey is conducted
through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program. Every other year the
department publishes outlook information based on these surveys.
Each outlook period covers 10 years. For example, in 2003 the outlook information
was published for 2004-2014. Employers are asked to report the number of employees
in about 770 different occupations that cover the entire U.S. labor market.
From this information, staffing patterns for different industries are established.
Industry growth is projected into the future based on past trends and current economic
conditions. Industry staffing patterns are then applied to the industry projections
to obtain occupational projections.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties
of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational
category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics
for a broad category, be aware that the employment data for a specific field may
differ.
For more details about how employment information is collected and calculated by
the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://stats.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.
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