Production Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Peer-group outlier SOC 51-4071

Foundry Mold and Coremakers

Median pay sits 35% below the mid peer in Production Occupations (neighbors include Power Plant Operators, Model Makers, Metal and Plastic, Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers, Tool and Die Makers).

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Foundry Mold and Coremakers: Power Plant Operators ($102K) , Model Makers, Metal and Plastic ($63K) , Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers ($97K) , Tool and Die Makers ($64K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Foundry Mold and Coremakers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 51-4071 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Clean and smooth molds, cores, and core boxes, and repair surface imperfections
  2. 2. Sift and pack sand into mold sections, core boxes, and pattern contours, using hand or pneumatic ramming tools
  3. 3. Position patterns inside mold sections, and clamp sections together
  4. 4. Position cores into lower sections of molds, and reassemble molds for pouring
  5. 5. Tend machines that bond cope and drag together to form completed shell molds
  6. 6. Sprinkle or spray parting agents onto patterns and mold sections to facilitate removal of patterns from molds
  7. 7. Form and assemble slab cores around patterns, and position wire in mold sections to reinforce molds, using hand tools and glue
  8. 8. Move and position workpieces, such as mold sections, patterns, and bottom boards, using cranes, or signal others to move workpieces
  9. 9. Rotate sweep boards around spindles to make symmetrical molds for convex impressions
  10. 10. Pour molten metal into molds, manually or with crane ladles
  11. 11. Operate ovens or furnaces to bake cores or to melt, skim, and flux metal
  12. 12. Lift upper mold sections from lower sections, and remove molded patterns

Foundry Mold and Coremakers: O*NET ranks Monitoring first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 51-4071 - lead skill Monitoring at 3.0 ; lead knowledge English Language. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Monitoring 3.0
  2. 2. Operations Monitoring 3.0
  3. 3. Active Listening 2.9
  4. 4. Critical Thinking 2.9
  5. 5. Time Management 2.9
  6. 6. Speaking 2.6
  7. 7. Complex Problem Solving 2.6
  8. 8. Operation and Control 2.6

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. English Language 3.4
  2. 2. Mechanical 3.4
  3. 3. Production and Processing 3.3
  4. 4. Education and Training 3.3
  5. 5. Administration and Management 3.2
  6. 6. Physics 3.1
Pay vs Production Occupations peers
-35%
vs mid peer median $74,450
This role $48,110/yr
$48K
National median
↓ -26%
Growth 2024-2034
900
Annual openings
12,790
Estimated US jobs
Power Plant Operators
Highest-pay peer · $102K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Foundry Mold and Coremakers

1. New Jersey $55,210
2. Illinois $57,110
3. Iowa $49,060
4. Minnesota $56,840
5. New York $54,380
6. Oregon $67,060
7. Indiana $49,860
8. Missouri $61,480
9. Massachusetts $55,940
10. Alabama $51,040

Other Production Occupations titles

  1. 1. Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers $96,710
  2. 2. Power Plant Operators $102,040
  3. 3. Tool and Die Makers $64,050
  4. 4. Aircraft Structure, Surfaces, Rigging, and Systems Assemblers $65,380
  5. 5. Model Makers, Metal and Plastic $63,340
  6. 6. Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers $68,120

Among Production Occupations peers on this card, Foundry Mold and Coremakers sits 35% below the mid peer median ($74,450). Its own median is $48,110.

Employment Projections expect -26% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 900 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: New Jersey at $55,210. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Power Plant Operators at $102,040. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Foundry Mold and Coremakers pay-rank #48 in Production Occupations

Foundry Mold and Coremakers sits at pay-rank #48 of 105 detailed Production Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 51-4071 · national median $48,110 · middle third of Production Occupations (#48/105). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Foundry Mold and Coremakers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 51-4071

New Jersey · top state for Foundry Mold and Coremakers

$55K published median

Illinois · #2 state pay

$57K · behind New Jersey

Power Plant Operators

Highest-pay peer vs Foundry Mold and Coremakers · $102K

Model Makers, Metal and Plastic

Lower-pay peer beside Foundry Mold and Coremakers · $63K

Compare Foundry Mold and Coremakers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Foundry Mold and Coremakers with another occupation →

Peer-comparison next reads

Compare Foundry Mold and Coremakers

Against another occupation

Power Plant Operators card

Top peer in this major group

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Foundry Mold and Coremakers mid-table among Production Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #48 of 105 detailed Production Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders ($48K), Medical Appliance Technicians ($48K), Coil Winders, Tapers, and Finishers ($48K), Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders ($48K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do foundry mold and coremakers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Foundry Mold and Coremakers. Leading ones include: Clean and smooth molds, cores, and core boxes, and repair surface imperfections; Sift and pack sand into mold sections, core boxes, and pattern contours, using hand or pneumatic ramming tools; Position patterns inside mold sections, and clamp sections together; Position cores into lower sections of molds, and reassemble molds for pouring. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for foundry mold and coremakers? ▼
For SOC 51-4071, O*NET importance scores lead with Monitoring (3.0), Operations Monitoring (3.0), Active Listening (2.9), Critical Thinking (2.9). Knowledge areas emphasize English Language, Mechanical, Production and Processing. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Foundry Mold and Coremakers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $48,110 as the national median for Foundry Mold and Coremakers. The published 10th-90th range is $37,160 to $62,640. Beside Power Plant Operators ($102,040), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Foundry Mold and Coremakers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Foundry Mold and Coremakers is -26%. Projected annual openings: about 900. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Foundry Mold and Coremakers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Foundry Mold and Coremakers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Foundry Mold and Coremakers? ▼
New Jersey ($55,210), Illinois ($57,110), Iowa ($49,060) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Foundry Mold and Coremakers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 51-4071. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Foundry Mold and Coremakers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics