BLS metro-level wage data places Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic pay in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC at a median of $41,240 per year ($19.83/hr/hour), drawn from the OEWS May 2025 release for this Metropolitan Statistical Area. Compared to the national median of $46,330, Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton pays 11% below, which typically tracks with a lower local cost of living or smaller specialized-employer cluster. Approximately 180 cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastics are employed across the Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton MSA in SOC 51-4031.

The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton pay distribution spans from $35,880 at the 10th percentile to $56,350 at the 90th — a 1.6× spread that reflects experience tenure, specialization, employer size, and the difference between public-sector, nonprofit, and private-sector compensation inside the metro. The 25th percentile sits at $37,840 and the 75th at $46,520, so half of Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton-based cutting, punching, and press machine setters, operators, and tenders, metal and plastics earn within that middle band.

Metro figures capture where you actually work, not just where you live — which matters for commuters. BLS draws metro boundaries from the OMB MSA definitions, so Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC covers the central city plus outlying counties tied to the metro economically. Remember that OEWS wages reflect base pay only: employer-provided health insurance, retirement matches, stock options, signing bonuses, overtime, and tips are excluded and can add 20-40% to real total compensation. Before using this metro median as a negotiation anchor, triangulate against the same occupation's national profile (linked below), its state-wide NC data, and peer-metro comparisons — a median is a starting point, not a ceiling.