Metal fabrication spans establishments that transform metal into intermediate or end products, from structural components to machined and coated parts. The figures below distinguish U.S. NAICS 332 industry measures, occupation estimates, historical EU-28 data and Eurostat’s newer EU production indicators.
Key Metal Fabrication Statistics
The most useful headline figures are:
- In August 2026, 1,460.8 thousand people were employed in U.S. fabricated metal product manufacturing, seasonally adjusted and preliminary.
- In August 2026, 1,049.9 thousand U.S. fabricated-metal workers were in production and nonsupervisory employment, seasonally adjusted and preliminary.
- In the Census profile accessed in 2026, 53,790 U.S. employer establishments were classified in NAICS 332.
- In 2011, EU-28 fabricated metal product manufacturing generated €472 billion in turnover under NACE Division 25.
- In 2011, EU-28 fabricated metal products generated €159 billion of value added at factor cost.
- In 2011, EU-28 fabricated metal products employed 3.34 million people.
- In 2011, fabricated metal products represented 7% of EU-28 manufacturing turnover.
- In 2011, structural metal products represented 26% of EU-28 fabricated-metal turnover.
- In 2011, treatment, coating and machining represented 23% of EU-28 fabricated-metal turnover.
- In 2025, the EU fabricated-metal sold production value was 2% below 2015 at constant 2021 prices.
- In 2025, EU fabricated-metal sold production value fell by €4 billion from 2024.
- In 2025, machinists accounted for an estimated 101,640 jobs associated with U.S. NAICS 332.
- In 2025, welders, cutters, solderers and brazers accounted for an estimated 112,520 jobs associated with U.S. NAICS 332.
- In 2025, team assemblers accounted for an estimated 125,250 jobs associated with U.S. NAICS 332.
- In 2025, machinists in the U.S. fabricated-metal industry list had a $26.40 hourly median wage.
- In 2025, first-line production supervisors in the U.S. fabricated-metal industry list had a $75,000 mean annual wage.
- In May 2023, Texas had 6,940 structural metal fabricators and fitters.
- In May 2023, Rhode Island’s location quotient for structural metal fabricators and fitters was 8.72.
Contents
- Industry scale and economic output
- Employment, hours and workforce composition
- Wages by occupation
- Occupations and machining roles
- Regional employment and wage patterns
- Global and EU trends
Metal Fabrication Statistics: Industry Scale and Economic Output
The U.S. industry measure is NAICS 332, which covers establishments transforming metal into intermediate or end products. It excludes machinery, computers and electronics, and metal furniture, so it should not be treated as a count of every business that works with metal.
The U.S. Census profile accessed in 2026 listed 53,790 employer establishments in NAICS 332. This is an establishment count rather than a count of facilities or workers; the source is the Bureau of Labor Statistics industry profile, Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing: NAICS 332.
The historical European figures use NACE Division 25 and EU-28 coverage:
| Measure | Result | Period and scope |
|---|---|---|
| Turnover | €472 billion | EU-28, 2011 |
| Value added at factor cost | €159 billion | EU-28, 2011 |
| Employment | 3.34 million people | EU-28, 2011 |
| Share of manufacturing turnover | 7% | EU-28, 2011 |
These figures come from the European Commission JRC’s Background document on best environmental management practice in the Fabricated Metal Products sector. They are historical EU-28 statistics, not current EU-27 output, and the value-added measure is at factor cost.
Within that 2011 EU-28 sector, structural metal products represented 26% of turnover, treatment and coating of metals plus machining represented 23%, and other fabricated metal products represented 20%. The shares are turnover shares, not physical production shares, and should not be added to categories outside the supplied classification.
Metal Fabrication Employment, Hours and Workforce Composition
The BLS industry profile reported 1,460.8 thousand U.S. fabricated-metal employees in August 2026. The series was seasonally adjusted and preliminary on the source page.
| U.S. NAICS 332 measure | August 2026 result | Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| All employees | 1,460.8 thousand | Seasonally adjusted, preliminary |
| Production and nonsupervisory employees | 1,049.9 thousand | Seasonally adjusted, preliminary |
| Average weekly hours, all employees | 41.5 hours | Industry average, preliminary |
| Average weekly hours, production and nonsupervisory | 42.0 hours | Industry average, preliminary |
The same profile reported average hourly earnings of $33.70 for all industry employees and $28.58 for production and nonsupervisory employees in August 2026. These are industry averages, not occupation-specific wages; all employment, earnings and hours values in this section are from Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing: NAICS 332.
The industry occupation list also gives an estimate of roles common to NAICS 332 in 2025. It listed 101,640 machinist jobs, 125,250 team assembler jobs and 112,520 jobs for welders, cutters, solderers and brazers.
Those occupation counts describe jobs associated with fabricated metal product manufacturing, not all workers in those occupations across the U.S. economy. That distinction matters when comparing them with national occupation totals later in this article.
Metal Fabrication Wage Statistics by Occupation
Occupation wages provide a different lens from the industry-wide hourly averages. The following 2025 estimates are for occupations in the BLS fabricated-metal industry list, with hourly medians and annual means shown together.
| Occupation | Median hourly wage | Mean annual wage | Period and population |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cutting, punching and press machine operators | $22.44 | $48,550 | U.S. NAICS 332 occupation list, 2025 |
| First-line production supervisors | $35.53 | $75,000 | U.S. NAICS 332 occupation list, 2025 |
| Machinists | $26.40 | $55,710 | U.S. NAICS 332 occupation list, 2025 |
| Team assemblers | $21.41 | $45,300 | U.S. NAICS 332 occupation list, 2025 |
The source labels these as OEWS occupation estimates, so they are not the same measure as a fabricated-metal industry’s payroll average. The figures are from Fabricated Metal Product Manufacturing: NAICS 332, and the annual figures are means while the hourly figures are medians.
For broader context, the national May 2025 estimate for all metal and plastic workers was a $25.83 hourly median and a $53,730 mean annual wage. That group is broader than NAICS 332 and comes from the BLS Table 1. National employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey by occupation, May 2025, so it should not be read as a direct industry-only benchmark.
Metal Fabrication Occupations and Machining Roles
National occupation counts show the wider labor pools that can overlap with fabrication, machining and forming work. They cover all industries in May 2025 rather than only NAICS 332.
| National occupation | Employment | Measurement scope |
|---|---|---|
| Machinists | 287,050 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Welding, soldering and brazing workers | 447,810 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Tool and die makers | 56,930 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Molders and molding-machine workers | 163,270 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Multiple machine-tool setters and operators | 124,590 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Grinding, lapping, polishing and buffing machine-tool workers | 67,000 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Lathe and turning machine-tool workers | 16,710 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
| Milling and planing machine operators | 12,460 | United States, all industries, May 2025 |
These are national occupation totals, not fabricated-metal employment totals. They are reported in the BLS Table 1. National employment and wage data from the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey by occupation, May 2025.
The comparison is useful for understanding the breadth of the workforce connected to metalworking, but the populations differ from the NAICS 332 industry occupation list. A national machinist total, for example, includes machinists employed outside fabricated metal product manufacturing.
Regional Metal Fabrication Employment and Wage Patterns
BLS state and metropolitan estimates for structural metal fabricators and fitters illustrate how concentration and scale can diverge. The May 2023 profile reported 6,940 workers in Texas and 3,110 in Wisconsin.
| Geography | Employment or wage measure | May 2023 result |
|---|---|---|
| Texas | Structural metal fabricators and fitters employed | 6,940 |
| Wisconsin | Structural metal fabricators and fitters employed | 3,110 |
| Wisconsin | Location quotient | 2.83 |
| Rhode Island | Location quotient | 8.72 |
| Massachusetts | Highest listed state annual mean wage | $58,920 |
A location quotient compares occupational concentration with the national average. Rhode Island’s 8.72 indicates high concentration, but it does not indicate a large total workforce; Wisconsin’s 2.83 likewise describes concentration rather than simply headcount.
At metropolitan level, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land had 2,700 structural metal fabricators and fitters. Mobile, Alabama had a location quotient of 12.32, while Boston’s annual mean wage was $60,110 and Beaumont-Port Arthur’s was $61,820.
The source did not publish wage values for Mobile in the cited profile. These state and metropolitan figures are from the BLS Structural Metal Fabricators and Fitters profile and are occupation-specific May 2023 estimates.
Global and EU Metal Fabrication Trends
Eurostat places fabricated metal products among the EU’s five largest manufacturing activities in 2025 at the NACE two-digit division level. Its long comparison uses constant 2021 prices, while the year-over-year change is expressed in nominal euros.
| EU indicator | Result | Period and definition |
|---|---|---|
| Position among manufacturing activities | One of the five largest | 2025, NACE two-digit activity |
| Sold production value versus 2015 | 2% lower | 2025 versus 2015, constant 2021 prices |
| Sold production value change | €4 billion decrease | 2025 versus 2024, nominal euros |
The 2% decline is an index comparison at constant 2021 prices, so it is not the same as nominal turnover. The €4 billion reduction compares nominal sold-production value with the prior year and does not necessarily describe a physical-volume change; both figures are reported by Eurostat in Industrial production statistics.
The older JRC background document also described the distribution of EU-28 fabricated-metal enterprises in 2011. Italy accounted for 18%, the Czech Republic and Germany each accounted for 11%, Spain accounted for 10%, and Poland accounted for 8%.
Those enterprise shares are historical EU-28 data from 2011, not a current ranking of EU member states. They come from the European Commission JRC Background document on best environmental management practice in the Fabricated Metal Products sector.