Leather preparation operator

#65Declining

4/5

Key facts

−13.5%jobs, 2025 to 2035

United States

This job is declining in the United States. AI exposure: very low according to the ILO, low according to the BLS. Employment change in the United States by 2035: −13.5% (BLS). Future-proof jobs use similar skills: see "What next?".

The job

Fur and leather preparing machine operators (ISCO 8155). Fur and leather preparing machine operators monitor and operate various machines that prepare leather or treat fur- or wool-bearing pelts.

Page built from official classifications (ILO, ESCO); figures cover all the jobs grouped here.

63 job titles linked to this page

Titles from the European ESCO classification. They are also used for search.

beamhouse machine operator
beamhouse operator
beating machine tender
brushing machine operator
carding machine operator
chrome-tanning drum operator
color blender
color maker
color mixer
color sampling operator
color sampling operators
coloring machine operator
colour blender
colour maker
colour mixer
colour sampling operator
colour sampling operators
colouring machine operator
de-hairing machine operator
de-salting machine operator
drum operator
drum tender
dyers
finisher
finishing machinist
finishing operators
finishing range operator
fleshing machine operator
fur-shaving machine tender
glazing machine operator
hide machine operator
icing machine operator
leather embossing machine operator
leather finishing coating machine operator
leather finishing operator
leather processing machine operator
leather production machine operator
leather production machinist
leather production splitting machine operator
leather production worker
leather sorting machine operator
machine leather trimmer
measuring leather machine operator
milling drum operator
pit tanner
plating machine operator
retanning machine operator
sammying machine operator
shaving machine operator
splitting and sammying machine operator
spray booth operator
spray finishing machine operator
spraying machine operator
staking machine operator
stretching machine operator
tanner
tanning drum operator
tanning machine operator
tanning straightener
tanning vacuum dryer
tanning worker
tawer
warehouse machine operator

What next?

Future-proof jobs that draw on skills close to this one. They are leads to explore, not an assessment of your profile.

ChangingTanner
ChangingFood production line operator

Indicative matches: at launch they will come from the skills listed in official occupational directories.

Gauges

Risk 4/5 · High

AI exposureLowBLS AI exposure category "low" (2026), higher than the ILO 2025 index (very low)

Employment outlookSharp declineBLS, 2025-2035 projections (Textile, apparel, and furnishings workers, all other)

Hiring difficultyNot availableNo US indicator measures hiring difficulty job by job

PayLowBLS, 2025 median annual wage: $37,280

EntryQuickBLS, typical education needed for entry

No US indicator measures hiring difficulty job by job: this gauge stays empty. How countries are compared

Sources

AI exposure categories and employment projections, 2025-2035 (XLSX file)Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States · August 2026 · official statistics
Generative AI and Jobs: a refined global index of occupational exposureInternational Labour Organization and NASK · May 2025 · large survey
ESCO, European classification of skills, competences, qualifications and occupations (job titles and O*NET crosswalk)European Commission · version 1.2 · official statistics
EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025, annexEuropean Labour Authority · June 2026 · official statistics

Checked on 27 October 2026.