Metal production process controller

#78Declining

4/5

Key facts

−3%jobs, 2025 to 2035

United States

This job is declining in the United States. AI exposure: low according to the ILO, low according to the BLS. Employment change in the United States by 2035: −3% (BLS). Future-proof jobs use similar skills: see "What next?".

The job

Metal production process controllers (ISCO 3135). Metal production process controllers operate and monitor multi-function process control machinery and equipment to control the processing of metal converting and refining furnaces, metal-rolling mills, metal heat-treating or metal-extrusion plant.

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

11 job titles linked to this page

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

blast furnace operator
foundry operations manager
foundry plant manager
foundry production manager
metal furnace operator
metal operations manager
plant manager
smelter
smelter operator
smelting furnace operator
steel furnace 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.

ChangingIndustrial maintenance technician
ChangingMining and metallurgy technician
ChangingQuality inspector

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

Gauges

Risk 4/5 · High

AI exposureLowILO, 2025 index

Employment outlookSharp declineBLS, 2025-2035 projections (Metal-refining furnace operators and tenders)

Hiring difficultyNot availableNo US indicator measures hiring difficulty job by job

PayModestBLS, 2025 median annual wage: $54,430

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
Jobs in 2030: projections by occupational family (summary table)Dares and France Stratégie · March 2022 · official statistics
Labour needs survey (BMO) 2026France Travail · 2026 · large survey
EURES report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025, annexEuropean Labour Authority · June 2026 · official statistics

Checked on 27 October 2026.