• Manufacturing jobs are as different as the types of goods produced in factories. From assembling the simplest items to the most complex, the production worker must have a thorough knowledge of the equipment he uses on a daily basis. In some cases the assembler doesn’t need special education or training, but as manufacturing becomes more complex, the knowledge and skills of the production worker must increase as well.
  
  

Unskilled Production Work

• With unskilled production work, the assembler does his assigned job on the assembly line. With regard to education, a high school education or GED usually is enough. He should be able to read and write in order to understand instructions. Some mathematical skills may be necessary in order to perform the job. As part of his work on the assembly line, the production worker must be able to operate the equipment safely and efficiently. In some instances, the production worker may receive special training in order to work with special equipment, or if he’s in charge of equipment maintenance. Other special training may involve training in standard operating procedures within the company as well as quality control measures that are in place.
  
  

Skilled Manufacturing Jobs

• Computers are playing an increasing role in manufacturing jobs. Many production workers with skilled manufacturing jobs must have a good working knowledge of how computers work in relation to their assembly work. Other skilled workers find manufacturing jobs as machinists and fabricators. In order to get a skilled labor job, postsecondary training is usually necessary. While a student may learn some of the basics from high school vocational training, more manufacturers are requiring associate degrees from community colleges for their skilled jobs. The military is another way to learn the skills necessary to get a skilled manufacturing job.
  
  

Lean Manufacturing

• Lean manufacturing processes employ a team approach. Rather than one person doing the same job day after day, the person belongs to a team that rotates jobs on a daily basis. That way if one person is absent, the other team members can do his job and production doesn’t fall behind schedule. Because everyone on the team can do all the jobs, the educational expectations are similar. For skilled assembly work, the team all needs to have similar advanced training. Otherwise, production quality may suffer. In some cases, less skilled workers on the team assemble a portion of the product, while skilled team members do the more detailed tasks that require special knowledge. For example, trained machinists would need to make sure metal parts they are cutting meet strict quality control guidelines. They would need to check the measurements and set up computer assisted metal presses. The metal they cut could then go to unskilled fabricators on their team for assembly.