Paper and wood machine operatives Pay Data UK — 2025

Paper and wood machine operatives roles in the UK earn a median of £30,000 per year, equivalent to £15.17 per hour as of 2025. Pay increased 2.9% compared to the previous year. Regionally, pay ranges from £27,000 in South East to £33,000 in South West. Pay has risen over the past 4 years. The ONS national median for this occupation is £30,360/yr (1% below our computed national average).

Labour Market

Employment figures from ONS Annual Population Survey (APS). Counts are estimates; suppressed cells (small samples) are excluded from totals.

Pay by Region

Annual pay for Paper and wood machine operatives across UK regions. The bar shows the typical pay range (25th–75th percentile); the diamond marks the median.

Source: ONS ASHE. Based on broad UK regions (NUTS1).

How Pay Has Changed Over Time

Annual pay grew by +2.9% from 2024 to 2025.

National average (NUTS1 actuals) based on ONS ASHE April snapshot. Shaded band shows 25th–75th percentile range.

Year-on-Year Pay Change

Annual percentage change in median pay for Paper and wood machine operatives.

Percentage change from the prior year's April figure.

About Paper and wood machine operatives

Paper and wood machine operatives operate machines to treat and cut wood, to produce, treat and cut paper, paperboard, leatherboard, plasterboard and similar material, and to assemble and make wooden crates and containers.

Typical Tasks and Duties

• cuts and shapes wood using hand and power tools, assembles parts of wooden crates, barrels and other wooden containers using nails, bolts and staples, and fits metal strips and corner pieces to strengthen container as required
• examines job requirements, ascertains necessary ingredients and loads machines to beat, mix and crush wood, cork and pulp for further processing
• attends and operates ovens, kilns, milling, filtering, straining, calendering, coating, drying, finishing, winding and other machines to produce and/or treat wood, paper, paperboard, leatherboard and plasterboard
• sets and adjusts edge guides, stops and blades of cutting machine, threads material through rollers or loads into machine hopper, starts and monitors operation of machine, removes completed work and clears machine of waste material

Entry Routes and Qualifications

There are no formal academic entry requirements. Training is typically provided on-the-job. NVQs/ SVQs/vocational qualifications in Fibreboard Operations at levels 2 and 3, and apprenticeships are available. NVQs/SVQs/vocational- qualifications in Wood Machining are available at levels 2.

Related Occupations

Salary data is sourced from official UK pay datasets and updated periodically.