Trade licensing overview · machinist
How machinist licensing works — Washington
How this trade is regulated in Washington. none-in-pilot-states The framework below describes the national pathway most machinists in Washington follow.
Machinists are not state-licensed in the United States. Competency is demonstrated through NIMS (National Institute for Metalworking Skills) credentials, employer-administered machining and inspection tests, or completion of a DOL-registered Machinist apprenticeship.
Machinist wages in Washington · BLS OES A01 2024
Wages are state-level annual figures from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program (A01 2024). Specific machinist earnings in Washington vary by metro area, employer type, union membership, and years of experience. Verify the current state and metro figures on the BLS OES site (bls.gov/oes).
What this trade actually looks like in Washington
Washington machining is built on Boeing commercial aircraft production in the Puget Sound, a deep aerospace Tier-2 supplier base, Naval Base Kitsap and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard machining in Bremerton, semiconductor-equipment work, and a steady base of small precision shops. Boeing-related machining is the largest single pull in the country and shapes the entire regional supplier base.
Where they work
The Puget Sound (Everett, Renton, Auburn, Kent, Tukwila, Seattle) anchors Boeing 737, 767, 777, and 787-supplier machining and a deep Tier-2 tail. Bremerton holds Puget Sound Naval Shipyard submarine and aircraft-carrier machining. The South Sound (Tacoma, Olympia) holds supplier and defense work tied to Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Spokane and eastern Washington hold smaller supplier shops and aerospace work. The Tri-Cities (Hanford) hold federal-contractor and energy-related precision machining.
Pay context
BLS OES reports a Washington median of $64,510 for machinists, among the higher in the country. Boeing IAM-represented seats and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard federal-civilian wage tables anchor the upper end of the range. Cost of housing in the Puget Sound has risen sharply and significantly cuts into the nominal wage advantage for relocators.
Training pathway
Renton Technical College, Lake Washington Institute of Technology (Kirkland), Shoreline Community College, South Seattle College, Bates Technical College (Tacoma), and Spokane Community College all run NIMS-aligned machining programs. The Washington Aerospace Training and Research Center (WATR) is a Boeing-aligned short-cycle training pipeline. The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries' Apprenticeship Section registers machinist apprenticeships; IAM District 751 represents most Boeing machinists in the Puget Sound.
Considerations
If you want commercial-aircraft machining with the deepest aerospace ecosystem in the country and a clear IAM-represented pathway, Washington is the historical center of the trade. If you want low cost of housing, the Puget Sound housing market cuts significantly into nominal wages and many machinists commute long distances. Boeing production cycles directly drive demand at supplier shops; verify backlog visibility before accepting an offer.
Washington machinist snapshot
| MSA | Employed | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 4,270 | $73,790 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 2,470 | $62,350 |
| Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA | 620 | $58,690 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | 320 | $78,580 |
| Yakima, WA | 190 | $59,100 |
STATE LICENSE STATUS
No pilot state (TX, CA, FL, NY, IL) issues a person-level machinist license. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics classifies machinists under SOC 51-4041 and lists typical entry through long-term on-the-job training, apprenticeship, or community-college machine-tool programs (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/production/machinists-and-tool-and-die-makers.htm). Because there is no statutory license, hiring shops typically verify skill through a bench test, print-reading and GD&T questions, and (increasingly) NIMS credential records (https://www.nims-skills.org). ITAR-regulated aerospace and defense shops add employer-specific background and citizenship checks per 22 CFR 120-130; those are job requirements, not state licenses.
NIMS CREDENTIALS
NIMS (National Institute for Metalworking Skills) issues 52 stackable, ANSI-accredited credentials covering Machining Level I, II, and III; CNC Milling and CNC Turning Operator and Programmer; Tool & Die; Mold Making; Stamping; Grinding; and Industrial Technology Maintenance (https://www.nims-skills.org/credentialing). Each credential requires an online theory exam plus a performance/part-inspection component verified by a NIMS-credentialed evaluator (https://www.nims-skills.org). Machining Level I is the recognized entry credential and is used by many registered apprenticeships as a first-year benchmark. NIMS credentials are accepted as Related Technical Instruction (RTI) evidence by many DOL-registered Machinist programs (https://www.apprenticeship.gov). The International Machine Tool Manufacturers Association (IMTMA, https://www.imtma.org) and the National Tooling and Machining Association (NTMA, https://www.ntma.org) both reference NIMS as the industry-standard skills benchmark.
CNC PROGRAMMING
CNC (computer numerical control) programming is the core skill for production machining. G-code and M-code fundamentals (ISO 6983 / EIA RS-274) are the baseline language read by Fanuc, Siemens, Haas, and Mazak controls (https://www.iso.org/standard/34608.html). Most production programs are generated in CAM software: Mastercam (https://www.mastercam.com), Autodesk Fusion 360 (https://www.autodesk.com/products/fusion-360), and SolidWorks CAM (https://www.solidworks.com) are the most commonly listed in BLS machinist job postings (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/production/machinists-and-tool-and-die-makers.htm). 5-axis simultaneous programming is typical in aerospace structural and impeller work and is covered by NIMS CNC Milling Programmer Level III (https://www.nims-skills.org/credentialing). NIMS also offers a stand-alone Job Planning, Benchwork, and Layout credential that is a prerequisite for Machining Levels II and III.
APPRENTICESHIP PATHWAY
The U.S. Department of Labor registers Machinist apprenticeships under RAPIDS occupation code 0296 with a typical term of 8,000 on-the-job-training hours plus 576 hours of Related Technical Instruction; Tool and Die Maker (RAPIDS 0295) typically requires 10,000 OJT hours (https://www.apprenticeship.gov/apprenticeship-job-finder). Community-college Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degrees in Machine Tool Technology are a common parallel or substitute pathway and frequently articulate into NIMS credentials. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM, https://goiam.org) represents machinists in parts of aerospace, defense, and rail, though most U.S. production machinists work in non-union shops. NTMA and the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA) both sponsor employer-led apprenticeships registered through DOL.
ADJACENT ROLES
Tool-and-die maker is the most demanding adjacent role, requiring roughly 10,000 OJT hours and tight-tolerance grinding, heat-treat, and fixture-building experience (https://www.bls.gov/ooh/production/machinists-and-tool-and-die-makers.htm). CNC programmer roles split into shop-floor edit/offset programmers and off-line CAM programmers; NIMS CNC Milling and CNC Turning Programmer credentials cover both (https://www.nims-skills.org/credentialing). Manual mill and lathe operator positions are still common in prototype, R&D, and repair shops. Quality-control and gauge inspector roles require formal GD&T training per ASME Y14.5-2018, Dimensioning and Tolerancing (https://www.asme.org/codes-standards/find-codes-standards/y14-5-dimensioning-tolerancing); ASME also publishes Y14.5.1 Mathematical Definition of Dimensioning and Tolerancing Principles. AS9100 (aerospace) and ISO 13485 (medical device) quality-system training are often required before a machinist is cleared to run regulated parts.