Sporting Goods Production Workers


Outlook

Employment Prospects

Employers

The Sports & Fitness Industry Association represents more than 1,000 sporting goods equipment manufacturers, retailers, and marketers in the United States. They employ more than 375,000 people at over 3,000 businesses, manufacturing plants, and distributions centers located throughout the United States and may be small companies or large conglomerates. The recent trend toward mergers has affected this industry; fewer companies are employing more workers.

Starting Out

Job seekers in this field can contact sporting goods manufacturers directly to learn whether or not they have any job openings. Other possibilities for job leads include checking the listings at the local offices of the state employment service and in the classified sections of newspapers. School career services offices can provide information about local companies that are looking for workers.

Advancement Prospects

Newly hired employees in sporting goods factories usually are assigned simple tasks. Trainees may acquire their job skills informally as they work beside and watch more experienced workers. Others may enter into a formal training program. Workers who have completed training for their job category and have shown they can meet production requirements may be able to move into higher paying production jobs as they become available.

In companies that are large and diversified, workers may advance to jobs in other divisions. Qualified employees may also move to positions as product inspectors or supervisors of other production workers. Moving into management jobs usually requires further experience, technical training, and formal education in business subjects.

Some knowledgeable, experienced people with new product ideas or an urge for independence may decide to start their own sporting goods production company. Setting up a new business in any field is a risky venture, however, and anyone who is interested in taking this step needs first to take a hard and informed look at the high costs involved, in addition to the potential benefits.

Tips for Entry

Visit http://www.sportscareers.com and https://www.linkedin.com/jobs/sporting-goods-industry-jobs.

Read Sporting Goods Intelligence (http://www.sginews.com) to learn more about the field.

Try to land an internship or entry-level job at a sporting goods manufacturer.