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Glass and Ceramics Plant Operators: Jobs in Demand in Europe (2025)

Glass and Ceramics Plant Operators is an official occupation group (ISCO-08 code 8181) used by the International Labour Organization and Eurostat.

  • Brick kiln operator
  • Ceramics painting machine operator
  • Clay mixing machine operator
  • Extruding clay press operator
  • Furnace operator (glass production)
  • Glass blowing machine operator
  • Glass mixing machine operator
  • Glass production furnace operator
  • Pottery kiln operator
  • Tile kiln operator
7European countries report a shortage (EURES 2025)
2countries report a surplus
140open job ads right now in Germany and Sweden
8181ISCO-08 occupation code
Short answerIn the 2025 EURES report on labour shortages, 7 European countries reported a shortage of glass and ceramics plant operators: Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Latvia and Slovakia. 2 reported a surplus: Austria and Finland.

Latest glass and ceramics plant operators job ads

Real vacancies from the official public employment services, updated daily. Job titles are translated into English automatically; the full ad opens on the official site in German or Swedish (your browser's translate button turns it into English).

Germany

137 open ads

Source: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (German Federal Employment Agency). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Germany

Sweden

3 open ads

Source: Arbetsförmedlingen (Swedish Public Employment Service). Ads are written by employers; Placeivo does not check them. See all ads in Sweden

Where glass and ceramics plant operators are needed in Europe

CountryEURES 2025Average gross pay, all plant and machine operators and assemblers (2022)1-bed rent in the capital
BulgariaShortage€626 a monthSofia: €650
CzechiaShortage€1,285 a monthPrague: €1,250
DenmarkShortage€4,773 a month *Copenhagen: €1,800
GermanyShortage€2,907 a monthBerlin: €1,350
ItalyShortage€2,300 a month *Rome: €1,300
LatviaShortage€1,221 a monthRiga: €870
SlovakiaShortage€1,230 a monthBratislava: €910
AustriaSurplus€3,040 a month *Vienna: €1,250
FinlandSurplus€3,361 a month *Helsinki: €1,150

Pay: Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey 2022, mean gross monthly earnings of all plant and machine operators and assemblers in each country, in euros. This is the average for the whole occupation group, not for glass and ceramics plant operators alone, and before tax. * Firms with 10 or more employees only. Rent: Eurostat, good-quality 1-bedroom flat in the capital, 2025.

What glass and ceramics plant operators do

Glass and ceramics plant operators operate and monitor kilns, furnaces and other machinery and equipment used in the manufacture of glass, ceramics, porcelain, tiles or bricks. They operate machines to anneal, harden or decorate glass and ceramics.

Typical tasks

  • Operating and monitoring glass-making furnaces to make glass by melting and fusing pre-mixed ingredients
  • Tending hot- or cold-end spray equipment used to coat glassware with surface hardener
  • Operating and maintaining machines that press or blow molten glass in moulds to form or shape containers, such as bottles, jars and drinking glasses
  • Operating hand press to mould glass into required shape
  • Operating drawing kiln to process molten glass into continuous sheet of flat glass
  • Operating and monitoring floating-glass production plant
  • Operating and maintaining finishing machines to grind, drill, sand, bevel, decorate, wash or polish glass or glass products
  • Setting and operating press machines to mould ceramic articles from moist clay
  • Operating machines to mix clay with water to knead it into a suitable plastic condition or semi-liquid form for making ceramic products
  • Operating and monitoring kilns which bake pottery, porcelain ware bricks and tiles
  • Operating and monitoring machines for making glaze or abrasives
  • Operating and monitoring machines which extrude molten glass to form fibreglass filaments
  • Observing finished products to identify splits, cracks, breaks, colour and other imperfections

Finding glass and ceramics plant operators jobs in Europe

Search all EU vacancies on EURES Check if your job is regulated
  • EURES is the official job portal of the EU public employment services. The search above looks for "Tile kiln operator".
  • Some jobs are regulated professions: before you can work, your qualification may need to be recognised in the new country.
  • If you are not an EU/EEA citizen you will usually need a work permit or a visa such as the EU Blue Card. Check the rules of the country's immigration authority.

Cost of living where the jobs are

Take-home pay needed to rent a good 1-bedroom flat in the capitals of countries reporting a shortage:

SofiaPragueCopenhagenBerlinRomeRigaBratislava

About this data

  • Shortage and surplus: European Labour Authority, EURES Report on labour shortages and surpluses 2025, annex table 21 (published 2026). Each country's public employment service reports which occupations it finds hard to fill or in oversupply. Countries not listed did not report this occupation as either.
  • Definition, tasks and job titles: International Labour Organization, ISCO-08 structure and definitions.
  • Pay: Eurostat, Structure of Earnings Survey 2022 (earn_ses22_48), by occupation group.
  • Job ads: Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Germany) and Arbetsförmedlingen (Sweden), refreshed about once a day.

See all jobs in demand in Europe · Methodology