Patternmaking
Everything OPM FedScope (June 2026) reports about the Patternmaking occupation series (code 4616): headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison.
The verdict
Patternmaking is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 31 employees (0.0% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Wood Work Family family. At an average salary of n/a it pays below the federal average.
- Headcount change
- 0.0%
- Pay change
- 0.0%
- Avg tenure
- 15.1 yrs
- Rank in family
- #6 of 6
FedScope read on Patternmaking (thin series)
On pay, the move between reporting periods was a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. On length of service, this series shows a long average tenure, typical of career federal roles where employees stay through much of a full career before retirement. Headcount moved sideways versus the prior period, though at this small a headcount, year-to-year swings can reflect a handful of hires or departures rather than a broad hiring trend.
Patternmaking sits inside the Wood Work Family family (code 46), which contains 6 related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Patternmaking postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Wood Work Family family. Across the Wood Work Family family, 1,585 employees work in 6 occupations; Patternmaking is 2.0% of that headcount.
Salary context · lean-pay series
How Patternmaking pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
n/a
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-100.0%
Where Patternmaking ranks on lean federal pay
Patternmaking earns more on average than 0% of federal occupation series (0 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Patternmaking sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Patternmaking.
Related Occupations in Wood Work Family
5 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carpentry | 925 | $76,725 | 11.8 yrs |
| Wood Crafting | 243 | $80,767 | 9.3 yrs |
| Wood Working | 220 | $69,184 | 11.5 yrs |
| Blocking and Bracing | 134 | n/a | 11.4 yrs |
| Miscellaneous Woodwork | 32 | $91,268 | 14.7 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this thin headcount
Two peer sets for Patternmaking outside the Wood Work Family family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar thin headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (31 here).
Similar lean average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families (n/a here).
Key takeaways
- Place Patternmaking pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Wood Work Family family occupations in the table above, or search current Patternmaking postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.