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Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.

How does this connect to your interests? →

A look at the work

  • Operate extractors and driers, or direct their operation.
  • Remove items from washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to do so.
  • Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading.
  • Sort and count articles removed from dryers, and fold, wrap, or hang them.
  • Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, or extractors, and turn valves or levers to regulate machine processes and the volume of soap, detergent, water, bleach, starch, and other additives.
  • Examine and sort into lots articles to be cleaned, according to color, fabric, dirt content, and cleaning technique required.
  • Clean machine filters, and lubricate equipment.
  • Determine spotting procedures and proper solvents, based on fabric and stain types.

A selection of source-listed tasks; duties vary by role and employer.

Interests involved in this work

These source scores describe occupational work activities. They are separate from your personal test results.

Hands-on

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

6.4 / 7

Investigative

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

1.0 / 7

Creative

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

1.2 / 7

Helping people

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

1.4 / 7

Enterprising

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

1.5 / 7

Organizing

2026-02 · Machine Learning/Expert

4.3 / 7

Skills to explore

Source-reported importance on a 1–5 scale. Try a course, project or conversation to learn what these skills involve.

Active Listening

Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.

2026-08

2.9 / 5

Monitoring

Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

2026-08

2.9 / 5

Operation and Control

Controlling operations of equipment or systems.

2026-08

2.9 / 5

Time Management

Managing one's own time and the time of others.

2026-08

2.8 / 5

Critical Thinking

Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.

2026-08

2.8 / 5

Social Perceptiveness

Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.

2026-08

2.8 / 5

Speaking

Talking to others to convey information effectively.

2026-08

2.6 / 5

Coordination

Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.

2026-08

2.6 / 5

Operations Monitoring

Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.

2026-08

2.6 / 5

Reading Comprehension

Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.

2026-08

2.5 / 5

Plan a small next step

Talk to someone doing this work, look for a supervised activity, and explore the subjects that interest you. Admission, licensing and current program requirements should be confirmed with the relevant institutions.

Source preparation category: Job Zone 2 of 5 · 2026-08. This category describes typical preparation, not your eligibility.

Source & methodology

O*NET-SOC code 51-6011.00 · Database 31.0 · Retrieved Oct 14, 2026. Dates on individual observations describe their source periods.

How interest exploration matching works →

Data: O*NET® 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration. Used under CC BY 4.0. StudyIndex normalizes the presentation and adds exploration features; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these additions.