What Does an Automotive Shop Supervisor Do?
Whether the shop serves a dealership, a city fleet or a university motor pool, automotive shop supervisors need to be able to get repairs done right and on schedule, such as a brake job promised for noon. Most still work hands-on as members of the crew, handing out repair orders to technicians and checking finished jobs in a busy shop.
Also known as: Automotive Foreman, Automotive Supervisor
Other Job Titles for This Work
Workers in this occupation report titles such as Electrical and Instrumentation Supervisor (E and I Supervisor), Facilities Maintenance Supervisor, Facility Maintenance Supervisor, Maintenance Coordinator, Maintenance Foreman, Maintenance Manager, Maintenance Planner, Maintenance Superintendent.
Automotive Shop Supervisor Duties and Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of an automotive shop supervisor include:
- Assign repair orders to technicians by skill, workload and promised completion time.
- Road-test and inspect finished repairs before vehicles return to customers or fleet users.
- Diagnose difficult electrical and drivability problems alongside technicians.
- Schedule preventive maintenance for fleet vehicles and track due dates by mileage or hours.
- Order parts and approve outside repairs, keeping spending within the shop budget.
- Train new technicians on equipment, procedures and manufacturer service updates.
- Enforce lift, hazardous waste and protective equipment rules on the shop floor.
- Review technician time and billed labor hours on each job; approve overtime.
- Keep service records current in shop software such as Mitchell 1 or a fleet management system.
- Handle warranty claims and customer complaints about repeat repairs.
Required Skills and Qualifications
To succeed as an automotive shop supervisor, you will need the following skills and qualifications:
- ASE certification, Master Technician preferred
- Diagnosis with scan tools and wiring diagrams
- Shop software such as Mitchell 1 or ALLDATA
- Scheduling and workload planning
- Budgeting and parts cost control
- Coaching and leading technicians
- OSHA safety and EPA waste rules for repair shops
- Calm, straight talk with customers
Education and Training
In addition to several years of repair work after high school or a vocational program, many employers require supervisors to be ASE certified. Some start out running a lube bay. Experience as a lead technician could lead to a foreman's post.
Salary and Job Outlook
Typical pay: $62,690 - $101,360 per year, with a median of $79,860.
The range covers the middle half of earners nationwide. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers.
BLS projects employment of first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers and repairers, a wide group that runs from auto shops to telecom crews, to grow about 4 percent from 2025 to 2035. Across the whole group, BLS expects about 48,900 openings a year, many of them as supervisors retire. Skilled technicians who can lead are well placed.
Outlook source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035, First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers.
Automotive Shop Supervisor Pay Range
| Earners | Annual pay |
|---|---|
| Bottom 10% earn less than | $49,600 |
| Bottom 25% earn less than | $62,690 |
| Median (half earn more, half less) | $79,860 |
| Top 25% earn more than | $101,360 |
| Top 10% earn more than | $126,790 |
Highest-Paying States for Automotive Shop Supervisors
The states with the highest median pay for this occupation are Alaska ($98,110), Washington ($94,420), Connecticut ($94,050), California ($93,660), New Jersey ($92,680). Pay is lowest in Arkansas ($71,460), West Virginia ($71,360), Mississippi ($70,900).
Median pay in all 51 states with BLS data
| State | Median annual pay |
|---|---|
| Alabama | $74,830 |
| Alaska | $98,110 |
| Arizona | $76,240 |
| Arkansas | $71,460 |
| California | $93,660 |
| Colorado | $83,260 |
| Connecticut | $94,050 |
| Delaware | $83,250 |
| District of Columbia | $83,460 |
| Florida | $75,900 |
| Georgia | $77,010 |
| Hawaii | $87,550 |
| Idaho | $74,940 |
| Illinois | $83,180 |
| Indiana | $79,650 |
| Iowa | $78,340 |
| Kansas | $78,390 |
| Kentucky | $76,760 |
| Louisiana | $75,550 |
| Maine | $79,260 |
| Maryland | $82,330 |
| Massachusetts | $92,250 |
| Michigan | $77,810 |
| Minnesota | $87,160 |
| Mississippi | $70,900 |
| Missouri | $77,470 |
| Montana | $81,440 |
| Nebraska | $77,850 |
| Nevada | $79,860 |
| New Hampshire | $87,560 |
| New Jersey | $92,680 |
| New Mexico | $77,550 |
| New York | $91,150 |
| North Carolina | $76,800 |
| North Dakota | $90,600 |
| Ohio | $78,730 |
| Oklahoma | $77,040 |
| Oregon | $86,970 |
| Pennsylvania | $79,400 |
| Rhode Island | $78,840 |
| South Carolina | $75,120 |
| South Dakota | $80,810 |
| Tennessee | $75,830 |
| Texas | $76,760 |
| Utah | $78,930 |
| Vermont | $83,050 |
| Virginia | $80,770 |
| Washington | $94,420 |
| West Virginia | $71,360 |
| Wisconsin | $82,570 |
| Wyoming | $87,460 |
What the Work Is Like
O*NET surveys people who work as first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers about their daily conditions. Of those surveyed:
- 88% say being exact and accurate is very or extremely important
- 86% are on the phone every day
- 86% say teamwork is very or extremely important in their job
- 82% use email every day
- 71% use their hands on tools, objects or controls for more than half the day
- 61% wear safety gear such as gloves, safety glasses or a hard hat every day
- 54% have a lot of freedom to make decisions
Education Workers Say the Job Needs
| Education level | Share of workers |
|---|---|
| High school diploma or GED | 54% |
| Some college | 17% |
| Post-secondary certificate | 13% |
| Bachelor's degree | 8% |
Tools and Software Automotive Shop Supervisors Use
Tools and equipment
Software
Is This Job a Good Fit for You?
People who do well in this job tend to enjoy leading, persuading and making business decisions as well as organized work with data, records and clear procedures.
Skills O*NET rates most important: Monitoring, Management of Personnel Resources, Speaking, Critical Thinking, Coordination, Judgment and Decision Making.
Knowledge areas used most: Administration and Management, Mechanical, Customer and Personal Service, Administrative, Personnel and Human Resources.
Preparation: O*NET places this occupation in Job Zone 3 of 5, which means medium preparation.
Related Careers
These jobs use similar skills, according to O*NET's related-occupation data:
Applying for an Automotive Shop Supervisor Job
- Job application letter sample
- How to write the skills section of a resume
- How to describe your work experience
- Job interview tips
- Interview thank-you note
The Job Explorer never charges candidates any money. If someone asks you to pay to apply for a automotive shop supervisor job or to get hired, treat it as a warning sign.
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections, 2025 to 2035.
- O*NET 30.1 Database, occupation 49-1011.00 (First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers). View on O*NET OnLine.
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. The Job Explorer has modified some of the information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these changes.