Lake Orion, Michigan has an open contract-to-hire for a FANUC robot programmer. It starts November 23, runs five months, is onsite on the day shift, and pays $52 an hour, with overtime and double time both at $62.40. A $68 a day per diem applies on the out-of-state install portion, not while working in Michigan. The customer sees your work on the line first, and if they want you full time there is no placement fee and no conversion fee.
In this article
- What does the Lake Orion contract involve?
- How does a contract-to-hire work?
- How do you apply?
- Why try a professional on real work first?
- What if you need to hire a programmer yourself?
- What else is worth reading?
- Quick answers
What does the FANUC contract in Lake Orion involve?
The posting asks for a robot programmer with previous FANUC programming experience. The application listed is material handling, so expect robots moving parts through a production cell. The customer also asks about vision experience, and the interview questions go into how you have programmed FANUC robots before.
The details at a glance: Lake Orion, Michigan. A contract-to-hire. Starts November 23, 2026 and runs five months. Onsite, day shift, ten hours a day, five days a week. One professional is needed. The full posting is at AutomateAmerica.com/contracts/4336.
The pay is shown on the page: $52 an hour base, $62.40 overtime and $62.40 double time. Part of the project installs out of state. The per diem ($68 a day) and travel expenses apply on the out-of-state install portion, not while working in Michigan; the posting lists each expense row, so read them before you apply.
The posting sets its must-haves as plain yes-or-no questions: that you are located and authorized to work in the US, that you have previous FANUC robot programming experience, and that you will take the project as posted. Everything else is a written answer.
How does a contract-to-hire work?
A contract-to-hire is an hourly contract that can turn into a full-time job. You are engaged for the contract and paid the posted rate for the hours you work. During those five months the customer watches the work in real conditions, and you see the plant, the crew and the line from the inside.
If the fit is right on both sides, the customer can make an offer to bring you on full time. There is no placement fee and no conversion fee when that happens. Nothing is decided on day one, and nothing is decided on paper alone.
That is the difference from a typical hire, where the decision comes first and the discovery comes later. Here, both of you learn the answer by doing the work, before anyone has to commit.
How do you apply on Automate America?
Start with your profile. Sign in or register, then fill in your FANUC experience, your skills and your finished contracts. Do not post your resume; post your profile. Customers read it before they talk to you, so write it the way you would explain your work to a plant manager.
Open the contract, answer the posting's questions once, and apply. The rate is the rate: on a posted contract you are paid the rate shown on the page, with no bidding and no negotiating. Nothing is committed until you click Accept Offer.
You can also let your own AI agent find contracts like this one and apply for you once you confirm, whether you use ChatGPT, Claude, Muse or Grok. You do not even have to use the site.
Applications are seen as they arrive. How quickly a contract fills depends on the rate, the location and the dates, so apply while it is open.
Why try a professional on real work first?
An interview shows how someone talks about robots. Five months on the line shows how they program, troubleshoot and work with the crew when a cell stops at an awkward moment. There is only one way to know if someone fits, and it is to watch them do the job.
It works for the professional too. You get to judge the plant, the shift, the way they run the line and the people before you give up your freedom to take other contracts. Your profile keeps building as you go, with a finished contract, a rating and a review from a customer who saw the work.
The same thinking runs through our earlier piece on why contract-to-hire makes sense. For another contract-to-hire in a different trade, read about the three-month controls contract in Vancouver.
Professionals who mark themselves available show in green on the map, so a customer searching right now can see who is free. Every published profile is on the professionals page, and a finished contract here is one more reason for the next customer to trust yours.
What if you need to hire a robot programmer yourself?
Customers: if you are weighing a full-time hire, ask what a specialist costs you in the months there is nothing for them to do. A contract-to-hire lets you try a professional on real work first, with no placement fee and no conversion fee if you decide to keep them. Get the expert for the project, then decide about the payroll.
Posting is free. You post at the rate you want, and the rate you post is the rate the professional is paid. You can post anonymously, so the public listing shows the work and never your company name or logo.
Professionals who know the machines apply to you directly, with profiles that show finished contracts, ratings, reviews and endorsements. We carry the marketing: your contract is written, designed, published and pushed across our channels. Start at the post page, or search the professionals page and request someone directly.
It works onsite, remote or hybrid, from an emergency call-out to a year-long engagement, anywhere in the world. Companies can see how it fits their own needs on the companies page.
What else is worth reading before you apply?
Other open contracts are listed on the open contracts page. For a shorter FANUC engagement, read about the two-week FANUC contract in Auburn Hills. More stories are on the Automate America blog.
To sharpen the skills the posting names, FANUC America training and the courses at ISA training are good places to start. The International Society of Automation is the professional association for people in the field, and the International Federation of Robotics press releases follow robot installations around the world.
Quick answers
Where is the FANUC robot programmer contract-to-hire?
In Lake Orion, Michigan. It is onsite, on the day shift.
What does it pay?
$52 an hour base, $62.40 overtime and $62.40 double time. A $68 a day per diem applies on the out-of-state install portion, not while working in Michigan. The rate you see is the rate you are paid.
When does it start and how long is it?
It starts November 23 and runs five months.
Is there a fee if the customer hires the professional full time?
No. There is no placement fee and no conversion fee.
Questions before you apply? Email Info@AutomateAmerica.com or Text 586-770-8083.
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Tony Wallace
TonyW@AutomateAmerica.com
AutomateAmerica.com | Info@AutomateAmerica.com | Text 586-770-8083
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