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Embalmers in West Virginia
Thinking about a career as an Embalmers in West Virginia? Here’s what the data says. Prepare bodies for interment in conformity with legal requirements.
What do Embalmers Make in West Virginia?
For a embalmers working in West Virginia, wages run about $49,030 per year (or about $23.57/hour).Pay can range from $42,850 at the 10th percentile to $65,440 at the 90th percentile.
| Wage Statistic | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $42,850 | $20.60 |
| 25th percentile | $45,000 | $21.64 |
| Median (50th) | $49,030 | $23.57 |
| 75th percentile | $60,520 | $29.10 |
| 90th percentile | $65,440 | $31.46 |
The location quotient — a measure of how concentrated this occupation is in West Virginia relative to the national average — is 4.57, meaning that embalmers are more concentrated here than the national average.
National Wage Comparison
Nationally, embalmers earn a median of $35,965 per year ($17.29/hour), exceeding the West Virginia median.
Employment Outlook
There are roughly 496,805 embalmers in the U.S.. In West Virginia alone, approximately 70 people work in this role. That’s fewer than the typical state, which employs around 90 embalmers.
Top States for Embalmers Employment
View the states that employ the most embalmers work.
| State | Number Employed |
|---|---|
| Texas | 510 |
| California | 360 |
| Florida | 300 |
| Kentucky | 290 |
| Louisiana | 240 |
| Virginia | 150 |
| Kansas | 130 |
| Tennessee | 110 |
| South Carolina | 100 |
| Oregon | 90 |
| Ohio | 90 |
| Colorado | 90 |
| Missouri | 90 |
| West Virginia | 70 |
| Arkansas | 60 |
| Georgia | 60 |
| Mississippi | 60 |
| Oklahoma | 60 |
| New York | 40 |
| Washington | 30 |
Highest-Paying States for Embalmers
These states pay the most for embalmers.
| State | Annual Median Salary |
|---|---|
| Nebraska | $102,300 |
| Ohio | $76,180 |
| New York | $68,200 |
| North Carolina | $65,630 |
| Washington | $64,480 |
| Georgia | $62,840 |
| South Carolina | $60,480 |
| California | $60,040 |
| Tennessee | $60,000 |
| Colorado | $57,890 |
Skills
Key embalmers skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Knowledge Areas
Important knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Abilities
Top abilities for embalmers, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Daily Tasks
Day-to-day, embalmers typically:
- Conform to laws of health and sanitation and ensure that legal requirements concerning embalming are met.
- Apply cosmetics to impart lifelike appearance to the deceased.
- Join lips, using needles and thread or wire.
- Close incisions, using needles and sutures.
- Incise stomach and abdominal walls and probe internal organs, using trocar, to withdraw blood and waste matter from organs.
- Clean and disinfect areas in which bodies are prepared and embalmed.
- Dress bodies and place them in caskets.
- Make incisions in arms or thighs and drain blood from circulatory system and replace it with embalming fluid, using pump.
- Remove the deceased from place of death and transport to funeral home.
- Perform the duties of funeral directors, including coordinating funeral activities.
- Attach trocar to pump-tube, start pump, and repeat probing to force embalming fluid into organs.
- Reshape or reconstruct disfigured or maimed bodies when necessary, using dermasurgery techniques and materials such as clay, cotton, plaster of Paris, and wax.
Work Activities
- Assisting and Caring for Others
- Documenting/Recording Information
- Handling and Moving Objects
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems
- Getting Information
- Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards
- Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
- Processing Information
- Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
- Performing for or Working Directly with the Public
- Communicating with People Outside the Organization
- Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
Tools & Technology
Common tools and software used in this occupation include: Hot technologies: Microsoft Excel
What Major Will Prepare You For This Career?
Programs that train for this career include:
Related Careers
Careers similar to embalmers include:
- Funeral Home Managers
- Coroners
- Anesthesiologist Assistants
- Respiratory Therapists
- Registered Nurses
- Acute Care Nurses
Also Known As
Anatomical Embalmer, Arterial Embalmer, Embalmer, Funeral Embalmer, Funeral Services Embalmer, Licensed Embalmer, Restorative Art Embalmer, Trade Embalmer.
References
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
- BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- O*NET-SOC code: 39-4011.00
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