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Gem and Diamond Workers in New York
Thinking about a career as a Gem and Diamond Workers in New York? Here’s what you need to know. Design, fabricate, adjust, repair, or appraise jewelry, gold, silver, other precious metals, or gems. Includes diamond polishers and gem cutters, and persons who perform precision casting and modeling of molds, casting metal in molds, or setting precious and semiprecious stones for jewelry and related products.
What do Gem and Diamond Workers Make in New York?
For gem and diamond workers working in New York, wages run about $50,890 per year (or about $24.47/hour).Pay can range from $35,990 at the 10th percentile to $98,870 at the 90th percentile.
| Wage Statistic | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $35,990 | $17.30 |
| 25th percentile | $36,670 | $17.63 |
| Median (50th) | $50,890 | $24.47 |
| 75th percentile | $79,280 | $38.11 |
| 90th percentile | $98,870 | $47.53 |
Location quotient — how concentrated this career is in New York compared to the national average — is 3.28, suggesting that gem and diamond workers are more concentrated here than the national average.
National Wage Comparison
Nationally, gem and diamond workers earn a median of $66,671 per year ($32.05/hour), below the New York median.
Employment Outlook
National employment for 768,022 gem and diamond workers across the United States. In New York alone, around 4,750 people work in this role. That puts the state above the typical state, which employs around 270 gem and diamond workers.
Top New York Metros for Gem and Diamond Workers
The metro areas below employ the most gem and diamond workers in New York.
| Metro Area | Number Employed | Annual Median Salary |
|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 5,010 | $49,020 |
| Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | 90 | $48,360 |
| Rochester, NY | 90 | $37,690 |
| Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY | 60 | $47,040 |
| Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY | 50 | $45,210 |
| Syracuse, NY | 40 | $50,160 |
Top States for Gem and Diamond Workers Employment
View the states that employ the most gem and diamond workers work.
| State | Number Employed |
|---|---|
| New York | 4,750 |
| California | 2,700 |
| Texas | 1,780 |
| Florida | 1,160 |
| Illinois | 990 |
| Washington | 850 |
| New Jersey | 850 |
| Rhode Island | 620 |
| Massachusetts | 550 |
| Ohio | 530 |
| Pennsylvania | 530 |
| Utah | 480 |
| Tennessee | 450 |
| Michigan | 440 |
| North Carolina | 430 |
| Wisconsin | 380 |
| Arizona | 360 |
| Colorado | 350 |
| Kentucky | 350 |
| Virginia | 350 |
Highest-Paying States for Gem and Diamond Workers
These states pay the most for gem and diamond workers.
| State | Annual Median Salary |
|---|---|
| Virginia | $60,940 |
| Washington | $60,030 |
| Connecticut | $59,930 |
| California | $59,100 |
| Vermont | $57,360 |
| New Hampshire | $56,710 |
| Florida | $56,470 |
| Kansas | $55,430 |
| Missouri | $54,650 |
| Wisconsin | $54,080 |
Skills
Top gem and diamond workers skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Knowledge Areas
Core knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Abilities
Top abilities for gem and diamond workers, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:
Daily Tasks
Day-to-day, gem and diamond workers typically:
- Examine gems during processing to ensure accuracy of angles and positions of cuts or bores, using magnifying glasses, loupes, or shadowgraphs.
- Assign polish, symmetry, and clarity grades to stones, according to established grading systems.
- Estimate wholesale and retail value of gems, following pricing guides, market fluctuations, and other relevant economic factors.
- Examine gem surfaces and internal structures, using polariscopes, refractometers, microscopes, and other optical instruments, to differentiate between stones, to identify rare specimens, or to detect flaws, defects, or peculiarities affecting gem values.
- Identify and document stones' clarity characteristics, using plot diagrams.
- Advise customers and others on the best use of gems to create attractive jewelry items.
- Examine diamonds or gems to ascertain the shape, cut, and width of cut stones, or to select the cuts that will result in the biggest, best quality stones.
- Immerse stones in prescribed chemical solutions to determine specific gravities and key properties of gemstones or substitutes.
- Hold stones, gems, dies, or styluses against rotating plates, wheels, saws, or slitters to cut, shape, slit, grind, or polish them.
- Sort rough diamonds into categories based on shape, size, color, and quality.
- Secure gems or diamonds in holders, chucks, dops, lapidary sticks, or blocks for cutting, polishing, grinding, drilling, or shaping.
- Measure sizes of stones' bore holes and cuts to ensure adherence to specifications, using precision measuring instruments.
Work Activities
- Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information
- Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People
- Thinking Creatively
- Making Decisions and Solving Problems
- Handling and Moving Objects
- Getting Information
- Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
- Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
- Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
- Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
- Monitoring and Controlling Resources
- Documenting/Recording Information
Tools & Technology
Technologies frequently used:
- Business accounting software (accounting software)
- Gem identification databases (data base user interface and query software)
- GemCad (computer aided design cad software)
- Inventory tracking software (inventory management software)
- Jewelry design software (computer aided design cad software)
- Spectrophotometer analysis software (analytical or scientific software)
- Web browser software (internet browser software)
What Major Will Prepare You For This Career?
Programs that train for this career include:
Related Careers
Related occupations to gem and diamond workers include:
- Rock Splitters, Quarry
- Watch and Clock Repairers
- Timing Device Assemblers and Adjusters
- Grinding, Lapping, Polishing, and Buffing Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
- Lathe and Turning Machine Tool Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
- Milling and Planing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
Also Known As
Brilliandeer, Brilliandeer Lopper, Clarity Expert, Diamond Assorter, Diamond Cleaner, Diamond Cleaver, Diamond Cutter, Diamond Die Driller, Diamond Die Polisher, Diamond Driller, Diamond Grader, Diamond Heister, Diamond Mounter, Diamond Picker, Diamond Polisher.
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: 51-9071.06
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