Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

19-4031 Chemical Technicians

Conduct chemical and physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative and quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, and gaseous materials for research and development of new products or processes, quality control, maintenance of environmental standards, and other work involving experimental, theoretical, or practical application of chemistry and related sciences.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
65,760	1.8 %	$25.44	$52,910	0.7 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$14.96	$18.13	$23.68	$30.87	$38.63
Annual Wage (2)	$31,110	$37,700	$49,260	$64,200	$80,350

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only)	13,020	3.57	$28.56	$59,410
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	12,300	0.82	$21.28	$44,260
Scientific Research and Development Services	6,080	0.86	$28.78	$59,860
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing	5,360	1.80	$23.99	$49,890
Chemical Manufacturing (3255 and 3256 only)	3,740	2.14	$23.96	$49,830

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Chemical Manufacturing (3251, 3252, 3253, and 3259 only)	13,020	3.57	$28.56	$59,410
Chemical Manufacturing (3255 and 3256 only)	3,740	2.14	$23.96	$49,830
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing	5,360	1.80	$23.99	$49,890
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing	1,860	1.66	$31.24	$64,990
Metal Ore Mining	580	1.38	$30.28	$62,980

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution	740	0.19	$37.22	$77,410
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation)	50	(7)	$36.24	$75,370
Oil and Gas Extraction	320	0.23	$31.97	$66,500
Petroleum and Coal Products Manufacturing	1,860	1.66	$31.24	$64,990
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	60	(7)	$30.38	$63,180

Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Texas	7,350	0.59	1.32	$29.28	$60,900
California	6,510	0.37	0.84	$24.38	$50,720
New Jersey	3,850	0.94	2.10	$29.41	$61,170
Pennsylvania	3,230	0.55	1.22	$23.42	$48,710
Illinois	2,790	0.46	1.03	$26.51	$55,130

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Delaware	640	1.42	3.17	$30.05	$62,500
Louisiana	2,540	1.32	2.95	$31.53	$65,590
Wyoming	310	1.15	2.56	$25.09	$52,180
West Virginia	770	1.10	2.45	$26.99	$56,140
New Jersey	3,850	0.94	2.10	$29.41	$61,170

Top paying States for this occupation:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska	90	0.27	0.61	$32.30	$67,190
District of Columbia	60	0.08	0.18	$31.87	$66,280
Louisiana	2,540	1.32	2.95	$31.53	$65,590
Delaware	640	1.42	3.17	$30.05	$62,500
New Jersey	3,850	0.94	2.10	$29.41	$61,170

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	4,460	0.46	1.03	$27.85	$57,930
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	3,280	1.07	2.40	$30.82	$64,100
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	2,200	0.77	1.71	$29.61	$61,590
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	2,200	0.47	1.05	$25.12	$52,250
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	2,030	0.32	0.73	$25.16	$52,320
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	1,370	0.50	1.11	$25.02	$52,030
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	1,280	0.65	1.45	$25.59	$53,230
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	1,260	0.45	1.00	$26.40	$54,920
San Diego-Carlsbad, CA	1,110	0.74	1.65	$22.79	$47,400
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	1,010	0.41	0.91	$26.91	$55,980

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Kankakee, IL	290	6.52	14.56	$26.50	$55,130
Lake Charles, LA	520	4.50	10.05	(8)	(8)
Beaumont-Port Arthur, TX	720	4.50	10.05	$34.35	$71,440
Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA	460	3.94	8.79	$25.83	$53,720
Parkersburg-Vienna, WV	120	3.08	6.89	$32.69	$68,000
Idaho Falls, ID	170	2.49	5.56	$28.84	$59,980
Danbury, CT	170	2.22	4.96	$24.09	$50,120
Baton Rouge, LA	870	2.20	4.91	$34.53	$71,820
Decatur, AL	120	2.19	4.88	$26.47	$55,070
Midland, TX	200	1.84	4.10	$27.08	$56,320