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Occupational Employment Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

29-2081 Opticians, Dispensing

Design, measure, fit, and adapt lenses and frames for client according to written optical prescription or specification. Assist client with inserting, removing, and caring for contact lenses. Assist client with selecting frames. Measure customer for size of eyeglasses and coordinate frames with facial and eye measurements and optical prescription. Prepare work order for optical laboratory containing instructions for grinding and mounting lenses in frames. Verify exactness of finished lens spectacles. Adjust frame and lens position to fit client. May shape or reshape frames. Includes contact lens opticians.

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)
72,330 2.2 % $19.58 $40,730 0.8 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median) 		75% 90%
Hourly Wage $12.33 $14.45 $18.19 $23.64 $29.25
Annual Wage (2) $25,640 $30,050 $37,840 $49,170 $60,840

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)
Offices of Other Health Practitioners 30,430 3.18 $18.47 $38,420
Health and Personal Care Stores 21,650 2.04 $19.64 $40,850
Offices of Physicians 7,450 0.28 $20.51 $42,660
Outpatient Care Centers 1,560 0.16 (8) (8)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 290 0.01 $21.75 $45,240

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Other Health Practitioners 30,430 3.18 $18.47 $38,420
Health and Personal Care Stores 21,650 2.04 $19.64 $40,850
Offices of Physicians 7,450 0.28 $20.51 $42,660
Outpatient Care Centers 1,560 0.16 (8) (8)
Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing 100 0.11 $23.70 $49,290

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers (8) (8) $29.73 $61,840
Employment Services (8) (8) $26.39 $54,900
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools 270 0.01 $24.05 $50,020
Commercial and Service Industry Machinery Manufacturing 100 0.11 $23.70 $49,290
Medical Equipment and Supplies Manufacturing 90 0.03 $23.58 $49,040

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)
California 8,050 0.46 0.94 $22.42 $46,620
Texas 6,390 0.51 1.04 $17.11 $35,590
Florida 4,070 0.46 0.94 $20.82 $43,300
Michigan 3,590 0.83 1.68 $17.34 $36,070
Ohio 3,240 0.59 1.21 $20.43 $42,490




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)
South Dakota 560 1.32 2.69 $15.83 $32,930
Delaware 420 0.93 1.88 $18.08 $37,610
North Dakota 380 0.90 1.83 $18.02 $37,470
Montana 390 0.83 1.68 $17.46 $36,320
Michigan 3,590 0.83 1.68 $17.34 $36,070




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New Jersey 1,720 0.42 0.85 $29.57 $61,520
District of Columbia (8) (8) (8) $27.97 $58,170
Connecticut 600 0.36 0.74 $27.10 $56,360
New York 2,840 0.30 0.61 $26.28 $54,670
Alaska 130 0.41 0.83 $26.01 $54,110





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 3,020 0.31 0.64 $28.11 $58,460
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 2,940 0.47 0.96 $23.40 $48,670
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 2,290 0.49 0.99 $17.01 $35,370
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 1,840 0.50 1.02 $18.86 $39,230
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI 1,770 0.89 1.81 $17.80 $37,030
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 1,770 0.58 1.17 $17.48 $36,370
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 1,380 0.43 0.88 $24.62 $51,210
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 1,300 0.49 1.00 $19.45 $40,460
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 1,250 0.63 1.29 $19.80 $41,190
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 1,100 0.45 0.91 $24.44 $50,840