Occupational Employment and Wages, 2002

19-4021 Biological Technicians

Assist biological and medical scientists in laboratories. Set up, operate, and maintain laboratory instruments and equipment, monitor experiments, make observations, and calculate and record results. May analyze organic substances, such as blood, food, and drugs.

National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
State profile for this occupation
Metropolitan area 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)
45,630 2.7 % $16.65 $34,630 0.6 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $10.22 $12.49 $15.73 $19.98 $24.81
Annual Wage (2) $21,250 $25,980 $32,710 $41,550 $51,590

Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Scientific research and development services 14,800 $18.04 $37,530 1 12
Federal government (OES designation) 7,560 $14.83 $30,840 2 22
Pharmaceutical and medicine manufacturing 6,400 $18.69 $38,870 3 8
Colleges and universities 3,970 $14.51 $30,170 4 27
State government (OES designation) 2,850 $14.80 $30,780 5 23

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Employment rank Wage rank
Resin, rubber, and artificial fibers mfg. (6) $25.70 $53,460 (6) 1
Electronic markets and agents and brokers 50 $25.50 $53,040 27 2
Petroleum and coal products manufacturing 50 $21.53 $44,780 28 3
Druggists' goods merchant wholesalers (6) $21.38 $44,470 (6) 4
Chemical merchant wholesalers 40 $20.75 $43,160 31 5

State profile for this occupation: Top

States with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Alaska 680 $14.95 $31,100 0.237% 317
Washington 3,380 $17.12 $35,600 0.132% 383
Oregon 1,420 $14.39 $29,930 0.091% 399
Maryland 2,140 $16.81 $34,960 0.088% 340
Montana 320 $15.14 $31,500 0.082% 262

Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of State employment Wage rank within State
Delaware (6) $19.62 $40,820 (6) 186
Massachusetts 1,970 $19.43 $40,410 0.062% 305
California 6,030 $18.54 $38,560 0.042% 352
New Jersey 2,500 $17.79 $37,000 0.065% 373
Pennsylvania 2,730 $17.73 $36,870 0.049% 310

Metropolitan area profile for this occupation: Top

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of workers in this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Gainesville, FL MSA 330 $13.72 $28,540 0.270%
New Haven-Meriden, CT PMSA 610 $16.34 $33,990 0.242%
Athens, GA MSA 150 $16.39 $34,080 0.216%
Yolo, CA PMSA 160 $15.19 $31,600 0.181%
Middlesex-Somerset-Hunterdon, NJ PMSA 1,090 $19.50 $40,550 0.174%

Top paying Metropolitan areas for this occupation:

MSA Employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage Percent of MSA employment
Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC MSA (6) $24.04 $50,010 (6)
San Jose, CA PMSA 770 $23.16 $48,170 0.086%
San Francisco, CA PMSA 540 $22.83 $47,490 0.054%
Lawrence, MA-NH PMSA (6) $22.80 $47,420 (6)
Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC MSA 40 $21.18 $44,060 0.009%

About 2002 National, State, and Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

To see profiles of other occupations, select from the major groups below:

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors in metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas in every State and the District of Columbia. The top five employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable Excel files(XLS).

Percentile wage estimates show the percentage of workers in an occupation that earn less than a given wage and the percentage that earn more. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Data for detailed occupations does not sum to the totals because the totals include data for occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(6) Estimates not released.

All Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations

2002 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 Metropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

2002 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

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Download 2002 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped Excel files

Technical notes

 

Last Modified Date: November 26, 2003