SOC 51-9022.00

    Grinding and Polishing Workers, Hand

    Grind, sand, or polish, using hand tools or hand-held power tools, a variety of metal, wood, stone, clay, plastic, or glass objects.

    Median pay
    $42,660
    Growth
    -19.2%
    Decline
    Openings a year
    700
    Typical education
    No formal credential

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections

    See the pathway

    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $33,480
    Median
    $42,660
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $60,810
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    10,510 people work in this occupation.

    What grinding and polishing workers, hand do

    Job Zone 2: Some preparation

    Grind, sand, or polish, using hand tools or hand-held power tools, a variety of metal, wood, stone, clay, plastic, or glass objects. Includes chippers, buffers, and finishers.

    Usually a high school diploma; some on-the-job training or experience.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R) · strongest
    100 / 100
    Investigative (I)
    9 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    17 / 100
    Social (S)
    1 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    0 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    38 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code RCA. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Performing General Physical Activities
    98
    Handling and Moving Objects
    97
    Controlling Machines and Processes
    97
    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    95
    Thinking Creatively
    95
    Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
    91
    Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
    89
    Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment
    87
    Getting Information
    82
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    81
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Quality Control Analysis
    • Operations Monitoring
    • Equipment Maintenance
    • Operation and Control
    • Repairing
    • Active Listening
    • Critical Thinking
    • Speaking
    • Troubleshooting
    • Complex Problem Solving

    Knowledge

    • Production and Processing
    • Mechanical
    • English Language
    • Mathematics
    • Education and Training
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Engineering and Technology
    • Administration and Management
    • Public Safety and Security
    • Computers and Electronics

    Abilities

    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
    • Control Precision
    • Finger Dexterity
    • Near Vision
    • Manual Dexterity
    • Multilimb Coordination
    • Information Ordering
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Selective Attention

    Work styles

    • Attention to Detail
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Perseverance
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Integrity
    • Self-Control
    • Stress Tolerance
    • Self-Confidence
    • Cooperation

    Also called

    Aircraft Skin Burnisher · Balance Wheel Arm Burnisher · Balance Wheel Hand Filer · Barrel Finisher · Beveler · Bit Shaver · Buffer · Burrer · Cabinet Finisher · Casting Finisher

    Your plan

    Build my pathway plan

    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

    All careers

    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.