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The differences between grinders and saw operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a grinder has an average salary of $33,001, which is higher than the $32,319 average annual salary of a saw operator.
The top three skills for a grinder include grinders, hand tools and calipers. The most important skills for a saw operator are tape measure, hand tools, and basic math.
| Grinder | Saw Operator | |
| Yearly salary | $33,001 | $32,319 |
| Hourly rate | $15.87 | $15.54 |
| Growth rate | 1% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 3,409 | 58,465 |
| Job satisfaction | 4 | - |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 58% | High School Diploma, 56% |
| Average age | 48 | 45 |
| Years of experience | 4 | - |
Depending on the industry, a grinder has a diverse range of duties. Typically, they oversee setting up and operating bearing grinders, cam grinders, and CNC lathes. A grinder must meet with the manufacturer's specifications by making use of shop drawings. Additionally, they may be tasked with repairing any mechanical breakdowns on the machines.
Saw operators are responsible for setting up and operating power saws to slot, cut, and trim metallic and non-metallic materials. They are the ones who choose and install blades on machinery using hand-tools and verify dimensions of finished material using measuring devices. They may perform additional tasks such as loading saws and monitoring sawing operations, and replacing damaged or worn saw blades. Saw operators are also responsible for recording data on production reports and assisting staff with the maintenance and repair of saw equipment.
Grinders and saw operators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Grinder | Saw Operator | |
| Average salary | $33,001 | $32,319 |
| Salary range | Between $26,000 And $40,000 | Between $26,000 And $38,000 |
| Highest paying City | Tualatin, OR | Springfield, OR |
| Highest paying state | New Mexico | Oregon |
| Best paying company | Kennametal | Micro Metals Inc. |
| Best paying industry | Automotive | Construction |
There are a few differences between a grinder and a saw operator in terms of educational background:
| Grinder | Saw Operator | |
| Most common degree | High School Diploma, 58% | High School Diploma, 56% |
| Most common major | Precision Metal Working | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between grinders' and saw operators' demographics:
| Grinder | Saw Operator | |
| Average age | 48 | 45 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 91.3% Female, 8.7% | Male, 90.2% Female, 9.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.0% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.7% Asian, 6.3% White, 70.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 11.1% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 1.1% White, 65.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 6% |