Salary of a Nebraska Gold Miner
When gold was discovered in California in 1848, the Gold Rush quickly followed. Thousands of individuals and families made the often dangerous trek out west in hopes of making their fortune in one of the many gold mines. Although the Gold Rush officially came to a close within a decade, active gold mines still exist today throughout the western United States. While you may not make a fortune working as a Nebraska gold miner, you can make an above-average living.
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Gold Mining
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Metal ore mining, which includes gold mining, requires a substantial amount of rock and earth to be removed in order to locate the gold. Finding a large "chunk" of gold is actually fairly rare. More commonly, gold is found in small trace amounts referred to as ore. Gold mines can be found above or below ground and are typically large, and deep if underground. In order to get to the ore, the surrounding rock must be blasted and carried out of the mine. Once removed, the rock is sifted and washed to locate the ore.
Job Requirements and Outlook
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A miner often has to work in harsh and dangerous conditions. There are no educational requirements for a position as a gold miner, although a high school diploma may be preferred. You must be over the age of 18, in good physical condition and able to pass a drug test. Safety is very important in the mining industry and yearly safety classes are often required of workers. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in the mining industry is expected to decline, with only 39,900 jobs reported in the metal ore mining industry for 2008.
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Salary
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Because of the intrinsically dangerous nature of the job, gold miners tend to make more per hour than other positions that do not require any formal education. The average hourly wage for a metal ore miner as of 2008 was $25.94, according to the U.S. BLS. In addition, overtime is common in the industry, which increases the salary. Although the BLS gives no specific figures for Nebraska, Nebraska's median income tends to fall very close to the national median income, which suggests that the wage for a gold miner in Nebraska may be on a par with the national average hourly wage.
Considerations
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Many Nebraska gold miners belong to a union, which provides numerous benefits apart from their hourly wage such as medical and life insurance and a pension plan for retirement. In addition, as a miner gains experience, advancement is possible. A simple worker can advance to a machine operator position, a job which earns a higher hourly wage.
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