Jobs / Science and research / 19-4031.00
Chemical Technicians
Conduct chemical and physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative and quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, and gaseous materials for research and development of new products or processes, quality control, maintenance of environmental standards, and other work involving experimental, theoretical, or practical application of chemistry and related sciences.
- US jobs
- 57,540
- Median wage
- $60,390 a year
- Job family
- Science and research
Can agents do the work of chemical technicians?
We read the evidence at the level of the job family, Science and research:
- Task levelPartialThin evidence. CORE-Bench asks agents to reproduce the results of published papers in computer science, social science, and medicine from the authors' code and data. Princeton's HAL team declared it solved in December 2025: Claude Code with Claude Opus 4.5 scored 95.5% after manual regrading. No benchmark in our collection tests new experiments or lab work.
- Project levelNot yetThin evidence. On PaperBench, where agents replicate machine learning papers from scratch, the best official result is 26.0% (o1, April 2025). On a small subset, ML PhDs scored 41.4% against o1's 26.6%. No newer official results exist, and no benchmark tests research projects in other sciences.
Benchmarks for the job family
These cover work in science and research, not always this occupation's tasks.
- 95.5%Claude Code + Claude Opus 4.5 (after manual regrading) · 3 Dec 2025Solved
Typical tasks
From O*NET 31.0. Core tasks first. Few of these tasks have a benchmark today.
- Conduct chemical or physical laboratory tests to assist scientists in making qualitative or quantitative analyses of solids, liquids, or gaseous materials.
- Maintain, clean, or sterilize laboratory instruments or equipment.
- Monitor product quality to ensure compliance with standards and specifications.
- Set up and conduct chemical experiments, tests, and analyses, using techniques such as chromatography, spectroscopy, physical or chemical separation techniques, or microscopy.
- Prepare chemical solutions for products or processes, following standardized formulas, or create experimental formulas.
- Compile and interpret results of tests and analyses.
- Provide and maintain a safe work environment by participating in safety programs, committees, or teams and by conducting laboratory or plant safety audits.
- Provide technical support or assistance to chemists or engineers.
- Develop or conduct programs of sampling and analysis to maintain quality standards of raw materials, chemical intermediates, or products.
- Train new employees on topics such as the proper operation of laboratory equipment.
- Write technical reports or prepare graphs or charts to document experimental results.
- Order and inventory materials to maintain supplies.
Other job titles for this occupation (80)
Analytical Laboratory Technician (Analytical Lab Technician) · Chemical Analyst · Chemical Technician · Laboratory Analyst (Lab Analyst) · Laboratory Technician (Lab Tech) · Laboratory Tester (Lab Tester) · Organic Preparation Analyst (Organic Prep Analyst) · Quality Control Laboratory Technician (QC Lab Tech) · Quality Control Technician (QC Tech) · Research Technician · Analysis Tester · Analytical Technician · Assayer · Bleach Analyst · Chemical Analytical Sampler · Chemical Dependency Technician (Chemical Dependency Tech) · Chemical Engineering Technician · Chemical Laboratory Assistant (Chemical Lab Assistant) · Chemical Laboratory Technician (Chemical Lab Technician) · Chemical Laboratory Tester (Chemical Lab Tester) · Chemical Process Technician (Chemical Process Tech) · Chemical Research Worker · Chemical Tester · Chemist Assistant · Chemist Helper · Chemistry Lab Technician (Chemistry Laboratory Technician) · Chemistry QC Tech (Chemistry Quality Control Technician) · Chemistry Research Assistant · Chemistry Technician · Cloth Tester · Color Consultant · Color Maker · Color Maker Formulator · Color Matcher · Color Tester · Colorist · Colorist Formulator · Concrete Analyst · Concrete Technician · Concrete Tester · Control Analyst · Drug Testing Technician · Dry Color Tester · Dye Colorist Formulator · Dye Expert · Dye Lab Technician · Fiber Analyst · Field Laboratory Operator (Field Lab Operator) · Flue Gas Analyst · Formulation Technician · Formulator · Formulator Compounder · Gas Technician (Gas Tech) · Gold Assayer · Grey Goods Tester · Inorganic Chemical Technician · Laboratory Assistant (Lab Assistant) · Laboratory Chemical Assistant (Lab Chemical Assistant) · Laboratory Cureman (Lab Cureman) · Laboratory Worker (Lab Worker) · Landfill Gas Technician (Landfill Gas Tech) · Mass Spectrometrist · Materials Analyst · Measurement Technician (Measurement Tech) · Medical Lab Technician (Medical Laboratory Technician) · Natural Gas Technician (Natural Gas Tech) · Oil and Gas Analyst · Organic Preparation Technician (Organic Prep Technician) · Paint Formulator · Paint Laboratory Technician (Paint Lab Technician) · Paint Technician · Paint Tester · Perfumer · Plastic Technician · Polymer Tester · Process Development Associate · Pyrotechnist · Rayon Tester · Research and Development Associate (R & D Associate) · Rubber Compounder Formulator