[Jewelry making - Article 00520] - Re: [Orchid] Certified Bench Jeweler

[David L. Huffman]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========


    Hi Stanley; I'd like to cast a little different light on your
    arguments, with all due respect . . . 

>             Interesting conversation.  To me though, joining a union is
>     kind of like paying somebody for your job.  I believe you should be
>     able to get what you're worth on your own merits. 

    Actually, what you pay a union for (when it's doing it's intended
    job, that is), is for their representing you in collective
    bargaining.  They are really best suited for dealing with employers
    with large work forces.  Large employers usually have, as their
    resource, the ability to concentrate capital, usually through
    investors.  They can make an entire town dependant on their largess
    or lack of it.  Labor has only the ability, especially in low skilled
    jobs, to bargain as a collective entity, thereby concentrating and
    controlling their contribution to the supply side of the equation. 
    I'm not saying jewelers should unionize to beat up on small
    retailers.  I'm saying that with a union (assuming we could have one
    that wasn't just another way for organized crime to make inroads into
    legitimate businesses), we could have some better standards for who
    could call themselves a jeweler, and eventually create a little hedge
    to keep exploited cheap labor from destroying the entire financial
    viability of this industry.  Imagine the competitive edge of a
    product stamped "Union Made" over the schlock that's flooding todays
    market.  Unions, of course, would have to demand high standards from
    their members.  And the dream, of course, would be to have other
    nation's labor free to organize for better wages and working
    conditions.  That's what created the middle class in this country. 
    The work ethic, alone, wasn't enough.  (Pardon a little flag-waving,
    but I think that middle class was what made America great, made it
    want to export Democracy and our standard of living around the
    globe).  I too believe that you should be able to get what you're
    worth on your own merits, but this is not always possible.  When and
    where you are dealing with a bottom line mentality, you won't be
    compensated based on your merits, you will be compensated by whatever
    is offered (or whatever you can effectively bargain for).  In other
    words, you'll be paid whatever they can get away with paying you. 

>         . . . Bench jewelers . . .feel that they should earn $150,000
>     per year. If the number in your mind is any different than that, it
>     probably is still high enough to represent a state of no worries. 

    I can't tell from your text if that is hyperbole.  I never met a
    bench jeweler who felt he could realistically ask for that much. 
    More like one-third that amount, and the only ones I know who think
    they can get that are real top-shelf-do-anything types who are also
    the kind that protect the retailer's relationship with the customer
    as if it was their own.  And they don't ask for that kind of money
    lightly.  They've been looking around at what other guys and gals
    like them have been getting.  They're not out to bust the bank.  I
    never pressured employers for wages because I didn't want to seem
    greedy to the other employees.  I wanted to see us all rise, but I
    knew I spent decades perfecting my skills, and I knew what that was
    earning my boss. But realistically, if you have a family, a mortgage,
    a car payment, are hoping to send a kid or two on to college, or
    expect to pay for a wedding for a daughter or help your son with a
    downpayment on his own home (yeah, you can reverse the gender on
    these examples if you like), and dream of having something other than
    a near skid-row existence when you are too old to work, how does 50
    thou size up for that (considering 35 thou is the poverty level for a
    family of 4)?  OK, suppose your spouse has a job too. Marriage
    penalty taxes, medical insurance co-pays, child care, extra travel
    costs, will whittle that down quite a bit, besides the fact that
    strangers will be raising your children.  Doesn't equate to "no
    worries" in my book, but if you had no health problems and were a
    good money manager, you'd do all right. 

    But, for me, 50 grand a year, in my opinion, would be a satisfying
    wage, if it came with a few benifits.  (But I'm not looking since
    I've got commitments now, to employees, to accounts, and I need to be
    proud of keeping my promises).  I've never gotten paid that much
    either, and dare I say, I will put my skill level on a par with
    anyone on this forum.  I'm not bragging or exagerating, I'm just
    making an observation.  If you don't believe me, e-mail me off forum
    and I'll show you what I can do. 

>         Also, I have spoken to a few jewelers about a position in my
>     store. They all want a salary, not piece work.  What gives?  I
>     watched my dad do piece work for years and make a decsent living. 

    Those were the good old days, I suppose.  I haven't heard the term
    "piece work" used since I worked in the trade shops in Detroit.  Fact
    is, I don't think that kind of work, as I knew it, exists any more. 
    At least not in a way that could make it worthwhile.  When I knew
    guys getting $1 a piece to 4-prong set stones, they had hundreds to
    set.  They could bang out $100 worth in a day, and take another 50
    pieces with them to finish at home if they wanted.  A lot of money in
    1973.  What a jeweler gets to work on these days is all over the map.
     Every kind of job you can imagine.  Some are easy money, some will
    eat up your time for a pittance.  And who is going to come up with a
    scale for this piece work? Assuming all jewelers and all jobs are
    equal, it's easy, but that's hardly the case in a retail
    environment.  Piece work is really mostly a pay system used in
    manufacturing. 

>        It's the retail side of my business that pays the bills. 

    I'm sure it seems that way, since adding up the margins is easy
    math.  But then there are all those less obvious contributions to the
    bottom line that the bench jeweler provides.  I work upstairs from
    one of my accounts, renting the space from him.  He has put a sign in
    his front window "Bench Jeweler on the Premises", although I don't
    work for him as an employee.  He knows that gives him equal footing
    with the store owner down the street who is also a bench man, and a
    leg up on the guys who have to send work out.  I solve a lot of
    problems for him and his customers.  I provide invaluable advice on
    repairs and sales as well as give him excellent repairs and custom
    work.  Things run much more smoothly for him.  No shipping and
    insurance charges either.  And if I were always able to be in his
    showroom at a moments notice, I bet I'd see his sales figures go up
    quite a bit, since I actually enjoy working with customers and know
    jewelry (unlike the step-daughter with the pierced nose).  His
    reputation is greatly enhanced. So really, where does the "retail
    side" of one's business begin and end? The other day, I did, what for
    me, was my regular good job of restoring a worn wedding set: 2 half
    shanks, 30 re-tips, a good 3 point diamond to replace one missing,
    and solder both together.  Took around 1 hour.  The customer, who had
    expected to have to have the entire thing re-made, was so happy she
    actually started to cry.  I'm sure others have seen this happen. How
    much would you pay for that?  I did it for $65 plus tax.  Easy
    money. I'm not, by nature, a humble man, as some of you may have
    guessed :-), but that time, I felt like I was paid 10 times what I
    was worth.  Such a little thing to do, just routine, really. 

    David L. Huffman 

    (jeweler, sales advisor, designer, procurer of difficult to locate
    materials and better prices, expeditor of good customer relations,
    etc., etc., . . .) 


____________________________________________________________________
T h e   O r c h i d   L i s t
Open Electronic Forum for Jewelry Manufacturing Methods and Procedures
____________________________________________________________________
Orchid FAQ:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/faq.htm
Orchid Archives:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/archive
Orchid Galleries:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/gallery.htm
Invite a Friend:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm
____________________________________________________________________
Tips From The Jeweler's Bench - Article Archive
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/borisat/tip_sear.htm
The Jeweler's Selected Bibliography List
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/jewelry-books
Buy Orchid Jewelry:
~ http://www.ganoksin.com/shop
____________________________________________________________________
-Unsubscribe:
-Email: orchid-request AT ganoksin.com Body=unsubscribe subject=blank
____________________________________________________________________