62. How much do you expect a sales associate in your store to be able to sell in a normal year?
| Up to $200,000 |
| 38% |
| $200,000-$300,000 |
| 21% |
| $300,001-$400,000 |
| 13% |
| $400,001-$500,000 |
| 10% |
| $500,001-$750,000 |
| 11% |
| $750,001-$1 million |
| 6% |
| Over $1 million |
| 1% |
63. What do you think should be the minimum wage?
Note: Most jewelers are clearly on board with a basic wage that is higher than the federal minimum ($7.25 per hour). Twenty-five states raised their minimum in 2021, led by New York and Oregon, which mandated the highest basic wages of $15.00 and $14.00 (Portland Metro Area). At the other end of the spectrum, the lowest minimum wage rates of $5.15 are paid in Georgia and Wyoming (although most employers are still subject to that federal minimum of $7.25 per hour).
65. None of us are truly rational thinkers. What bias or logical fallacy most often trips you up as a business owner/manager?
66. How many of your staff do you think would leave for a 15 percent pay increase from another store?
| None |
| 54% |
| One or a few |
| 34% |
| About half |
| 7% |
| Most |
| 4% |
| All |
| 1% |
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67.How do you pay your sales staff?
| Hourly |
| 37% |
| Salary |
| 16% |
| Hourly plus commission |
| 35% |
| Salary plus commission |
| 10% |
| 100% commission |
| 1% |
68. On average, what percentage of the total on your sales associates’ W-2 is commissions or bonus?
| 0% |
| 26% |
| 1-10% |
| 35% |
| 11-20% |
| 17% |
| 21-30% |
| 9% |
| 31-40% |
| 6% |
| 41-50% |
| 4% |
| More than 50% |
| 4% |
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69. Salaries by State
70. Salaries By Region
71. Check off the benefits you provide to staff:
72. Salaries by Market Type
73. If you’ve ever asked a job candidate to tell you their biggest weakness, what was the most surprising answer?
Our jewelers provided scores of great examples of unguarded comments. Among the best:
- “I need multiple smoke breaks.”
- “I’m not good with people.”
- “I don’t like jewelry. It’s a waste of money.”
- “Talking on the phone.”
- “Getting up on time.”
- “I’m late to everything.”
- “Mental health.”
- “I lose stuff.”
- “I’m lazy.”
- “I don’t really like to work.”
- “Alcoholism.”
- My last interview ended with them telling me they were a child-sex crime felon. I haven’t interviewed anyone since.
- I have never asked that. I ask, “If you could be a tree, what would you be?”