A glazier is a skilled tradesman responsible for cutting, installing, and removing glass (and materials used as substitutes for glass, such as some plastics). Glaziers may work with glass in various surfaces and settings, such as windows, doors, shower doors, skylights, storefronts, display cases, mirrors, facades, interior walls, ceilings, and tabletops.
The Occupational Outlook Handbook of the U.S. Department of Labor lists the following as typical tasks for a glazier:
The National Occupational Analysis recognized by the Canadian Council of Directors of Apprenticeship separates the trade into 5 blocks of skills, each with a list of skills, and a list of tasks and subtasks a journeyman is expected to be able to accomplish:
Tools used by glaziers "include cutting boards, glass-cutting blades, straightedges, glazing knives, saws, drills, grinders, putty, and glazing compounds."
Some glaziers work specifically with glass in motor vehicles; other work specifically with the safety glass used in aircraft.
Glaziers are typically educated at the high school diploma or equivalent level and learn the skills of the trade through an apprenticeship program, which in the U.S. is typically four years.
In the U.S., apprenticeship programs are offered through the National Glass Association as well as trade associations and local contractors' associations. Construction-industry glaziers are frequently members of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades.