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What They Do
About This Career
Performs nonroutine or precision functions involving the preparation of large portions of meat. Work may include specialized slaughtering tasks, cutting standard or premium cuts of meat for marketing, making sausage, or wrapping meats. Work typically occurs in slaughtering, meat packing, or wholesale establishments.
This career is part of the Manufacturing cluster Production pathway.
A person in this career:
- Removes bones, and cuts meat into standard cuts in preparation for marketing.
- Severs jugular veins to drain blood and facilitate slaughtering.
- Tends assembly lines, performing a few of the many cuts needed to process a carcass.
- Shackles hind legs of animals to raise them for slaughtering or skinning.
- Slits open, eviscerates, and trims carcasses of slaughtered animals.
- Stuns animals prior to slaughtering.
- Skins sections of animals or whole animals.
- Cuts, trims, skins, sorts, and washes viscera of slaughtered animals to separate edible portions from offal.
- Shaves or singes and defeathers carcasses, and washes them in preparation for further processing or packaging.
- Saws, splits, or scribes carcasses into smaller portions to facilitate handling.
Working Conditions and Physical Demands
People who do this job report that:
- You would often handle loads up to 20 lbs., sometimes up to 50 lbs. You might do a lot of lifting, carrying, pushing or pulling.
- Work in this occupation involves use of protective items such as safety shoes, glasses, gloves, hearing protection, a hard hat, or personal flotation devices
- Work in this occupation involves using your hands to hold, control, and feel objects more than one-third of the time
- Work in this occupation requires being inside most of the time
- Work in this occupation involves making repetitive motions more than one-third of the time
- Work in this occupation involves standing more than one-third of the time
Working in this career involves (physical activities):
- Seeing clearly up close
- Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying objects
- Using abdominal and lower back muscles repeatedly or over time without tiring
Work Hours and Travel
- Regular working hours and limited travel
Specialty and Similar Careers
Careers that are more detailed or close to this career:
- Boning Room Worker
- Meat Packager
- Meat Processor
- Meat Wrapper
- Saw Man
- Side Puller
- Wrapper
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts national surveys of wage data by occupation in every state and in all industry divisions. These surveys are conducted through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program.
The statistics collected for one year are published the next fall. For example, 2013 wage information was published in the fall of 2014.
There are over 800 occupations in the surveys, and these occupations cover the entire U.S. labor market. The surveys ask for reports in a scale of ranges for both hourly wages and annual wages.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics for a broad category, be aware that the salary data for a specific career may differ.
For more details about how wage information is collected and calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://www.bls.gov/bls/blswage.htm.
Every year the U.S. Department of Labor conducts a national survey of over 400,000
employers in every state and in all industry divisions. This survey is conducted
through the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program. Every other year the
department publishes outlook information based on these surveys.
Each outlook period covers 10 years. For example, in 2003 the outlook information
was published for 2004-2014. Employers are asked to report the number of employees
in about 770 different occupations that cover the entire U.S. labor market.
From this information, staffing patterns for different industries are established.
Industry growth is projected into the future based on past trends and current economic
conditions. Industry staffing patterns are then applied to the industry projections
to obtain occupational projections.
In many cases, these occupations are broad enough to cover many more detailed specialties
of an occupation. A specific occupation may be included in a broader occupational
category for which labor market data is available. When you look at the statistics
for a broad category, be aware that the employment data for a specific field may
differ.
For more details about how employment information is collected and calculated by
the U.S. Department of Labor, visit their website at http://stats.bls.gov/news.release/ocwage.tn.htm.
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