Slaughterers and Meat Packers Salary: $39,790 Median Pay (2026 stats)
Executive Summary
About 67,500 slaughterers and meat packers work nationally, and $39,790 is the BLS national median annual wage. Employment in the series shown fell about 15% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 2.2% annual growth.
Slaughterers and Meat Packers: what the data shows
Common questions about slaughterers and meat packers careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a slaughterers and meat packers?
Slaughterers and Meat Packers is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 51-3023.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 67,500 workers.
What does a slaughterers and meat packers do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Handling and Moving Objects, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Performing General Physical Activities, Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings, Getting Information, Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a slaughterers and meat packers make?
BLS national median annual wage: $39,790 (May 2024 in our extract).
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $37,797 |
| 25th percentile | $38,966 |
| Median (50th) | $39,664 |
| 75th percentile | $46,148 |
| 90th percentile | $49,206 |
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Social Perceptiveness, Monitoring, Operations Monitoring, and knowledge areas including Customer and Personal Service, Food Production, Production and Processing, English Language. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is slaughterers and meat packers in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 2.2% annual growth (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: 11.5%.
Ten-year projected employment change: 24.4%.
Current U.S. headcount: 67,500.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do slaughterers and meat packerss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Cross-industry | 67,500 | 20.0% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 67,500 | 20.0% |
| Manufacturing | 62,270 | 18.4% |
| Food Manufacturing | 62,260 | 18.4% |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing | 61,960 | 18.3% |
| Food and Beverage Retailers (4451 and 4452 only) | 2,050 | 0.6% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Slaughterers and Meat Packers in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
What careers are related?
Other occupations linked through shared degree pathways in our mapping:
| Occupation | U.S. employment | Median wage |
|---|---|---|
| Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers | 141,090 | $37,700 |
| Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic | 174,430 | $45,590 |
| Textile Cutting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 8,960 | $37,940 |
| Butchers and Meat Cutters | 140,040 | $38,960 |
| Cutting and Slicing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | 47,540 | $45,700 |
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Slaughterers and Meat Packers workforce.
Employment Over Time
67,500 U.S. workforce (OEWS)
California employment for Slaughterers and Meat Packers grew from 16,140 in 2009 to 22,880 in 2025 (41.8%).
Historical employment for Slaughterers and Meat Packers from the California OEWS series, 2009–2025. The U.S. workforce figure is national and is not the endpoint of this line.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$39,790 Median pay (BLS national)
Slaughterers and Meat Packers earn $39,790 as the BLS national median annual wage.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Salary distribution for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Employment Growth Projections
2.2% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
25,516 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: 11.5%
28,456 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: 24.4%
This occupation is projected to grow at 2.2% annually, indicating strong future demand.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Slaughterers and Meat Packers and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Slaughterers and Meat Packers employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Wage Trends by Industry
6.6% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Total, All Industry: 14.7% growth (Current: $46,762)
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- CA: 6,830 employees, $41,580 avg wage
- NC: 5,750 employees, $40,240 avg wage
- NE: 5,140 employees, $47,560 avg wage
- TX: 4,430 employees, $38,600 avg wage
- IA: 4,040 employees, $43,640 avg wage
- GA: 4,000 employees, $36,430 avg wage
- IL: 3,730 employees, $42,960 avg wage
- PA: 3,700 employees, $37,290 avg wage
- MN: 3,190 employees, $42,260 avg wage
- KS: 2,430 employees, $47,880 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- Fresno, CA: 3,170 employees, $41,560 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 1,840 employees, $42,000 avg wage
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 1,580 employees, $39,260 avg wage
- Sioux City, IA-NE-SD: 1,120 employees, $47,100 avg wage
- Omaha, NE-IA: 1,120 employees, $48,470 avg wage
- Merced, CA: 1,060 employees, $41,430 avg wage
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 980 employees, $38,290 avg wage
- Gainesville, GA: 840 employees, $39,080 avg wage
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA: 810 employees, $39,980 avg wage
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA: 710 employees, $37,390 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Diversity
Demographic information on Slaughterers and Meat Packers in the US.
Gender and Age
The U.S. workforce for Slaughterers and Meat Packers is about 67,500 people in our OEWS extract.
Gender and age distribution for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Slaughterers and Meat Packers in 2023 were Business Administration, Business, Social Sciences.
Common majors for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Slaughterers and Meat Packers workers.
Education level distribution for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Skills
Slaughterers and Meat Packers need many skills, but most especially Speaking, Active Listening, Critical Thinking, Social Perceptiveness, Monitoring.
Required skills for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Slaughterers and Meat Packers include Customer and Personal Service, Food Production, Production and Processing, English Language, Law and Government.
Knowledge areas required for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Slaughterers and Meat Packers include Arm-Hand Steadiness, Finger Dexterity, Manual Dexterity, Near Vision, Control Precision.
Required abilities for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
Daily Activities
Slaughterers and Meat Packers spend their time on activities such as Handling and Moving Objects, Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials, Performing General Physical Activities, Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings, Getting Information.
Most important work activities for Slaughterers and Meat Packers.
About
Slaughterers and Meat Packers
Slaughterers and Meat Packers earn $39,790 as the BLS national median annual wage.
SOC Code
51-3023 - Slaughterers and Meat Packers
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Slaughterers and Meat Packers reports an average salary of $42,660.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 67,500 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual growth is 2.2%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.