Life As a Slaughterer and Meat Packer
Example of Slaughterer & Meat Packer Job Work in slaughtering, meat packing, or wholesale establishments performing precision functions involving the preparation of meat. Work may include specialized slaughtering tasks, cutting standard or premium cuts of meat for marketing, making sausage, or wrapping meats.
List of Slaughterer & Meat Packer Job Duties
- Slit open, eviscerate, and trim carcasses of slaughtered animals.
- Slaughter animals in accordance with religious law, and determine that carcasses meet specified religious standards.
- Cut, trim, skin, sort, and wash viscera of slaughtered animals to separate edible portions from offal.
- Grind meat into hamburger, and into trimmings used to prepare sausages, luncheon meats, and other meat products.
- Skin sections of animals or whole animals.
- Sever jugular veins to drain blood and facilitate slaughtering.
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What Skills Do You Need to Work as a Slaughterer & Meat Packer?
When polled, Slaughterers and Meat Packers say the following skills are most frequently used in their jobs:
Speaking: Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Active Listening: Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Types of Slaughterer and Meat Packer
- Beef Splitter
- Meat Dresser
- Bitter
- Meat Processing Center Manager
- Saw Man
Is There Going to be Demand for Slaughterers and Meat Packers?
In 2016, there was an estimated number of 82,500 jobs in the United States for Slaughterer and Meat Packer. There is little to no growth in job opportunities for Slaughterer and Meat Packer. There will be an estimated 10,100 positions for Slaughterer & Meat Packer per year.

The states with the most job growth for Slaughterer & Meat Packer are Utah, Georgia, and Arizona. Watch out if you plan on working in Virginia, Kansas, or Wyoming. These states have the worst job growth for this type of profession.
Salary for a Slaughterer & Meat Packer
The average yearly salary of a Slaughterer & Meat Packer ranges between $20,810 and $37,480.

Slaughterers and Meat Packers who work in Maryland, Nebraska, or Kansas, make the highest salaries.
Below is a list of the median annual salaries for Slaughterers and Meat Packers in different U.S. states.
State | Annual Mean Salary |
---|---|
Alabama | $21,740 |
Arizona | $33,330 |
Arkansas | $27,640 |
California | $27,980 |
Connecticut | $27,550 |
Delaware | $28,280 |
Florida | $26,270 |
Georgia | $24,920 |
Hawaii | $26,150 |
Idaho | $24,360 |
Illinois | $30,640 |
Indiana | $30,110 |
Iowa | $31,940 |
Kansas | $32,310 |
Kentucky | $27,170 |
Louisiana | $22,680 |
Maryland | $35,010 |
Massachusetts | $28,270 |
Michigan | $27,920 |
Minnesota | $31,540 |
Mississippi | $25,780 |
Missouri | $28,840 |
Nebraska | $32,610 |
New Hampshire | $25,400 |
New Jersey | $28,120 |
New Mexico | $28,460 |
New York | $30,280 |
North Carolina | $29,070 |
North Dakota | $30,160 |
Ohio | $28,070 |
Oklahoma | $23,730 |
Oregon | $27,980 |
Pennsylvania | $31,540 |
Rhode Island | $27,160 |
South Carolina | $22,400 |
South Dakota | $30,160 |
Tennessee | $25,320 |
Utah | $30,430 |
Vermont | $30,550 |
Virginia | $28,350 |
Washington | $33,070 |
West Virginia | $27,150 |
Wisconsin | $30,320 |
What Tools do Slaughterers and Meat Packers Use?
Below is a list of the types of tools and technologies that Slaughterers and Meat Packers may use on a daily basis:
- Microsoft Excel
- Microsoft Office
- Data entry software
Becoming a Slaughterer & Meat Packer
What education or degrees do I need to become a Slaughterer and Meat Packer?

How Long Does it Take to Become a Slaughterer & Meat Packer?

Where do Slaughterers and Meat Packers Work?

The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.

Related Careers
Those interested in being a Slaughterer and Meat Packer may also be interested in:
References:
Image Credit: U.S. Army Europe Images via Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic
More about our data sources and methodologies.
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