Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
39-4012 Crematory Operators
Operate crematory equipment to reduce human or animal remains to bone fragments in accordance with state and local regulations. Duties may include preparing the body for cremation and performing general maintenance on crematory equipment. May use traditional flame-based cremation, calcination, or alkaline hydrolysis.
National estimates for Crematory Operators
Industry profile for Crematory Operators
Geographic profile for Crematory Operators
National estimates for Crematory Operators:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Crematory Operators:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 2,040 |
11.8 % |
$ 19.07 |
$ 39,660 |
1.5 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Crematory Operators:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 13.90 |
$ 15.23 |
$ 18.03 |
$ 21.28 |
$ 24.42 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 28,910 |
$ 31,690 |
$ 37,490 |
$ 44,270 |
$ 50,790 |
Industry profile for Crematory Operators:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Crematory Operators are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Crematory Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Crematory Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Death Care Services |
1,920 |
1.45 |
$ 19.06 |
$ 39,630 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Crematory Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Death Care Services |
1,920 |
1.45 |
$ 19.06 |
$ 39,630 |
Top paying industries for Crematory Operators:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Death Care Services |
1,920 |
1.45 |
$ 19.06 |
$ 39,630 |
Geographic profile for Crematory Operators:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Crematory Operators are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Crematory Operators, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Crematory Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
330 |
0.02 |
1.37 |
$ 18.64 |
$ 38,780 |
| North Carolina |
150 |
0.03 |
2.30 |
$ 17.22 |
$ 35,820 |
| Florida |
140 |
0.02 |
1.10 |
$ 16.50 |
$ 34,320 |
| Indiana |
120 |
0.04 |
2.77 |
$ 16.02 |
$ 33,330 |
| Pennsylvania |
110 |
0.02 |
1.37 |
$ 22.23 |
$ 46,250 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Crematory Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Indiana |
120 |
0.04 |
2.77 |
$ 16.02 |
$ 33,330 |
| North Carolina |
150 |
0.03 |
2.30 |
$ 17.22 |
$ 35,820 |
| Colorado |
80 |
0.03 |
2.16 |
$ 29.17 |
$ 60,670 |
| Washington |
90 |
0.03 |
1.93 |
$ 23.60 |
$ 49,090 |
| South Carolina |
50 |
0.02 |
1.51 |
$ 15.45 |
$ 32,140 |
Top paying states for Crematory Operators:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Colorado |
80 |
0.03 |
2.16 |
$ 29.17 |
$ 60,670 |
| Washington |
90 |
0.03 |
1.93 |
$ 23.60 |
$ 49,090 |
| Massachusetts |
70 |
0.02 |
1.33 |
$ 23.12 |
$ 48,090 |
| Pennsylvania |
110 |
0.02 |
1.37 |
$ 22.23 |
$ 46,250 |
| Illinois |
30 |
0.01 |
0.41 |
$ 19.61 |
$ 40,780 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Crematory Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN |
60 |
0.06 |
4.14 |
$ 15.14 |
$ 31,490 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
50 |
0.02 |
1.55 |
$ 21.09 |
$ 43,870 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
40 |
0.04 |
2.47 |
$ 17.48 |
$ 36,360 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
40 |
0.02 |
1.14 |
$ 23.51 |
$ 48,900 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
40 |
0.03 |
1.82 |
$ 29.38 |
$ 61,120 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Crematory Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN |
60 |
0.06 |
4.14 |
$ 15.14 |
$ 31,490 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
40 |
0.04 |
2.47 |
$ 17.48 |
$ 36,360 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
40 |
0.03 |
1.82 |
$ 29.38 |
$ 61,120 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
50 |
0.02 |
1.55 |
$ 21.09 |
$ 43,870 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
40 |
0.02 |
1.14 |
$ 23.51 |
$ 48,900 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Crematory Operators:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO |
40 |
0.03 |
1.82 |
$ 29.38 |
$ 61,120 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
40 |
0.02 |
1.14 |
$ 23.51 |
$ 48,900 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
50 |
0.02 |
1.55 |
$ 21.09 |
$ 43,870 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
(8) |
(8) |
(8) |
$ 20.77 |
$ 43,200 |
| Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC |
40 |
0.04 |
2.47 |
$ 17.48 |
$ 36,360 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN |
60 |
0.06 |
4.14 |
$ 15.14 |
$ 31,490 |
About May 2021 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
