Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
51-3021 Butchers and Meat Cutters
Cut, trim, or prepare consumer-sized portions of meat for use or sale in retail establishments.
National estimates for Butchers and Meat Cutters
Industry profile for Butchers and Meat Cutters
Geographic profile for Butchers and Meat Cutters
National estimates for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 145,930 |
1.6 % |
$ 17.15 |
$ 35,670 |
0.4 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 11.26 |
$ 14.00 |
$ 17.33 |
$ 18.75 |
$ 22.97 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 23,420 |
$ 29,120 |
$ 36,050 |
$ 38,990 |
$ 47,770 |
Industry profile for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Butchers and Meat Cutters are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Butchers and Meat Cutters, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Food and Beverage Stores (4451 and 4452 only) |
114,470 |
3.87 |
$ 16.69 |
$ 34,710 |
| General Merchandise Stores |
11,560 |
0.37 |
$ 20.46 |
$ 42,550 |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing |
11,090 |
2.13 |
$ 17.36 |
$ 36,110 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods (4244 and 4248 only) |
3,970 |
0.43 |
$ 18.27 |
$ 38,000 |
| Restaurants and Other Eating Places |
1,780 |
0.02 |
$ 18.02 |
$ 37,480 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Food and Beverage Stores (4451 and 4452 only) |
114,470 |
3.87 |
$ 16.69 |
$ 34,710 |
| Animal Slaughtering and Processing |
11,090 |
2.13 |
$ 17.36 |
$ 36,110 |
| Merchant Wholesalers, Nondurable Goods (4244 and 4248 only) |
3,970 |
0.43 |
$ 18.27 |
$ 38,000 |
| General Merchandise Stores |
11,560 |
0.37 |
$ 20.46 |
$ 42,550 |
| Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation) |
1,150 |
0.05 |
$ 24.14 |
$ 50,220 |
Top paying industries for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Geographic profile for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Butchers and Meat Cutters are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Butchers and Meat Cutters, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
26,170 |
1.58 |
1.53 |
$ 18.44 |
$ 38,360 |
| Texas |
13,080 |
1.07 |
1.03 |
$ 15.30 |
$ 31,830 |
| Illinois |
8,950 |
1.59 |
1.54 |
$ 16.35 |
$ 34,020 |
| Florida |
7,870 |
0.91 |
0.88 |
$ 17.39 |
$ 36,180 |
| New York |
6,470 |
0.75 |
0.72 |
$ 19.18 |
$ 39,900 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| South Dakota |
1,050 |
2.50 |
2.41 |
$ 15.74 |
$ 32,740 |
| Iowa |
3,200 |
2.16 |
2.08 |
$ 14.42 |
$ 29,990 |
| Maine |
1,020 |
1.72 |
1.66 |
$ 17.81 |
$ 37,040 |
| Mississippi |
1,830 |
1.66 |
1.60 |
$ 13.29 |
$ 27,640 |
| Illinois |
8,950 |
1.59 |
1.54 |
$ 16.35 |
$ 34,020 |
Top paying states for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
10,080 |
1.76 |
1.70 |
$ 17.61 |
$ 36,640 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
6,980 |
1.65 |
1.59 |
$ 16.88 |
$ 35,110 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
6,750 |
0.78 |
0.75 |
$ 20.30 |
$ 42,230 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX |
3,330 |
1.15 |
1.11 |
$ 15.42 |
$ 32,070 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,040 |
1.35 |
1.31 |
$ 21.26 |
$ 44,220 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA |
2,890 |
1.89 |
1.83 |
$ 16.94 |
$ 35,240 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
2,770 |
0.77 |
0.75 |
$ 14.86 |
$ 30,900 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
2,720 |
1.05 |
1.01 |
$ 15.01 |
$ 31,220 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
2,100 |
0.86 |
0.83 |
$ 18.16 |
$ 37,760 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
2,030 |
0.76 |
0.74 |
$ 19.01 |
$ 39,540 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Logan, UT-ID |
260 |
4.04 |
3.90 |
$ 19.06 |
$ 39,640 |
| Merced, CA |
240 |
3.33 |
3.22 |
$ 18.56 |
$ 38,600 |
| St. Cloud, MN |
330 |
3.31 |
3.20 |
$ 18.87 |
$ 39,250 |
| Grants Pass, OR |
90 |
3.05 |
2.94 |
$ 15.17 |
$ 31,550 |
| Hanford-Corcoran, CA |
120 |
2.72 |
2.63 |
$ 20.32 |
$ 42,260 |
| Rapid City, SD |
180 |
2.63 |
2.54 |
$ 15.66 |
$ 32,580 |
| Greeley, CO |
270 |
2.63 |
2.54 |
$ 16.32 |
$ 33,950 |
| El Centro, CA |
150 |
2.60 |
2.51 |
$ 19.15 |
$ 39,830 |
| Twin Falls, ID |
110 |
2.31 |
2.23 |
$ 16.99 |
$ 35,330 |
| Santa Rosa, CA |
420 |
2.18 |
2.10 |
$ 20.02 |
$ 41,650 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Fairbanks, AK |
30 |
1.01 |
0.97 |
$ 24.31 |
$ 50,570 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
1,260 |
0.49 |
0.47 |
$ 24.28 |
$ 50,510 |
| Barnstable Town, MA |
80 |
0.79 |
0.77 |
$ 23.31 |
$ 48,490 |
| New Bedford, MA |
40 |
0.67 |
0.65 |
$ 22.45 |
$ 46,700 |
| Urban Honolulu, HI |
390 |
0.98 |
0.94 |
$ 22.33 |
$ 46,450 |
| Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina, HI |
90 |
1.33 |
1.28 |
$ 22.33 |
$ 46,440 |
| Anchorage, AK |
100 |
0.63 |
0.61 |
$ 22.01 |
$ 45,780 |
| Leominster-Gardner, MA |
40 |
0.74 |
0.71 |
$ 21.92 |
$ 45,590 |
| Springfield, MA-CT |
110 |
0.37 |
0.36 |
$ 21.82 |
$ 45,380 |
| Bremerton-Silverdale, WA |
110 |
1.25 |
1.20 |
$ 21.70 |
$ 45,140 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Butchers and Meat Cutters:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Butchers and Meat Cutters:
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
