Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2011

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 this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
130,720 1.7 % $14.43 $30,000 0.5 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $8.70 $10.45 $13.68 $17.81 $21.74
Annual Wage (2) $18,090 $21,730 $28,460 $37,040 $45,220


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Grocery Stores 94,060 3.80 $14.54 $30,240
Specialty Food Stores 13,420 6.19 $13.62 $28,320
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 10,230 2.09 $13.18 $27,410
Other General Merchandise Stores 6,290 0.41 $15.78 $32,830
Grocery and Related Product Merchant Wholesalers 3,080 0.43 $13.93 $28,970

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Specialty Food Stores 13,420 6.19 $13.62 $28,320
Grocery Stores 94,060 3.80 $14.54 $30,240
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 10,230 2.09 $13.18 $27,410
Grocery and Related Product Merchant Wholesalers 3,080 0.43 $13.93 $28,970
Other General Merchandise Stores 6,290 0.41 $15.78 $32,830

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation) 1,150 0.06 $21.36 $44,430
Bakeries and Tortilla Manufacturing (8) (8) $18.80 $39,090
Warehousing and Storage 90 0.01 $17.20 $35,780
Traveler Accommodation 110 0.01 $16.67 $34,670
Other General Merchandise Stores 6,290 0.41 $15.78 $32,830


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 18,920 1.35 1.32 $14.48 $30,110
Texas 10,390 1.01 0.99 $12.17 $25,310
Illinois 8,030 1.44 1.41 $13.58 $28,240
Florida 7,920 1.11 1.09 $13.77 $28,640
Pennsylvania 7,260 1.31 1.28 $15.36 $31,940




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Iowa 2,790 1.93 1.89 $11.67 $24,280
North Dakota 590 1.58 1.55 $12.33 $25,640
Illinois 8,030 1.44 1.41 $13.58 $28,240
Montana 600 1.41 1.39 $13.36 $27,790
South Dakota 540 1.38 1.36 $12.67 $26,350




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Connecticut 840 0.52 0.51 $20.04 $41,680
Massachusetts 1,980 0.63 0.61 $19.36 $40,270
Alaska 270 0.85 0.83 $19.35 $40,250
Hawaii 460 0.79 0.78 $19.09 $39,700
New Jersey 3,450 0.91 0.90 $18.73 $38,970





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 4,780 1.33 1.31 $13.27 $27,590
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 4,460 1.17 1.14 $13.32 $27,700
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 3,410 0.67 0.66 $17.92 $37,270
Philadelphia, PA Metropolitan Division 2,510 1.38 1.36 $16.66 $34,660
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 2,480 0.97 0.96 $12.41 $25,810
Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, CA Metropolitan Division 2,470 1.78 1.75 $12.30 $25,590
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX Metropolitan Division 1,690 0.83 0.81 $12.36 $25,700
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA 1,660 1.34 1.32 $13.67 $28,440
Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO 1,530 1.28 1.25 $14.46 $30,090
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 1,460 0.63 0.62 $16.82 $34,980




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Florence-Muscle Shoals, AL 290 5.60 5.49 $12.81 $26,630
Merced, CA 240 4.10 4.02 $13.69 $28,480
Laredo, TX 230 2.62 2.57 $10.74 $22,350
Yakima, WA 200 2.56 2.52 $13.84 $28,790
Yuba City, CA 90 2.47 2.43 $15.81 $32,890
Gadsden, AL 80 2.39 2.35 $10.58 $22,000
Dubuque, IA 120 2.35 2.30 $11.12 $23,140
Sioux City, IA-NE-SD 160 2.23 2.18 $11.04 $22,960
Napa, CA 140 2.20 2.16 $12.29 $25,560
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA 380 2.19 2.15 $14.65 $30,470




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH NECTA Division 50 0.46 0.45 $22.67 $47,150
Peabody, MA NECTA Division 90 0.89 0.87 $22.15 $46,080
Fairbanks, AK 40 1.16 1.13 $21.76 $45,270
New Bedford, MA 40 0.68 0.67 $21.76 $45,260
Edison-New Brunswick, NJ Metropolitan Division 610 0.63 0.62 $21.48 $44,670
Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NY 160 0.65 0.64 $21.44 $44,600
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT 200 0.50 0.49 $21.28 $44,270
Barnstable Town, MA 90 0.91 0.89 $21.00 $43,670
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 1,140 0.67 0.65 $20.90 $43,470
Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT 210 0.38 0.37 $20.81 $43,290

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Other North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 860 2.95 2.90 $11.70 $24,330
Western North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 800 4.31 4.23 $11.88 $24,710
Southeast Iowa nonmetropolitan area 490 2.24 2.20 $11.70 $24,330
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 440 1.59 1.56 $11.43 $23,780
Northwest Iowa nonmetropolitan area 380 2.64 2.59 $12.08 $25,120

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Western North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 800 4.31 4.23 $11.88 $24,710
North Valley Region of California nonmetropolitan area 90 3.31 3.25 $11.87 $24,680
Southwest Iowa nonmetropolitan area 260 3.09 3.03 $11.42 $23,760
Northeast Iowa nonmetropolitan area 310 3.08 3.02 $11.43 $23,760
East Central North Dakota 120 2.96 2.91 $13.80 $28,700

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Hawaii / Maui / Kauai nonmetropolitan area 140 0.89 0.88 $19.52 $40,600
East Central New York nonmetropolitan area 40 1.15 1.13 $19.12 $39,760
Southern Vermont nonmetropolitan area 40 0.37 0.36 $18.98 $39,480
Southeast Alaska nonmetropolitan area 40 1.17 1.15 $18.58 $38,650
Railbelt / Southwest Alaska nonmetropolitan area 70 0.94 0.93 $18.39 $38,250


About May 2011 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 mean 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 OES estimates and related information:

May 2011 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2011 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped XLS files

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 27, 2012