Butchers and meat cutters
SOC Code: 51-3021
Butchers and meat cutters carries a 30% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $38,960 and +1.0% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 143,100 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 30% AI exposure, Butchers and meat cutters sits 7 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 30% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
38/100
Butchers and meat cutters, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage F $38,960
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F +1.0%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) B 30% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Butchers and meat cutters in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Butchers and meat cutters keeps an No credential bar (109 of 832) and sits in Slow growth (245 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Butchers and meat cutters sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Butchers and meat cutters sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
30% Lower than most lower than 70% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Butchers and meat cutters vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Butchers and meat cutters is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Butchers and meat cutters's Medium automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 51-3021) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Butchers and meat cutters be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Butchers and meat cutters. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Prepare and place meat cuts and products in display counter to appear attractive and catch the shopper's eye.
- 2. Wrap, weigh, label, and price cuts of meat.
- 3. Cut, trim, bone, tie, and grind meats, such as beef, pork, poultry, and fish, to prepare in cooking form.
- 4. Prepare special cuts of meat ordered by customers.
- 5. Receive, inspect, and store meat upon delivery to ensure meat quality.
- 6. Estimate requirements and order or requisition meat supplies to maintain inventories.
- 7. Record quantity of meat received and issued to cooks or keep records of meat sales.
- 8. Supervise other butchers or meat cutters.
- 9. Cure, smoke, tenderize, and preserve meat.
- 10. Negotiate with representatives from supply companies to determine order details.
Key Skills Required
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Social Perceptiveness
- Service Orientation
- Time Management
- Coordination
- Complex Problem Solving
Knowledge Areas
- Customer and Personal Service
- Food Production
- Production and Processing
- Sales and Marketing
- English Language
- Administration and Management
- Mathematics
- Education and Training
- Mechanical
- Administrative
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Butchers and meat cutters?
Butchers and meat cutters has an AI exposure score of 30%, indicating a medium level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Butchers and meat cutters?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Butchers and meat cutters is projected to grow by 1.0% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 143,100 workers.
What skills are needed for Butchers and meat cutters?
Key skills for Butchers and meat cutters include Active Listening, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, and others. Typical entry-level education is No formal educational credential.
How much do Butchers and meat cutters earn?
The median annual wage for Butchers and meat cutters is $38,960, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Butchers and meat cutters?
The typical entry-level education for Butchers and meat cutters is No formal educational credential. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Long-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Butchers and meat cutters?
Butchers and meat cutters roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Medium automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Butchers and meat cutters: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (30% here).
- Actors · AI exposure 30%
- Aircraft service attendants · AI exposure 30%
- Calibration technologists and technicians · AI exposure 30%
- Derrick operators, oil and gas · AI exposure 30%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+1.0% here).
- Adhesive bonding machine operators and tenders · growth +1.0%
- Budget analysts · growth +1.0%
- Clergy · growth +1.0%
- Eligibility interviewers, government programs · growth +1.0%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 81 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Butchers and meat cutters' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Butchers and meat cutters side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).