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Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers in California

Thinking about a career as a Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers in California? Here’s what you need to know. Use hands or hand tools to perform routine cutting and trimming of meat, poultry, and seafood.

What do Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers Make in California?

For meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers working in California, wages run about $36,790 per year (or roughly $17.69/hour).Pay can range from $35,210 at the 10th percentile to $46,310 at the 90th percentile.

Wage Statistic	Annual	Hourly
10th percentile	$35,210	$16.93
25th percentile	$36,320	$17.46
Median (50th)	$36,790	$17.69
75th percentile	$43,010	$20.68
90th percentile	$46,310	$22.27

Location quotient — how concentrated this career is in California nationwide is 0.47, suggesting fewer meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers per worker than the national average.

National Wage Comparison

Nationally, meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers earn a median of $49,895 per year ($23.99/hour), lower than the California median.

Employment Outlook

There are roughly 272,249 meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers nationwide. In California alone, about 7,740 people work in this role. That’s higher than the typical state, which employs around 1,630 meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers.

Top California Metros for Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers

These are the California metros with the most meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers in California.

Metro Area	Number Employed	Annual Median Salary
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	3,940	$36,520
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA	690	$41,020
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA	560	$38,380
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA	310	$42,470
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA	250	$38,170
Modesto, CA	220	$36,750
San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA	210	$39,210
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA	170	$34,900
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA	110	$42,390
Stockton-Lodi, CA	90	$38,450
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA	60	$36,250
Bakersfield-Delano, CA	50	$34,490
Salinas, CA	50	$36,980
Vallejo, CA	50	$38,440
Redding, CA	30	$35,320

Top States for Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers Employment

The table below shows the states where the most meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers work.

State	Number Employed
Georgia	12,350
Alabama	9,560
North Carolina	9,420
Arkansas	9,350
California	7,740
Nebraska	7,660
Mississippi	6,470
Texas	6,360
Delaware	5,770
Colorado	4,870
Kansas	4,520
Illinois	4,310
Missouri	3,900
Washington	3,570
Minnesota	3,390
Ohio	3,320
Iowa	3,270
South Carolina	2,970
Tennessee	2,670
New York	2,510

Highest-Paying States for Meat, Poultry, and Fish Cutters and Trimmers

These states pay the most for meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers.

State	Annual Median Salary
Nebraska	$47,900
Arizona	$46,940
Kansas	$46,020
North Dakota	$44,170
Indiana	$43,590
South Dakota	$42,890
Utah	$42,760
Iowa	$42,550
Hawaii	$42,230
Missouri	$42,140

Skills

Key meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers skills, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Knowledge Areas

Core knowledge areas for this occupation, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Abilities

Key abilities for meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Daily Tasks

Day-to-day, meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers typically:

• Use knives, cleavers, meat saws, bandsaws, or other equipment to perform meat cutting and trimming.
• Weigh meats and tag containers for weight and contents.
• Inspect meat products for defects, bruises or blemishes and remove them along with any excess fat.
• Cut and trim meat to prepare for packing.
• Separate meats and byproducts into specified containers and seal containers.
• Process primal parts into cuts that are ready for retail use.
• Prepare ready-to-heat foods by filleting meat or fish or cutting it into bite-sized pieces, preparing and adding vegetables or applying sauces or breading.
• Clean, trim, slice, and section carcasses for future processing.
• Remove parts, such as skin, feathers, scales or bones, from carcass.
• Obtain and distribute specified meat or carcass.
• Produce hamburger meat and meat trimmings.
• Clean and salt hides.

Work Activities

• Getting Information
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
• Handling and Moving Objects
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Materials
• Processing Information
• Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
• Making Decisions and Solving Problems
• Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
• Controlling Machines and Processes
• Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings
• Performing General Physical Activities
• Training and Teaching Others

Tools & Technology

Software and systems commonly involved: Hot technologies: Microsoft Excel In-demand technologies: Web browser software

Related Careers

Other careers like meat, poultry, and fish cutters and trimmers include:

• Cooks, Restaurant
• Cooks, Short Order
• Food Preparation Workers
• Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products
• Farmworkers and Laborers, Crop, Nursery, and Greenhouse
• Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals

Also Known As

Abalone Processor, Animal Eviscerator, Animal Skinner, Animal Sticker, Bacon Derinder, Bacon Skin Lifter, Bacon Skinner, Bacon Slicer, Beef Boner, Beef Breaker, Beef Skinner, Beef Trimmer, Bladder Blower, Bladder Cleaner, Bladder Tier.

References

• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — https://www.bls.gov/oes/
• O*NET Online — https://www.onetonline.org/
• BLS Employment Projections — https://www.bls.gov/emp/
• O*NET-SOC code: 51-3022.00