# Butchers and Meat Cutters

US SOC code 51-3021. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/51-3021

Also called: Butcher, Meat cutter, Retail butcher, Journeyman butcher, Meat department associate.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **136,430** US butchers and meat cutters, with median pay of **$40,140** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **145,930**, in May 2021. The earliest figure here is [a Census count](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1904/dec/occupations.html) of **87,000** from 1900, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for butchers and meat cutters: Boxed beef and case-ready packaging revolution, 1967 to 2000.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2.4% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=51-3021&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **2.6%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Butchers and Meat Cutters employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1700
- Latest US employment: 136,430 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $40,140 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [11]
- Outlook: +2.4% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [27]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 63201)
  - Employment, 2020: 17,450. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [8]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income, the EXACT SUM of the cited cells for NOC 63201 + 65202 (this US occupation has no single NOC unit-group equivalent), combined as Butchers and Meat Cutters, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. A sum of cited cells, not an estimate. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$40,400. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [14]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 63201 Butchers - retail and wholesale, the dominant constituent of the combined Butchers and Meat Cutters (NOC 63201 + 65202), Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). This is the cited median of the dominant group, not a blend of the constituent medians. Statistics Canada Open Licence.

### All 27 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1900 | 87,000 | $624 (estimate) | Decennial Census 1900 (employment) [1]; Est., Wikipedia (pay) [9] |
| 1950 | 200,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., UFCW [2] |
| 1975 | 250,000 (estimate) | $14,300 | Est., FRASER / BLS Bulletin 1925 [3] |
| 2000 | 134,250 | n/a | BLS OEWS 2000 [4] |
| 2003 | 132,370 | $25,570 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 131,490 | $25,890 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 128,660 | $26,590 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 128,350 | $26,930 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 128,510 | $27,480 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 128,210 | $28,290 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 125,510 | $28,850 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 125,910 | $28,600 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 130,720 | $28,460 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 134,210 | $28,490 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 138,900 | $28,360 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 137,050 | $28,660 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 137,350 | $29,130 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 133,880 | $29,870 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 131,530 | $30,890 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 133,670 | $31,580 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 136,770 | $32,500 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 142,220 | $32,900 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 145,930 | $36,050 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 129,400 | $36,930 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 136,330 | $37,650 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 140,040 | $38,960 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 136,430 | $40,140 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (90)

### Employment series

1. [US Census Bureau — 1900 Census Special Reports: Occupations at the Twelfth Census (1904)](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1904/dec/occupations.html), US Census Bureau
2. [UFCW — "Our History": Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Butcher Workmen growth through the mid-20th century](https://www.ufcw.org/about/our-history/), United Food and Commercial Workers International Union
3. [FRASER / BLS Bulletin 1925 — Union Wages and Hours: Grocery Stores, July 1, 1975](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/files/docs/publications/bls/bls_1925_1976.pdf), Bureau of Labor Statistics / FRASER
4. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
7. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
8. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Wage series

9. [Wikipedia — Amalgamated Meat Cutters: founding wage data (1897-1904 wage demands)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalgamated_Meat_Cutters), Wikipedia / labor history sources
10. [FRASER / BLS Bulletin 1925 — Union Wages and Hours: Grocery Stores, July 1, 1975](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/files/docs/publications/bls/bls_1925_1976.pdf), Bureau of Labor Statistics / FRASER
11. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
12. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
13. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
14. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada

### Tool eras

15. [The Path to Butcher Town, Charleston's Slaughtering Suburb — Charleston County Public Library (colonial American butcher trade history)](https://www.ccpl.org/charleston-time-machine/path-butcher-town-charlestons-slaughtering-suburb), Charleston County Public Library
16. [Medieval Occupations and Jobs: Butcher — Medieval Britain (guild tools and apprenticeship history)](https://medievalbritain.com/type/medieval-life/occupations/medieval-butcher/), Medieval Britain
17. [Wessels Living History Farm — IBP and Boxed Beef: refrigerated rail car and the disassembly line origin](https://livinghistoryfarm.org/farming-in-the-1950s/making-money/ibp-boxed-beef/), Wessels Living History Farm
18. [Digital Research Library of Illinois History — The History of the Union Stock Yards and Transit Company, Chicago (1865-1971)](https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/2018/08/history-of-the-union-stock-yards-and-transit-company-chicago-1865-1971.html), Digital Research Library of Illinois History
19. [Wikipedia — Federal Meat Inspection Act: history and regulatory impact](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Meat_Inspection_Act), Wikipedia
20. [Britannica — Meat Inspection Act of 1906: significance and impact](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Meat-Inspection-Act), Encyclopaedia Britannica
21. [UFCW 3000 — "Puget Sound Meatcutters Apprenticeship Program: Over 100 Years of Union History" (cry-o-vac introduction and union wage data)](https://ufcw3000.org/news/2021/12/2/i847squtnatt0cvgtngk9iwqjk355s), UFCW Local 3000
22. [EveryCRSReport.com — Labor Practices in the Meat Packing and Poultry Processing Industry (CRS RL33002)](https://www.everycrsreport.com/reports/RL33002.html), Congressional Research Service
23. [Supermarket News — "Missing the Cut" (December 2000): case-ready transition, employment decline, Walmart case-ready decision](https://www.supermarketnews.com/grocery-operations/missing-the-cut), Supermarket News
24. [Frontiers in Robotics and AI — Review of robotic and automated systems in meat processing (2025)](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/robotics-and-ai/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1578318/full), Frontiers in Robotics and AI
25. [Fortune — Whole Foods artisan apprenticeships: butchers as AI reshapes retail (2025)](https://fortune.com/2025/07/17/whole-foods-artisan-apprenticeships-butcher-as-ai-wipes-corporate-jobs-gen-z/), Fortune
26. [The Rise of Artisan Butchery in America — Michele Gargiulo (whole-animal revival, 2010s)](https://www.michelegargiulo.com/blog/rise-of-artisan-butchery-america), Michele Gargiulo

### Forecasts and exposure studies

27. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 51-3021 Butchers and meat cutters (2025: 138.4 thousand; 2035: 141.7 thousand; +2.4%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=51-3021&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
28. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 51-3021.00, human-rated β 0.026)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

29. [NYC Department of Records & Information Services — "Butchers" blog series (colonial and 19th century regulation)](https://www.archives.nyc/blog/tag/Butchers), NYC Municipal Archives
30. [Digital Research Library of Illinois History — History of the Union Stock Yards and Transit Company, Chicago (1865-1971)](https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/2018/08/history-of-the-union-stock-yards-and-transit-company-chicago-1865-1971.html), Digital Research Library of Illinois History
31. [Wessels Living History Farm — IBP and Boxed Beef: origin of refrigerated rail car (Gustavus Swift, 1877)](https://livinghistoryfarm.org/farming-in-the-1950s/making-money/ibp-boxed-beef/), Wessels Living History Farm
32. [Wikipedia — Amalgamated Meat Cutters: founding, wage structure, and 1904 strike](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amalgamated_Meat_Cutters), Wikipedia
33. [Britannica — Meat Inspection Act of 1906: Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, and legislative passage](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Meat-Inspection-Act), Encyclopaedia Britannica
34. [UFCW — "Our History": 1979 merger of Amalgamated Meat Cutters and Retail Clerks International Union](https://www.ufcw.org/about/our-history/), United Food and Commercial Workers International Union
35. [PBS NewsHour — "At least 59,000 US meat workers caught COVID-19 in 2020, 269 died"](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/at-least-59000-u-s-meat-workers-caught-covid-19-in-2020-269-died), PBS NewsHour
36. [Fortune — Whole Foods artisan apprenticeships: butchers as AI reshapes retail (2025)](https://fortune.com/2025/07/17/whole-foods-artisan-apprenticeships-butcher-as-ai-wipes-corporate-jobs-gen-z/), Fortune

### Predecessors & successors

37. [Medieval Occupations and Jobs: Butcher — Medieval Britain (guild apprenticeship structure imported to colonial America)](https://medievalbritain.com/type/medieval-life/occupations/medieval-butcher/), Medieval Britain

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET OnLine — Butchers and Meat Cutters (51-3021.00): tasks, skills, work context](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/51-3021.00), accessed 2026-06-05
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Butchers, 2024-34 projections](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/production/butchers-and-meat-cutters.htm), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Frontiers in Robotics and AI — Review of robotic and automated systems in meat processing (2025)](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/robotics-and-ai/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1578318/full), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Fortune — Whole Foods artisan apprenticeships: butchers as AI reshapes retail (2025)](https://fortune.com/2025/07/17/whole-foods-artisan-apprenticeships-butcher-as-ai-wipes-corporate-jobs-gen-z/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [JBT Marel — How artificial intelligence is transforming meat processing](https://jbtmarel.com/en/news/how-artificial-intelligence-is-transforming-meat-processing/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [Toast — Butcher Shop Trends 2026: market data and consumer preferences](https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/on-the-line/butcher-shop-trends), accessed 2026-06-05
- [FoodReady — AI HACCP Builder for meat processing: 70% faster plan generation](https://foodready.ai/app/meat-processing-software/), accessed 2026-06-05
- [AMSA — Meat Industry Certifications (HACCP training)](https://meatscience.org/events-education/meat-industry-certifications), accessed 2026-06-05

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.