Career Explorer Production
Human edge, steady
Butchers and meat cutters
Cut, trim, or prepare consumer-sized portions of meat for use or sale in retail establishments.
More resilient than most: more resilient than 66% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is low (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it moderate), and US jobs are projected to change by +2.4% by 2035, slower than average. The work leans on physical dexterity.
AI struggles with much of this work. Hiring is expected to grow slower than average, or to shrink.
- Median pay (2025)
- $40,140
- Job growth to 2035
- +2.4%
- Openings a year
- 15,100
- People doing it (2025)
- 138,000
- Usual route in
- No formal credential, then moderate on-the-job training
Where people already use AI for this work
- Prepare foods or beverages
- Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment
- Determine resource needs of projects or operations
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Mark materials or objects for identification
- Inspect completed work or finished products
- Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures
What the work looks like
- Prepare and place meat cuts and products in display counter to appear attractive and catch the shopper's eye.
- Wrap, weigh, label, and price cuts of meat.
- Cut, trim, bone, tie, and grind meats, such as beef, pork, poultry, and fish, to prepare in cooking form.
- Prepare special cuts of meat ordered by customers.
- Receive, inspect, and store meat upon delivery to ensure meat quality.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Highway maintenance workersHuman edge, steady, Index 84, +3.4%
- Plant and system operators, all otherHuman edge, steady, Index 82, +2.3%
- Veterinary assistants and laboratory animal caretakersHuman edge, growing, Index 95, +9.1%
- Medical equipment preparersHuman edge, growing, Index 99, +10.8%
Also known as: Butcher, Meat Clerk, Meat Cutter, Meat Specialist, Meat Wrapper.
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.