Meat packer vs packer/shipper

The differences between meat packers and packer/shippers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a packer/shipper has an average salary of $31,596, which is higher than the $28,599 average annual salary of a meat packer.

The top three skills for a meat packer include pallets, OSHA and safety regulations. The most important skills for a packer/shipper are defective products, package orders, and electric pallet jack.

Meat packer vs packer/shipper overview

	Meat Packer	Packer/Shipper
Yearly salary	$28,599	$31,596
Hourly rate	$13.75	$15.19
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	23,725	17,034
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 60%	High School Diploma, 58%
Average age	42	40
Years of experience	-	-

Meat packer vs packer/shipper salary

Meat packers and packer/shippers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Meat Packer	Packer/Shipper
Average salary	$28,599	$31,596
Salary range	Between $23,000 And $35,000	Between $26,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	Denver, CO	Chelmsford, MA
Highest paying state	Colorado	Minnesota
Best paying company	US Foods	L3Harris
Best paying industry	Finance	Technology

Differences between meat packer and packer/shipper education

There are a few differences between a meat packer and a packer/shipper in terms of educational background:

	Meat Packer	Packer/Shipper
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 60%	High School Diploma, 58%
Most common major	General Studies	Business
Most common college	-	-

Meat packer vs packer/shipper demographics

Here are the differences between meat packers' and packer/shippers' demographics:

	Meat Packer	Packer/Shipper
Average age	42	40
Gender ratio	Male, 61.0% Female, 39.0%	Male, 49.7% Female, 50.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.2% White, 62.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 13.1% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 20.8% Asian, 7.4% White, 54.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	3%	7%

Differences between meat packer and packer/shipper duties and responsibilities

Meat packer example responsibilities.

Pack meat products an run packing machines
Pack meats in the various containers, run a meat grinder.
Maintain FDA regulations by keeping meat slicing utensils, tables, and floors sanitize.
Implement safety techniques according to FDA regulations and attend regular safety meetings to ensure all safety techniques are properly implement.
Attach burners on the top castings with clips.

Packer/shipper example responsibilities.

Prepare pallets by following prescribe stacking arrangement and properly tagging pallets.
Attach burners on the top castings with clips.

Meat packer vs packer/shipper skills

Common meat packer skills

Pallets, 22%
OSHA, 14%
Safety Regulations, 14%
Assembly Line, 8%
Safety Standards, 7%
USDA, 6%

Common packer/shipper skills

Defective Products, 27%
Package Orders, 26%
Electric Pallet Jack, 11%
Safety Procedures, 7%
Assembly Line, 7%
Customer Orders, 6%

Updated January 8, 2025

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