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The differences between pen riders and farm workers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a pen rider has an average salary of $50,738, which is higher than the $26,598 average annual salary of a farm worker.
The top three skills for a pen rider include stray animals, yard maintenance and computer system. The most important skills for a farm worker are harvest, mowing, and farm equipment.
A pen rider looks after a large herd of cattle, usually in a ranch setting, by monitoring and moving the cattle in a pen. Modern pen riders are trained animal care specialists who must also be excellent on horseback. Pen riders monitor animals for sickness or distress and isolate the sick from a herd for care. They are also responsible for moving herds through different pens for feeding, veterinary services, milking, and any other farm operation.
A farmworker is responsible for applying fertilizer, pesticides, and herbicides to crops and livestock. You will operate agricultural machinery under the direction of a rancher, farmer, or an agricultural manager. Your duties will typically include harvesting and inspecting crops manually, irrigating farm soil and maintaining pipes, pumps, d ditches, and feeding livestock. As a farmworker, you will operate milking machinery and other farm machinery such as plows and tractors, maintain farm buildings, and trim hedges. You are also expected to mend walls and fences and clear drainage ditches.
Pen riders and farm workers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Pen Rider | Farm Worker | |
| Average salary | $50,738 | $26,598 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $106,000 | Between $21,000 And $33,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | Greenville, MS |
| Highest paying state | - | North Dakota |
| Best paying company | - | FAT CATS CAFE |
| Best paying industry | - | Manufacturing |
There are a few differences between a pen rider and a farm worker in terms of educational background:
| Pen Rider | Farm Worker | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 37% | Bachelor's Degree, 36% |
| Most common major | Animal Science | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between pen riders' and farm workers' demographics:
| Pen Rider | Farm Worker | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 75.3% Female, 24.7% | Male, 72.6% Female, 27.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 3.1% Hispanic or Latino, 23.6% Asian, 1.8% White, 66.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 4.1% Unknown, 3.0% Hispanic or Latino, 25.2% Asian, 1.8% White, 64.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 3% | 3% |