What does a pest technician do?
Pest technician responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real pest technician resumes:
- Apply exterior chemicals to manage and treat for insect and rodent infestations.
- Implement EPA approve pest management and effectively complete all necessary paperwork/invoices.
- Climb ladders and work in confine spaces.
- Home inspection and termite treatments within the guidelines of the EPA and other government agencies with the use of control chemicals.
- Implement IPM techniques using least environmentally invasive practices; apply commercial insecticides and herbicides when necessary.
- Develop IPM training modules, organize and coordinate in-house educational training activities and conduct multiple presentations at department meetings and seminars.
- Develop IPM training modules, organize and coordinate in-house educational training activities and conduct multiple presentations at department meetings and seminars.
Pest technician skills and personality traits
We calculated that 19% of Pest Technicians are proficient in Safety Procedures, GRASS, and Ladders. They’re also known for soft skills such as Customer-service skills, Detail oriented, and Physical stamina.
We break down the percentage of Pest Technicians that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Safety Procedures, 19%
Followed safety procedures, and labeled instructions; verified that job specifications were appropriate for work orders.
- GRASS, 18%
Performed function while carrying a 60lb backpack sprayer and walking the entire property spraying all the trees, shrubs and grass.
- Ladders, 14%
Inspected buildings and outside areas, frequently using up to 32 foot ladders, for signs of infestation and animal entry.
- Good Communication, 11%
Maintained very good communication/relationships with customers.
- Shovels, 10%
Used hand tools such as, shovels, racks, and hedge trimmers.
- Federal Regulations, 9%
Ensured that storage of pesticides and equipment was in accordance with local, state, and federal regulations.
Most pest technicians use their skills in "safety procedures," "grass," and "ladders" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential pest technician responsibilities here:
Customer-service skills. The most essential soft skill for a pest technician to carry out their responsibilities is customer-service skills. This skill is important for the role because "pest control workers should be friendly and polite when they interact with customers at their homes or businesses." Additionally, a pest technician resume shows how their duties depend on customer-service skills: "serviced pest route and improve customer relations"
Detail oriented. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling pest technician duties is detail oriented. The role rewards competence in this skill because "because pest control workers apply potentially toxic chemicals, they must be able to follow instructions precisely to prevent harm to residents, pets, the environment, and themselves." According to a pest technician resume, here's how pest technicians can utilize detail oriented in their job responsibilities: "complete a detailed for every step of pest management plan. "
Physical stamina. This is an important skill for pest technicians to perform their duties. For an example of how pest technician responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "pest control workers may spend hours standing, bending, kneeling, or crawling." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a pest technician: "shop maintenance job duties are very physical with pulling of hoses, walking miles each dayguardian pest control".
The three companies that hire the most pest technicians are:
- Massey Services111 pest technicians jobs
- Terminix37 pest technicians jobs
- The Mosquito Authority12 pest technicians jobs
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Compare different pest technicians
Pest technician vs. Spray crew
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between pest technicians and spray crew. For instance, pest technician responsibilities require skills such as "safety procedures," "grass," "ladders," and "good communication." Whereas a spray crew is skilled in "blowers," "ans," "county roads," and "construction sites." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that spray crews earn slightly differ from pest technicians. In particular, spray crews are 3.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a pest technician. Additionally, they're 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Pest technician vs. Fumigator
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, pest technician responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "safety procedures," "grass," "good communication," and "shovels." Meanwhile, a fumigator has duties that require skills in areas such as "cdl," "drivers license," "calculates volume," and "sandbags." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Fumigators earn similar levels of education than pest technicians in general. They're 2.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.0% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Pest technician vs. Hand spray operator
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a pest technician is likely to be skilled in "safety procedures," "grass," "ladders," and "good communication," while a typical hand spray operator is skilled in "rig," "general maintenance," "safety rules," and "power tools."
Most hand spray operators achieve a similar degree level compared to pest technicians. For example, they're 0.6% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.0% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Pest technician vs. Exterminator
Even though a few skill sets overlap between pest technicians and exterminators, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a pest technician might have more use for skills like "grass," "ladders," "good communication," and "shovels." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of exterminators require skills like "rats," "manual solutions," "termite," and "hazardous materials. "
The average resume of exterminators showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to pest technicians. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 0.4% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.Types of pest technician
Updated January 8, 2025
