A slaughterer works for companies that produce meat products, and performs various duties related to the slaughtering and processing of the animals. The job typically involves tasks like cutting the meat into specific cuts – standard or premium ones, depending on the current requests – as well as processing the meat in other ways, like running it through a mincer or filling it into sausages. Slaughterers may sometimes perform other small tasks related to the operation of the slaughterhouse, like transporting the meat from one area to another.
Becoming a slaughterer doesn’t take any specialized education and most of the skills required for performing the job are attained in the course of employment. The job can be quite demanding in some cases, especially during the busier seasons – and a good slaughterer must be able to maintain their performance in peak levels even under heavy pressure, in order to avoid incidents. Slaughterers also need to have a strong sense of hygiene, and maintain their working place in a good condition at all times.
The job of a slaughterer isn’t very demanding and thus doesn’t earn a typically high salary – the most common pay rates vary between $20,000 – $31,000, though the job does have some attractive features to it – such as good, flexible working hours and hefty bonuses commonly attached for outstanding performance. Typically, a slaughterer would receive a lot of additional healthcare compensation, which in some cases can actually be the deciding factor for some candidates.