When I retired the company hired 3 people to take my place for less than what I made a year. The problem is young folks will not work any lengyh of time for that ammount of $$$$$$

i would be willing to switch companies if there was an opening in my area...

the question i raise is this. how many meat cutters are going to be needed in the industry 5, 10, 20 and 30 years from now?some companies want to go the Walmart route( i can name a one in particular) and some have gone that road only to turn back. either way it is a dilemma that needs addressed.

I agree with most of the others. PAY UP! With that being said Meat cutters are a special breed. Cutting meat is a small part of our job at the retail level at least. Not only do you need to have a very strong work ethic, you need to have a good memory, communication skills, hand eye coordination, be business savvy, posses strong customer service skills, understand food safety, be a novice chef, and many more. On top of all that you need to find someone who doesn't mind working in cold conditions, frequently lifting 70 + lbs and doesn't think touching meat is (icky).

We used to have a meat cutting school here in MN, I have worked with a few guys that were trained there. It is no longer in operation not just because of the lack of interest but also because the state requires that they need to teach take other college classes. If a person is interested in being a meat cutter, it's pretty safe to say that they don't have a desire or the book smarts to be a doctor, engineer, architect, ect. I would start looking towards the local 4-H and FFA groups. These people already have a mindset that will allow them to be cutters. You could go out and talk to the leaders of these groups and see what they have to say.


I think a big problem is these cooperations don't value there employes enough. A lot of companies seek out that employee that started there in high school didn't go to college, and now is undecided on what to do with his/her life. They then try to groom them into a cutter from a green horn, because it's cheaper. Why work for $9- $11 dollars an hour when you can go get a job in the construction business making $14+ to start.


What they need to do is sit down with these people and explain to them the opportunities meat cutting can offer. Show them the pay levels for each position and set a series of goals. They should also set reviews every 6 months and offer significant pay raises when the employee achieves the goals at each tier. That way within one to two years they are making 15-16 dollars an hour.

Anyhow thats what I think.

Can't answer for you guys ,but on reading some replys it seems to be the wages.
Over here youngsters are going for the building trades and highly paid desk jobs in IT and the like.
What's needed is colleges to start courses,but they only do catering which is the nearest thing to our trade.
My youngest son went into catering ,yet when I ask him about his meat training , he hasn't a clue.
I want to try to get him to work with me ,again he doesn't seem intrested . I will have to sell my shop when I retire as my kids are not interested in the meat trade.





I blame those bloddy veggies.

Although pay plays a major role in keeping a meat cutter, I have found that the evenings, weekends and holidays cause more trainees and damn near meat cutters to seek employment elsewhere. I have been in this long enough to remember 7 paid holidays a year, closed at 6 five nights a week and not open at all on Sunday. Now we have no paid holidays to offer, busier on Sunday than any other day and open late every night. Would you choose this profession now?

Corporations will continue these practices Hunter. The worst part is that we are selling each other out. NJ is a hot mess right now. 2011 Christmas and Thanksgiving I must have worked 70 hrs each week. And it is not appreciated. The guys in charge getting ready to retire want that last big incentive check. They are desensitized. Forgot what is like to put together the freezing cold grinder parts at 5am. Getting slammed by 3 customers at once right before an order deadline.

It's all about the money. When you can look at a potential prospect in the eye and say, "Son (or ma'am), cutting meat will earn you a solid living," only then will the trade become what it used to be.

Meat cutters know they aren't going to get rich, but not one of them wants to be poor. No one wants to live at the poverty level. $30,000 ($14.42 an hour, 40 hour work week) used to be the standard for a decent living, but if you live in a metro area, you know that barely gets you by. Prices on everything, primarily groceries, are going up. Gas is insane, and it's about to get a lot worse. Insurance is horrible. And companies want to pay someone $8 an hour? Seriously? Even $12 ($24,960/year) an hour isn't much. What burns me up the most is upper management complaining about labor, while they're taking home 6-figure salaries. You've got to give a little to get a little.

Is it too much to ask a make a salary ONE PERSON can live on, a retirement plan you can retire on, and insurance that won't take 10% of your check? Until management comes down off their high horse and realize you have to pay someone if you want to keep them, things will continue to get worse. And then, and only then, will you be able to pick and choose the cutters you want to keep.

* * * * * *

FWIW, it's my opinion that an experienced meat cutter should make around $38,000 to $45,000 a year depending on location and years at the current company. This might be your third man, the guy the 2nd man relies on.

Companies need to stop the trend toward the central processing. We're discontinuing a few things in our area starting next month, and our coordinator claims it will more than likely be slowly phased out over the next couple of years. We think he's blowin smoke, but customers really arent happy with the stuff.

Some things that would help immensely in my opinion. 1. Make a graduated apprenticeship structure. Test every 3 months, and for each level passed a pay increase. I'm essentially stuck at 9.76 an hour til I pass my test, even though I'm more proficient than 75% of the journeyman they have put through in the past 5 years. This would encourage folks to stick with it.

2. Realize it's labor intense, and give hours accordingly. For us, it's damn hard when we have 1 clerk who's tied up at the counter, and we're cutting/wrapping/running. I can be called lots of things, but lazy isn't one of em, so I think the workload might be discouraging for someone with less of a stomach for hard work.

3. A trend away from centralized processing (again just some chains), with an emphasis on the aging workforce now in the field, and promoting fast advancement. We have about 10-12 guys fixing to retire in the next 5 years in a 12 store area. It's a strong possibility I'll have my own shop, or at least be a backup by the time all those guys retire.

we also have to stop the bleeding of our hours in our departments.
We need hours to get things done and to keep a fair workload on everyone

BigBeef, man I'm lucky. Nothing but encouragement from my bosses. I've heard stories though. One involved a particularly bad cut, and a nail.

As a whole, I think people my age are lazy whiners. I had a couple people try to get me fired/demoted to clerk, because they felt I jumped ahead of them or somethin. Really the reason I got promoted was, I worked hard, learned things I didn't need to (Grinds, some basic cuts by hand, ordering). I took initiative and was rewarded.

Most people my age also tend to look down their noses at what's perceived as "dirty work." "I should be sittin in a desk somewhere, doing somethin productive is for someone else." There needs to be some massive PR pushing the importance of this type of work (and companies willing to provide it) in order to bring some respect back to the trades, especially before all the people that have the knowhow in these fields are gone.

I may have gone a little broader in scope there, but it applies to meat cutting as well as several other fields.