Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages O*NET task lead SOC 45-4011

Forest and Conservation Workers

O*NET task statements lead this Forest and Conservation Workers card before OEWS pay; neighboring titles include Animal Breeders, Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products, Log Graders and Scalers, Logging Equipment Operators.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Forest and Conservation Workers: Animal Breeders ($51K) , Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products ($36K) , Log Graders and Scalers ($46K) , Logging Equipment Operators ($50K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Forest and Conservation Workers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 45-4011 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly
  2. 2. Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians
  3. 3. Perform fire protection or suppression duties, such as constructing fire breaks or disposing of brush
  4. 4. Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts
  5. 5. Confer with other workers to discuss issues, such as safety, cutting heights, or work needs
  6. 6. Explain or enforce regulations regarding camping, vehicle use, fires, use of buildings, or sanitation
  7. 7. Operate skidders, bulldozers, or other prime movers to pull a variety of scarification or site preparation equipment over areas to be reg…
  8. 8. Spray or inject vegetation with insecticides to kill insects or to protect against disease or with herbicides to reduce competing vegetation
  9. 9. Thin or space trees, using power thinning saws
  10. 10. Identify diseased or undesirable trees and remove them, using power saws or hand saws
  11. 11. Select or cut trees according to markings or sizes, types, or grades
  12. 12. Prune or shear tree tops or limbs to control growth, increase density, or improve shape

Forest and Conservation Workers: O*NET ranks Critical Thinking first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 45-4011 - lead skill Critical Thinking at 3.1 ; lead knowledge Public Safety and Security. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Critical Thinking 3.1
  2. 2. Monitoring 3.1
  3. 3. Reading Comprehension 3.0
  4. 4. Active Listening 3.0
  5. 5. Speaking 3.0
  6. 6. Active Learning 3.0
  7. 7. Coordination 3.0
  8. 8. Judgment and Decision Making 3.0

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Public Safety and Security 3.5
  2. 2. English Language 3.5
  3. 3. Customer and Personal Service 3.2
  4. 4. Administration and Management 3.2
  5. 5. Geography 3.0
  6. 6. Biology 3.0
National median after O*NET task lead
$43,680
/year · 12 published task lines above
Lead task: Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly
$44K
National median
↓ -5%
Growth 2024-2034
2,000
Annual openings
6,050
Estimated US jobs
Animal Breeders
Highest-pay peer · $51K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Forest and Conservation Workers

1. Hawaii $56,330
2. Pennsylvania $50,250
3. South Carolina $44,050
4. Arkansas $47,310
5. Massachusetts $51,890
6. Virginia $54,560
7. Washington $44,430
8. Oregon $46,010
9. Idaho $59,460
10. Ohio $48,470

Other Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations titles

  1. 1. Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products $35,730
  2. 2. Log Graders and Scalers $46,330
  3. 3. Animal Breeders $51,130
  4. 4. Logging Equipment Operators $49,740
  5. 5. Farmworkers, Farm, Ranch, and Aquacultural Animals $36,670
  6. 6. Agricultural Workers, All Other $39,850

O*NET publishes 12 leading task statements for Forest and Conservation Workers (SOC 45-4011). The national OEWS median is $43,680 inside Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations. Same-group neighbors: Animal Breeders, Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products, Log Graders and Scalers, Logging Equipment Operators. Lead published task: Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly.

Employment Projections expect -5% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 2,000 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Hawaii at $56,330. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Animal Breeders at $51,130. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Forest and Conservation Workers pay-rank #8 in Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations

Forest and Conservation Workers sits at pay-rank #8 of 13 detailed Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 45-4011 · national median $43,680 · middle third of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations (#8/13). The day-to-day tasks above set this role apart from peers with a similar title.

Forest and Conservation Workers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 45-4011

Hawaii · top state for Forest and Conservation Workers

$56K published median

Pennsylvania · #2 state pay

$50K · behind Hawaii

Animal Breeders

Highest-pay peer vs Forest and Conservation Workers · $51K

Graders and Sorters, Agricultural Products

Lower-pay peer beside Forest and Conservation Workers · $36K

Compare Forest and Conservation Workers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Forest and Conservation Workers with another occupation →

Role and task next reads

Forest and Conservation Workers full salary map

State and metro OEWS after the task lead

Compare tasks and pay

Side-by-side with another occupation

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Forest and Conservation Workers mid-table among Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #8 of 13 detailed Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Agricultural Equipment Operators ($42K), Log Graders and Scalers ($46K), Logging Equipment Operators ($50K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do forest and conservation workers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Forest and Conservation Workers. Leading ones include: Check equipment to ensure that it is operating properly; Fight forest fires or perform prescribed burning tasks under the direction of fire suppression officers or forestry technicians; Perform fire protection or suppression duties, such as constructing fire breaks or disposing of brush; Maintain tallies of trees examined and counted during tree marking or measuring efforts. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for forest and conservation workers? ▼
For SOC 45-4011, O*NET importance scores lead with Critical Thinking (3.1), Monitoring (3.1), Reading Comprehension (3.0), Active Listening (3.0). Knowledge areas emphasize Public Safety and Security, English Language, Customer and Personal Service. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Forest and Conservation Workers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $43,680 as the national median for Forest and Conservation Workers. The published 10th-90th range is $33,780 to $57,220. Beside Animal Breeders ($51,130), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Forest and Conservation Workers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Forest and Conservation Workers is -5%. Projected annual openings: about 2,000. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Forest and Conservation Workers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Forest and Conservation Workers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Forest and Conservation Workers? ▼
Hawaii ($56,330), Pennsylvania ($50,250), South Carolina ($44,050) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Forest and Conservation Workers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 45-4011. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Forest and Conservation Workers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics