45 Series · SOC 45-4021
Fallers Salary
National pay, percentile range, growth outlook, and state-by-state detail from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS survey (May 2025).
- $52,100
- Median / year
- $82,360
- Top 10% earn
- -7.3%
- Growth '23–'33
- 3,130
- US workers
Fallers professionals earn a median $52,100/year ($25.05/hr) nationally. The salary ranges from $35,180 (10th percentile) to $82,360 (90th percentile). Employment is projected to decline7.3% from 2023 to 2033, declining. The highest-paying state is Oregon at $84,490. Approximately 3,130 people work in this role across the U.S. Entry-level education: High school diploma or equivalent. Workplace safety grade: D (Dangerous).
Fallers (SOC 45-4021) pays a national median of $52,100 per year according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey released in May 2025. Full-range compensation stretches from $35,180 at the 10th percentile to $82,360 at the 90th, with a mean of $57,110 indicating a right-skew where top earners pull the average above the midpoint. An estimated 3,130 Americans work in this occupation across 18 reporting states and 9 metro areas.
BLS Employment Projections forecast a -7.3% change in employment from 2023 to 2033, which the agency classifies as declining relative to the 5% all-occupations baseline. About 700 openings are projected per year, combining new positions with replacement needs from retirements and occupation-switchers. Typical entry-level preparation is High school diploma or equivalent and moderate-term on-the-job training of on-the-job training. The BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) and Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII) produce a workplace-safety grade of D for this role, with a fatality rate of 111.7 per 100,000 and injury rate of 4 per 100.
Geographic variation matters as much as the headline median. Oregon pays the highest state median at $84,490, which is +62% above the national figure. The top metro is Coast Oregon nonmetropolitan area at $95,130 — metro premiums typically reflect higher cost of living, industry concentration, or specialized employer demand. When using this page for negotiation or career planning, pair the national median with the state and metro rows below, remember that BLS wages exclude benefits, bonuses, and overtime, and revisit after each May OEWS release since percentiles shift with cost-of-living cycles and industry demand.
Median Salary
$52,100
per year
Median Hourly
$25.05/hr
per hour
Mean Salary
$57,110
average
Employment
3,130
jobs nationwide
Bar fills relative to a $200K reference ceiling. Marker shows the all-occupations US median for context — anything to the right of it earns above the typical American worker.
Job Outlook (2023–2033)
Projected Growth
-7.3%
Declining
Annual Openings
700
per year (projected)
Typical Education
High school diploma or equivalent
On-the-Job Training
Moderate-term on-the-job training
Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2023–2033
Workplace Safety
All safety ratings →Dangerous
Safety Grade (BLS 2023)
Fatality Rate
111.7/100K
Injury Rate
4/100
Danger Index
71.9/100
Source: BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) & Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses (SOII), 2023
Career Intelligence
Skills, knowledge, and tasks most important for Fallers roles, ranked by importance. Source: O*NET.
Top Skills
Knowledge Areas
Key Tasks
- ▸ Stop saw engines, pull cutting bars from cuts, and run to safety as tree falls.
- ▸ Appraise trees for certain characteristics, such as twist, rot, and heavy limb growth, and gauge amount and direction of lean, to determine how to control the direction of a tree's fall with the least damage.
- ▸ Saw back-cuts, leaving sufficient sound wood to control direction of fall.
- ▸ Clear brush from work areas and escape routes, and cut saplings and other trees from direction of falls, using axes, chainsaws, or bulldozers.
- ▸ Measure felled trees and cut them into specified log lengths, using chain saws and axes.
- ▸ Assess logs after cutting to ensure that the quality and length are correct.
- ▸ Determine position, direction, and depth of cuts to be made, and placement of wedges or jacks.
- ▸ Control the direction of a tree's fall by scoring cutting lines with axes, sawing undercuts along scored lines with chainsaws, knocking slabs from cuts with single-bit axes, and driving wedges.
- ▸ Trim off the tops and limbs of trees, using chainsaws, delimbers, or axes.
- ▸ Select trees to be cut down, assessing factors such as site, terrain, and weather conditions before beginning work.
Source: O*NET Online, National Center for O*NET Development. Data represents typical importance ratings for this occupation.
Salary Range
Annual Salary Distribution
Hourly Rate Distribution
10th Percentile
$35,180
25th Percentile
$41,360
Median
$52,100
75th Percentile
$63,390
90th Percentile
$82,360
Salary by State
Highest Paying States
View all 18 states →
| # | State | Median Salary | vs National |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oregon | $84,490 | +62% above national |
| 2 | Idaho | $78,330 | +50% above national |
| 3 | Washington | $77,340 | +48% above national |
| 4 | South Carolina | $76,350 | +47% above national |
| 5 | Arkansas | $67,060 | +29% above national |
| 6 | Louisiana | $62,040 | +19% above national |
| 7 | California | $59,590 | +14% above national |
| 8 | Maryland | $58,300 | +12% above national |
| 9 | Mississippi | $54,110 | +4% above national |
| 10 | Michigan | $51,700 | 1% below national |
| 11 | Wisconsin | $50,010 | 4% below national |
| 12 | Virginia | $48,340 | 7% below national |
| 13 | Ohio | $47,700 | 8% below national |
| 14 | Tennessee | $47,560 | 9% below national |
| 15 | North Carolina | $46,080 | 12% below national |
| 16 | Georgia | $39,380 | 24% below national |
| 17 | New York | $36,190 | 31% below national |
| 18 | Indiana | $26,210 | 50% below national |
Salary by Metro Area
Highest Paying Metros
View all 9 metro areas →
| # | Metro Area | Median Salary | vs National |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Coast Oregon nonmetropolitan area | $95,130 | +83% above national |
| 2 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $76,940 | +48% above national |
| 3 | North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area | $59,590 | +14% above national |
| 4 | Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area | $59,440 | +14% above national |
| 5 | Lower West Mississippi nonmetropolitan area | $58,250 | +12% above national |
| 6 | Northern Michigan nonmetropolitan area | $51,700 | 1% below national |
| 7 | Eastern North Carolina nonmetropolitan area | $46,100 | 12% below national |
| 8 | Richmond, VA | $40,560 | 22% below national |
| 9 | Middle Georgia nonmetropolitan area | $36,280 | 30% below national |
Similar Occupations in the Same Category
Other roles in SOC major group 45 (farming fishing and forestry) with comparable pay and career paths.
Salary Guides
Primary source data
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Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.