Pest Control Workers
Apply or release chemical solutions or toxic gases and set traps to kill or remove pests and vermin that infest buildings and surrounding areas.
- O*NET-SOC code
37-2021.00 - Preparation Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
Wages
Median annual wage, U.S.$45,250
Employment, U.S.102,620
Median hourly wage$21.75
| 10th | 25th | Median | 75th | 90th |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $34,680 | $37,440 | $45,250 | $49,600 | $61,890 |
By state (50)
| State | Employment | Median annual | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 2,540 | $38,410 | 1.82 |
| Alaska | 40 | $46,900 | 0.18 |
| Arizona | 3,200 | $44,430 | 1.50 |
| Arkansas | 1,030 | $37,710 | 1.20 |
| California | $47,190 | ||
| Colorado | 970 | $48,650 | 0.51 |
| Connecticut | 880 | $49,010 | 0.78 |
| Delaware | 300 | $45,300 | 0.94 |
| Florida | 12,400 | $44,320 | 1.89 |
| Georgia | 5,770 | $37,860 | 1.79 |
| Hawaii | 740 | $48,570 | 1.79 |
| Idaho | 620 | $40,220 | 1.09 |
| Illinois | 2,470 | $46,450 | 0.61 |
| Indiana | 1,670 | $38,600 | 0.79 |
| Iowa | 540 | $45,290 | 0.52 |
| Kansas | 760 | $38,690 | 0.81 |
| Kentucky | 1,030 | $42,310 | 0.78 |
| Louisiana | 1,930 | $44,570 | 1.51 |
| Maine | 320 | $48,340 | 0.76 |
| Maryland | 1,670 | $47,360 | 0.91 |
| Massachusetts | 1,900 | $45,560 | 0.79 |
| Michigan | 1,460 | $44,470 | 0.50 |
| Minnesota | 670 | $41,640 | 0.34 |
| Mississippi | 960 | $37,200 | 1.25 |
| Missouri | 1,440 | $42,690 | 0.74 |
| Montana | 100 | $41,730 | 0.30 |
| Nebraska | 460 | $38,960 | 0.68 |
| Nevada | 790 | $49,240 | 0.77 |
| New Hampshire | 260 | $48,000 | 0.57 |
| New Jersey | 2,270 | $48,780 | 0.80 |
| New Mexico | 320 | $37,070 | 0.56 |
| New York | 4,220 | $48,530 | 0.66 |
| North Carolina | 4,870 | $44,740 | 1.49 |
| North Dakota | 120 | $48,020 | 0.41 |
| Ohio | 2,170 | $40,110 | 0.59 |
| Oklahoma | 1,310 | $39,050 | 1.16 |
| Oregon | 740 | $46,570 | 0.57 |
| Pennsylvania | 2,260 | $45,720 | 0.56 |
| Rhode Island | 270 | $45,030 | 0.82 |
| South Carolina | 2,660 | $43,130 | 1.75 |
| South Dakota | 190 | $49,920 | 0.63 |
| Tennessee | 3,340 | $39,690 | 1.54 |
| Texas | 9,470 | $37,660 | 1.02 |
| Utah | 1,050 | $44,740 | 0.92 |
| Vermont | 80 | $46,320 | 0.42 |
| Virginia | 3,040 | $45,950 | 1.12 |
| Washington | 1,430 | $51,300 | 0.61 |
| West Virginia | 460 | $37,510 | 0.99 |
| Wisconsin | 1,060 | $45,350 | 0.54 |
| Wyoming | 50 | $44,500 | 0.29 |
Similar occupations
Similarity is our measure: the cosine of importance x level over all 120 O*NET skills, knowledge areas and abilities. It is not an O*NET finding. More.
Circles are the 20 most similar occupations, coloured by Job Zone. Lines join pairs where one is among the other's 10 most similar; darker lines are pairs O*NET also lists as related. Drag a circle to move it out of the way; select one to open it.
One skill away
Among the 50 occupations most similar to Pest Control Workers, those at the same Job Zone or lower, where exactly one skill rated at least 3 in importance needs a level more than 0.75 points higher (on O*NET's 0-7 level scale). Our definition. Change the thresholds.
| Occupation | Skill to build | Level gap | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Animal Trainers | Learning Strategies | 1.13 | 0.935 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Helpers, Laborers, and Material Movers, Hand | Management of Personnel Resources | 0.87 | 0.934 |
Software to learn next
Software used by at least 3 of the 20 occupations most similar to Pest Control Workers, excluding software Pest Control Workers already lists and any you named. Ranked by how many of them use it, weighted by how much more common it is among them than across all occupations (lift). Our ranking.
| Software | Similar jobs using it | Lift |
|---|---|---|
| Payroll software | 4 of 20 | 10.9x |
| Geomechanical design analysis GDA software | 3 of 20 | 9.9x |
| Geographic information system GIS systems | 5 of 20 | 3.8x |
| Microsoft Outlook | 19 of 20 | 1.4x |
| ESRI ArcGIS software | 5 of 20 | 2.5x |
| Microsoft PowerPoint | 17 of 20 | 1.2x |
| 5 of 20 | 1.7x | |
| Microsoft Access | 10 of 20 | 1.2x |
| SAP software | 7 of 20 | 1.1x |
| Autodesk AutoCAD | 4 of 20 | 1.1x |
Skills
From O*NET data. Importance is rated 1 to 5 and level 0 to 7.
| Skill | Type | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| Critical Thinking | Essential skill | 3.75 | 3.38 |
| Active Listening | Essential skill | 3.75 | 3.00 |
| Monitoring | Essential skill | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Speaking | Essential skill | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Writing | Essential skill | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Time Management | Transferable skill | 3.50 | 3.00 |
| Social Perceptiveness | Transferable skill | 3.38 | 2.88 |
| Complex Problem Solving | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Service Orientation | Transferable skill | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Coordination | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Persuasion | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 3.00 |
| Active Learning | Essential skill | 3.12 | 2.88 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 2.88 |
| Negotiation | Transferable skill | 3.12 | 2.88 |
| Reading Comprehension | Essential skill | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Operations Monitoring | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.75 |
| Operation and Control | Transferable skill | 3.00 | 2.62 |
| Instructing | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.88 |
| Systems Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.88 | 2.62 |
| Learning Strategies | Essential skill | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Mathematics | Essential skill | 2.62 | 2.62 |
| Quality Control Analysis | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.38 |
| Systems Evaluation | Transferable skill | 2.62 | 2.00 |
| Troubleshooting | Transferable skill | 2.50 | 2.00 |
| Equipment Maintenance | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 1.88 |
| Repairing | Transferable skill | 2.25 | 1.88 |
| Management of Financial Resources | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Management of Material Resources | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Equipment Selection | Transferable skill | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Science | Essential skill | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Operations Analysis | Transferable skill | 1.88 | 1.25 |
| Technology Design | Transferable skill | 1.62 | 0.62 |
| Installation | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
| Programming | Transferable skill | 1.00 | not rated |
Knowledge (32) and abilities (52)
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Customer and Personal Service | 4.39 | 4.20 |
| Chemistry | 3.57 | 3.79 |
| Mathematics | 3.49 | 3.39 |
| Biology | 3.24 | 3.09 |
| Law and Government | 3.19 | 2.66 |
| Public Safety and Security | 3.12 | 3.12 |
| English Language | 2.96 | 1.80 |
| Sales and Marketing | 2.93 | 3.17 |
| Education and Training | 2.92 | 2.44 |
| Transportation | 2.78 | 2.07 |
| Communications and Media | 2.55 | 1.80 |
| Telecommunications | 2.53 | 1.36 |
| Building and Construction | 2.50 | 1.96 |
| Economics and Accounting | 2.42 | 1.70 |
| Psychology | 2.40 | 2.25 |
| Computers and Electronics | 2.39 | 2.16 |
| Administrative | 2.30 | 2.45 |
| Mechanical | 2.29 | 1.94 |
| Production and Processing | 2.27 | 1.93 |
| Geography | 2.26 | 1.70 |
| Personnel and Human Resources | 2.25 | 1.62 |
| Administration and Management | 2.12 | 2.39 |
| Design | 2.11 | 1.77 |
| Physics | 1.99 | 1.40 |
| Foreign Language | 1.87 | 1.28 |
| Engineering and Technology | 1.80 | 1.13 |
| Sociology and Anthropology | 1.79 | 1.20 |
| Food Production | 1.74 | 0.99 |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 1.35 | not rated |
| Philosophy and Theology | 1.34 | not rated |
| Therapy and Counseling | 1.28 | not rated |
| History and Archeology | 1.01 | not rated |
| Name | Importance | Level |
|---|---|---|
| Near Vision | 4.00 | 3.25 |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.75 | 3.62 |
| Oral Expression | 3.75 | 3.62 |
| Speech Clarity | 3.75 | 3.12 |
| Speech Recognition | 3.62 | 3.38 |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Written Expression | 3.62 | 3.00 |
| Far Vision | 3.50 | 3.12 |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.50 | 3.00 |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.25 | 3.25 |
| Category Flexibility | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Information Ordering | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Written Comprehension | 3.25 | 3.00 |
| Extent Flexibility | 3.00 | 3.25 |
| Control Precision | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Trunk Strength | 3.00 | 3.00 |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Manual Dexterity | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Selective Attention | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Time Sharing | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Visualization | 3.00 | 2.88 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 3.00 | 2.75 |
| Perceptual Speed | 2.88 | 3.00 |
| Finger Dexterity | 2.88 | 2.75 |
| Fluency of Ideas | 2.88 | 2.75 |
| Multilimb Coordination | 2.88 | 2.75 |
| Depth Perception | 2.88 | 2.62 |
| Hearing Sensitivity | 2.88 | 2.50 |
| Static Strength | 2.88 | 2.50 |
| Gross Body Coordination | 2.88 | 2.38 |
| Gross Body Equilibrium | 2.88 | 2.25 |
| Number Facility | 2.75 | 2.88 |
| Originality | 2.75 | 2.75 |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 2.75 | 2.25 |
| Spatial Orientation | 2.62 | 2.25 |
| Stamina | 2.62 | 2.25 |
| Auditory Attention | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Reaction Time | 2.50 | 2.25 |
| Speed of Closure | 2.38 | 2.38 |
| Response Orientation | 2.25 | 2.50 |
| Rate Control | 2.25 | 2.12 |
| Dynamic Strength | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Night Vision | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Peripheral Vision | 2.25 | 2.00 |
| Memorization | 2.12 | 2.12 |
| Glare Sensitivity | 2.12 | 2.00 |
| Sound Localization | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Wrist-Finger Speed | 2.12 | 1.88 |
| Speed of Limb Movement | 2.00 | 1.75 |
| Explosive Strength | 1.62 | 1.00 |
| Dynamic Flexibility | 1.25 | not rated |
Software used
Examples from O*NET data. "Hot" and "in demand" are O*NET flags for technologies often listed in job postings.
- Intuit QuickBooks hot
- Microsoft Excel hot
- Microsoft Office software hot
- Microsoft SharePoint hot
- Microsoft Word hot
- Database software
- Email software
- Marathon Data Systems PestPac
- Report writing software
- Supply inventory software
- Work scheduling software
- YouTube
Where it concentrates
Metro areas ranked by BLS location quotient: the occupation's share of the area's jobs divided by its share of all US jobs. Above 1 means more concentrated than the nation. Metros employing fewer than 100 are left out.
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Median annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| Punta Gorda, FL | 200 | 5.36 | $44,470 |
| Homosassa Springs, FL | 100 | 4.43 | $43,960 |
| Brunswick-St. Simons, GA | 110 | 3.71 | $36,410 |
| Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ | 130 | 3.39 | $39,110 |
| Hilton Head Island-Bluffton-Port Royal, SC | 180 | 3.29 | $43,130 |
| Auburn-Opelika, AL | 160 | 3.25 | $37,850 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 600 | 2.96 | $44,490 |
| Daphne-Fairhope-Foley, AL | 170 | 2.89 | $38,500 |
| Wilmington, NC | 360 | 2.83 | $37,920 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach, SC | 270 | 2.77 | $38,100 |