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SOC 45-3031
Hunt, trap, catch or gather wild animals or aquatic animals and plants; may use nets, traps or other equipment; may haul catch onto a ship or other vessel. (US SOC/O*NET 45-3031.00, Fishing and Hunting Workers)
Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((0+25+0)/3+0.5)=8; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.
First judge whether you are willing to make water or field harvesting work a long-term career: it requires switching between physical load and work safety and permit compliance and catch handling, and taking on physical and safety and compliance responsibility; verify with the paper exercise on this page.
This card is a career exploration reference and does not constitute recruitment, a capability score, or maritime and safety and legal conclusions.
Signals worth considering more: willingness to work outdoors and on the water or in the field over the long term, the ability to cope with irregular hours and a work rhythm far from land, the ability to keep judgement under weather and equipment and personnel risk, and willingness to work per permit and quota and safety rules. Signals requiring caution: not being comfortable in water or being prone to seasickness, difficulty coping with physical load and long periods offshore or in the field, and imagining this work as being only about catch volume without regard for safety and regulations. Use the paper exercise on this page for self-checking rather than drawing conclusions from personality labels.
Occupational boundary: this page is written according to US SOC/O*NET 45-3031.00 and refers to workers who catch or hunt or trap or gather wild animals and aquatic animals and plants and process the catch or game (the former fishing occupation 45-3011 has been merged into this occupation); it does not include water transport occupations and sailors who drive transport vessels carrying passengers and cargo, farming and aquaculture workers in the farming category, loggers who fell timber, forest and conservation workers who maintain forests and habitat, or slaughtering and seafood processing workers who cut and pack inside processing facilities.
Career direction comparison
The following directions overlap in responsibility with fishing and hunting and gathering work, but their focus differs; use them to help locate a direction rather than as substitutes for one another.
| Career direction | Core work and output | Key differences | Best-fit choice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water transport occupations | Drive and maintain transport vessels and carry passengers and cargo along routes | Outputs driving and maintaining transport vessels and carrying passengers and cargo; this occupation outputs gathering wild animals and aquatic animals and processing the catch | Choose that direction if you prefer vessel driving and transport and carrying passengers and cargo; choose this occupation if you prefer fishing or hunting and catch handling |
| Sailors and ship fuelers | Carry out deck and mooring and engine room support and watchkeeping on vessels |
AI impact on this career
Editorial analysis: approved catch, permit and maintenance records may be trialled for organisation; navigation, fish finding and weather systems are not automatically generative AI, and this page obtained no measurement of marked AI impact. AI Impact Score 8% is an editorial estimate. Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((0+25+0)/3+0.5)=8; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.The three tasks, ratings and sources are listed in the FermatMind method source record on this page.
FermatMind AI Impact Score estimation method v1
FermatMind / 费马测试 · 2026-10-18
Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
Chinese mainland salary reference
Wild catching / hunting is kept separate from farmed, processing and transport posts. In China, fishing permits, crew qualifications, vessel surveys, closed fishing and hunting seasons, and safety and food rules are verified by specific jurisdiction, species, waters and duties; not all current provisions were verified this round.
National Bureau of Statistics data are pre-tax annual average wages of employed persons in urban units; the wage total includes labour remuneration per statistical rules and cannot be summarised as excluding all bonuses, allowances or overtime pay. National, industry and job group averages cannot replace an individual's income in this occupation or a specific employment contract quote. Employed wages and net self-employment operating income are different, and operating costs are verified separately; share or piece-rate labour remuneration cannot be uniformly excluded.
Insufficient evidence: no exact matching national income for this occupation in mainland China was obtained this round; industry and national averages are background only and are not substituted for personal monthly wages.
Insufficient evidence: no complete sample of regional monthly wages or shares for this occupation in China was obtained; verify crew labour remuneration, the owner's self-operated income and who bears costs, and it cannot be presumed that everyone has operating costs deducted from a share.
US pay reference
US definition: O*NET-SOC 45-3031.00 'Fishing and Hunting Workers' — BLS employment projections show 2025 employment of about 28,200 people, a decline of about 4% over 2025—2035, and about 3,300 average annual openings. On wages, the US Department of Labor and the BLS state clearly that OEWS does not provide wage estimates for 45-3031 because of data limitations (the wage column of the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is marked unavailable, the most recent being a median annual wage of 28,530 US dollars in May 2017), so this page does not provide wage percentiles or a median for this occupation, nor does it pass off the median wage of the 'agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group' (36,630 US dollars / year) as this occupation's wage.
| Wage statistical position | Annual wage reference | Conversion boundary | How to understand this position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest 10% | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031), so the 10th percentile cannot be given. | Official annual wage, not personal monthly income | Wage estimate: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide a current wage for this occupation; the most recent wage data in the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is May 2017 (median annual wage 28,530 US dollars) and is outdated. |
Career fit guide
Interests and personality can be used for preference reflection, but this page has not verified their predictive validity for competence, evidence gathering, recruitment or work performance in this occupation.
You may be better suited to: Water and field work skills: whether you can master boats or vehicles and navigation and fish finding and gear or trap operation, rope and mechanical operation, and water and weather judgement, is the core of judging fit.
These situations require caution: Safety and regulatory awareness: this occupation depends on execution of lifesaving and firefighting and first aid, permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes, and catch hygiene and wildlife protection rules; avoiding safety and regulatory issues will limit your work and create risk.
Do an entry exercise: Qualifications and health: some positions have crew qualification and vessel certificate and medical examination and physical fitness requirements that must be verified in advance, subject to the competent authority's regulations.
Work pressure, risks and occupational boundaries
Editorial verification directions include weather and equipment conditions, lifesaving, permits, catch handling and settlement handover; this page does not provide measurements of accident rates or risk reduction.
The risk cards propose editorial verification suggestions from tasks and context; O*NET and BLS occupational materials do not provide specific maritime, lifesaving, fishing / hunting or hygiene rules, and the provisions of all jurisdictions were not verified.
Typical scenario:Taking the risk of going to sea beyond condition limits to catch a fishing season or make progress
Roles most affected:Working and navigating in severe weather or sea states
Possible consequence:May cause capsizing and casualties and loss of the vessel
Entry, qualifications and career development
O*NET lists this occupation as Job Zone 1-2 (SVP below 6.0), interest code RC; this occupation is projected to decline by about 4% over 2025—2035, with about 3,300 average annual openings; because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.
Occupational prospects and related occupation transitions
US definition (O*NET 45-3031.00 and BLS): 2025 employment of about 28,200 people, a projected decline of about 4% (Decline) over 2025—2035, and about 3,300 average annual job openings (all from replacement needs); on wages, the US Department of Labor and the BLS state clearly that OEWS does not provide wage estimates for 45-3031 because of data limitations (the wage column of the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is marked unavailable, the most recent being a median annual wage of 28,530 US dollars in May 2017), and this page does not provide wage percentiles or a median for this occupation, nor does it pass off the occupational group wage as such.
United States · Fishing and Hunting Workers(45-3031.00)
Decline (about -4%)
Employment change
Employment is projected to decline, and job openings still come from replacement needs; demand for fishing and hunting is affected by resources and policy and markets and recreational hunting trends and is outside this statistical definition
This page is written according to the US O*NET-SOC 45-3031.00 'Fishing and Hunting Workers' (the fixed index gives this asset the Chinese name whose English rendering is 'Fishing and hunting workers'; the former 45-3011.00 'Fishers and Related Fishing Workers' has been discontinued and merged into this occupation): hunt, trap, catch or gather wild animals or aquatic animals and plants; may use nets, traps or other equipment; may haul catch onto a ship or other vessel. Specific tasks include: driving boats and operating navigation instruments; removing catch from gear and measuring it to ensure compliance with legal sizes; directing fishing or hunting operations and supervising crew; interpreting weather and vessel conditions to determine the response; travelling to work areas on foot or by vehicle or boat or snowmobile or helicopter; setting and maintaining gear and traps and nets; maintaining engines and gear; washing decks; using fish finding equipment to locate schools of fish; processing catch and fur; transporting catch to processing plants; taking part in wildlife management and research; operating and maintaining drones to conduct aerial surveillance of work areas. Common reported job titles include Commercial Fisherman, Deckhand, Fisherman, Lobster Fisherman, Fur Trapper, Hunter, Trapper and Wildlife Control Operator.
Choose a real task from this page for a small practice project or a conversation with someone in the field. Use the planning guides to set a date, an output and feedback questions before deciding whether to continue.
This list is for self-questioning only and does not constitute recruitment criteria, a capability score, or a conclusion evaluating the quality of the work and service. This page is written according to the US SOC/O*NET 45-3031.00 'Fishing and Hunting Workers' (the fixed index gives this asset the Chinese name whose English rendering is 'Fishing and hunting workers'; the former 45-3011.00 'Fishers and Related Fishing Workers' has been discontinued and merged into this occupation).
Verify with one paper exercise (entirely fictional, containing no real boat positions, fishing grounds or operating parameters): you are given a work task pack (target species and waters or forest area, available boats or vehicles and fishing gear or traps and navigation and communication equipment, weather and sea state or ground condition forecasts, permits and quotas and legal size rules, crew on board and shifts and safety equipment, expected landing or knock-off time, and one equipment failure or sudden weather change or crew injury situation). The task is to set the shift priorities, explain how departure or hunting preparation, setting and operating gear or traps, harvesting catch and sorting and measuring, on-board processing and preservation, and landing and unloading and handover link together, and write out the checklists needed, the safety and review points, the record and handover formats, and the actions that must be stopped and reported when beyond your own authority or safety conditions.
The work of this occupation revolves around the cycle of 'departure or hunting preparation and checks — setting and operating gear or traps — harvesting catch and sorting and measuring — on-board or on-site processing and preservation — landing and unloading and handover and sale — records and maintenance and after-action review': setting and operating gear or traps in the target waters or forest area, harvesting catch and sorting and measuring it, processing and preserving it on board or on site, landing and unloading and handing over, while maintaining engines and gear and complying with permits and quotas and safety rules.
Centred on water or field harvesting work and catch handling and safety compliance
Pre-departure check and weather judgement records, work position and gear status records, catch sorting and size and quota records, processing and preservation records, unloading and handover and sales records, maintenance and safety and compliance records
Water and field harvesting occupations are often conflated; the way to tell them apart is to look at where responsibility lands and at the outputs: this occupation outputs catching or hunting or gathering wild animals and aquatic animals and processing the catch or game; water transport occupations and sailors and ship fuelers output driving and maintaining transport vessels and carrying passengers and cargo; agricultural workers and farm and ranch and aquaculture workers output growing and feeding and farming terrestrial or aquatic organisms; loggers output felling and transporting timber; forest and conservation workers output silviculture and maintenance and patrol of forests and habitat; slaughtering and meat cutting and seafood processing workers output cutting and packing in processing facilities.
| Dimension | Primary track | Comparison track |
|---|---|---|
| Core purpose | Hunt, trap, catch or gather wild animals or aquatic animals and plants; may use nets, traps or other equipment; may haul catch onto a ship or other vessel. | Grouped by work unit (boat crew or hunting party) and work area and season and shift; accepting tasks and pre-departure briefing and on-site work supervision and post-return record review |
| Main objects and basis | The objects include boats or vehicles and gear or traps and nets and lines and navigation and fish finding and communication and safety and lifesaving equipment, target waters or forest area and fish and wildlife resources, catch or game and processing and preservation facilities, permits and quotas and legal sizes and records, and vessel owners or employers and buyers or processing plants and regulators; the basis is national fisheries and wildlife and maritime and safety and hygiene regulations and the vessel owner's or employer's operating procedures. | The objects are boats or vehicles and gear or traps and nets and navigation and communication and safety equipment, target species and catch or game, and permit and quota and legal size documents; the basis is national fisheries and wildlife and maritime and safety regulations and the vessel owner's or employer's operating procedures. |
| Core process | Departure or hunting preparation and checks → setting and operating gear or traps → harvesting catch and sorting and measuring → on-board or on-site processing and preservation | Centred on water or field harvesting work and catch or game handling and safety compliance, while also covering equipment maintenance and records and sales handover |
| Main outputs | Pre-departure check and weather judgement records, work position and gear status records, catch sorting and size and quota records, unloading and handover and sales records | Work and catch and permit and safety and maintenance records |
| Responsible party | Responsibility for crew or worker safety and catch handling and records in the current operation rests with you and the vessel owner or employer and the boat crew; matters involving vessel seaworthiness and crew qualifications and loading and navigation safety, rescue and abandoning ship and accident reporting, determination of fishing permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes, seafood hygiene and traceability, and wildlife protection and hunting and trap compliance must be handled by the master or vessel owner and the competent authority per law and procedure. | Responsibility for crew or worker safety and catch handling and records in the current operation rests with you and the vessel owner or employer and the boat crew |
| Authority and approval | When a situation requires going to sea in severe weather or working overloaded, when flooding or fire or loss of mechanical control or a person overboard occurs, when a work or handling decision beyond your authority must be made, or when there is a dispute over illegal fishing or hunting or wildlife protection or seafood hygiene, stop the action and report per the procedure of the vessel owner or master and the competent authority, and let the master or vessel owner and the competent authority decide. | When the vessel is unseaworthy or overloaded or conditions are insufficient in severe weather, when lifesaving and firefighting and communication equipment is missing or has failed, when a person is injured or falls overboard or becomes hypothermic, when fishing permits or quotas or closed seasons or legal sizes are in doubt, when catch hygiene or traceability records are untruthful, or when the work exceeds your authority or training, stop the relevant action and report per the procedure of the vessel owner or master and the competent authority. |
| Conclusion boundary | A single voyage or a single fishing season or a work indicator does not constitute a final conclusion about a person's ability; catch and safety outcomes are affected by weather and resources and equipment and the behaviour of others and external conditions | Workload is affected by fishing or hunting season and weather and sea state or ground conditions and permits and quotas and equipment status and market prices and crew attendance |
produces pre-departure check and weather judgement records
produces work position and gear status records
produces catch sorting and size and quota records
produces processing and preservation records
produces unloading and handover and sales records
produces maintenance and safety and compliance records
Before entering this occupation, verify item by item: the fisheries and wildlife and maritime permit and crew qualification and vessel certificate requirements of your country and region; the skills and safety training corresponding to the target work type (inshore or offshore fishing, inland fishing, aquatic gathering, hunting and trapping, wildlife control); the physical and swimming and seasickness and long offshore or field requirements of the work; the income volatility that comes from pay often being settled by catch share or piece rate and seasonally; and the safety and lifesaving and firefighting and hygiene and regulatory constraints.
Verify permit and qualification requirements
Verify safety and skills training
| Outputs support work such as deck and engine room and fuelling on transport or work vessels; this occupation outputs harvesting work and catch |
| Choose that direction if you prefer support roles on vessels and rotating voyages; choose this occupation if you prefer harvesting work and catch handling |
| Agricultural workers | Grow crops and feed and manage livestock or aquaculture | Outputs growing and feeding and managing terrestrial or aquatic organisms; this occupation outputs gathering wild resources | Choose that direction if you prefer farming and growing and field or pond-side management; choose this occupation if you prefer field harvesting work |
|---|
| Loggers | Fell and transport and initially process timber | Outputs felling and transporting and initially processing timber; this occupation outputs gathering aquatic and wild animals | Choose that direction if you prefer felling and skidding and timber work; choose this occupation if you prefer fishing or hunting and catch handling |
|---|
| Forest and conservation workers | Carry out silviculture and maintenance and patrol and data monitoring of forests and habitat | Outputs silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring of forests and habitat; this occupation outputs gathering and catching and hunting | Choose that direction if you prefer silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring; choose this occupation if you prefer gathering and catching and hunting work |
|---|
| First-line supervisors of agriculture, fishery and forestry workers | Arrange and supervise the work and safety of agriculture, fishery and forestry harvesting workers | Outputs leading and supervising agriculture, fishery and forestry harvesting workers and arranging work; this occupation outputs taking part in harvesting work yourself | Choose that direction if you prefer leading and supervising and arranging work; choose this occupation if you prefer taking part in harvesting work yourself |
|---|
All these directions relate to outdoor or water work and resource gathering, but their primary tasks and outputs differ; when comparing, start with four points: whether the primary output is catching or hunting or gathering wild animals and aquatic animals and processing the catch or game, or driving transport vessels carrying passengers and cargo, raising terrestrial or aquatic organisms, felling timber, maintaining forests and habitat, or leading and supervising harvesting workers.
Compare in the order of 'is the primary output catching or hunting or gathering wild animals and aquatic animals and processing the catch or game, or driving transport vessels carrying passengers and cargo, doing support work on board, farming or growing, felling timber, maintaining forests and habitat, or leading and supervising harvesting workers', then judge together with your adaptation to water or field work and irregular hours and physical load and safety risk.
Whether a model can complete a certain type of process step
Whether institutions and safety and cost permit it
Whether the position and responsibility structure changes
| Work area | Task | Current change | Human control point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Work and hauling | Work in the target waters or forest area per permits and quotas and safety rules and haul and sort the catch or game | Work position and catch data can be recorded with assistance, but on-site operation and hauling remain with people. | Carry out fishing or hunting or gathering work per work type and season and vessel owner or employer arrangements |
| Equipment operation and maintenance | Operate and maintain boats or vehicles and equipment and gear or traps per procedure and keep them serviceable and safe | Equipment data and maintenance logs can be assisted, but equipment status determination and repair remain the responsibility of people. | Operate and maintain boats or vehicles and navigation and fish finding and communication and gear or traps and safety equipment |
| Catch or game processing | Clean and grade and ice or freeze and initially process the catch or game per hygiene and preservation requirements | Processing and preservation records can be assisted, but processing quality and hygiene determination remain the responsibility of people. | Process and grade and ice or freeze or skin game on board or on site |
| Safety and environmental protection and anomaly handling | Comply with safety and lifesaving and firefighting and pollution prevention rules and handle or report equipment and personnel and pollution anomalies | Safety and emergency records can be assisted, but handling and rescue decisions remain the responsibility of people. | Work per safety and lifesaving and firefighting and pollution prevention requirements and handle anomalies |
| Unloading and handover and sale | After landing, unload and weigh and grade and hand over and sell or deliver for processing and record | Handover and sales data can be organised with assistance, but measurement and handover confirmation remain the responsibility of people. | Land and unload and weigh and hand over and sell or deliver for processing |
| Coordination and handover | Coordinate with the vessel owner or employer and crew and buyers or processing plants and the competent authority, and hand over unfinished matters and risk points | Communication and document tools can help gather information, but coordination and handover and escalation decisions remain the responsibility of people. | Coordinate with the vessel owner or employer and crew and buyers or processing plants and regulators and hand over unfinished matters and risk points |
| Records and declarations | Complete catch and permit and quota and safety and maintenance records and declarations per regulations and vessel owner procedures | Record and declaration drafts can be assisted, but truthful declaration and compliance responsibility remain the responsibility of people. | Take part in permit and quota and catch and safety and maintenance records and declarations |
The following evidence cards correspond respectively to international organisations' task exposure research, the official occupational definition and governance frameworks; read them according to their own research objects and limitations and do not merge them into a single conclusion.
The following are editorially proposed candidates for organising approved records; the occupational technical tractability, adoption or effects have not been measured, and navigation and fish finding systems are verified separately from generative AI.
AI primarily changesEditorial suggestion: summarise approved catch and quota records; weather data must be checked back against official validity periods and actual conditions
Human responsibility remainsWork safety judgement and saving lives and on-site handling remain with people
AI primarily changesEditorial suggestion: organise existing navigation and fish finding records; generated output cannot replace real instruments, sea state or navigation judgement
Human responsibility remainsVessel seaworthiness and equipment status determination and repair remain with people
AI primarily changesEditorial suggestion: trial approved catch, permit and maintenance record drafts and check them
Human responsibility remainsQuotas and legal sizes and regulatory declarations must still be checked and owned by people
When using AI to assist with information and record work in this occupation, first confirm the division of labour and the boundaries of authorisation:
First confirm the interfaces with safety and regulations and personal data, and judge which materials can be given to tools and which must be decided by qualified personnel and the master.
Restrict tools to permitted steps only, such as weather and sea state lookups, organising navigation and catch and quota records, and drafting equipment maintenance logs.
Qualified personnel check tool outputs against the actual vessel and equipment and catch situation, review deviations and record the reasons for human judgement.
Record catch and permit and safety materials per competent authority and vessel owner rules so the process is traceable; sensitive vessel and personnel and catch materials must not be submitted to non-compliant tools.
Responsibility for vessel safety and operations and saving lives rests with the master and vessel owner and you; tool outputs do not constitute navigation or safety or regulatory findings.
Giving vessel and personnel and catch materials to external tools may cause safety and privacy and commercial information risk.
Control: Handle materials per competent authority and vessel owner rules; sensitive content must not be submitted to external tools, and anomalies are reported per procedure.
Adopting tool-generated weather or navigation or catch judgements without verification may affect navigation and work safety.
Control: Qualified personnel check tool outputs against the actual sea state and equipment and catch situation and record the reasons for human judgement.
Over-reliance on tools weakening on-site observation and work and safety skills may affect operations and safety.
Control: Carry out actual work and safety training and drills to standard, with tools used only as an aid.
Taking risks in severe weather or equipment failure or crew injury conditions may cause casualties and loss of the vessel.
Control: Work strictly per safety procedures and the master's orders, and when conditions are not met, stop or return to port and report.
Untruthful catch and quota and legal size records may cause illegality and penalties and resource damage.
Control: Declare and record catch and quotas and sizes truthfully per fisheries and wildlife regulations, and report anomalies per procedure.
First verify the target work type and your country's permit and crew qualification and safety training requirements, then build up water and field safety and equipment operation and catch handling capability; do not look only at the catch and income side.
Standardise pre-departure checks, gear or trap setting, catch sorting and measuring, safety and lifesaving drills, and catch and permit records as routine actions, and when weather or equipment or personnel risk arises, ask per the vessel owner's or master's procedure first.
Use tools for weather and sea state lookups, navigation and fish finding, catch and quota records and equipment maintenance logs, while retaining responsibility for on-site judgement and work safety and catch handling.
First define the interfaces with the competent authority and buyers or processing plants and insurers, then decide which record and scheduling steps can introduce tools, keeping human confirmation and an audit trail.
Editorial analysis: trial summarising and drafting from approved records, measuring accuracy, time and rework; no measured evidence of overall enhancement, replacement or position structure change for this occupation was obtained.
Source: ILO Working Paper 96 (2023); O*NET 45-3031.00 definitionOriginal source ↗
It is recommended to learn the equipment and systems actually used in the target work; navigation equipment is not automatically AI, and tools cannot replace safety training and qualifications.
Source: O*NET 45-3031.00 definition; ILO Working Paper 96Original source ↗
Editorial suggestion: first assess approved catch, permit and maintenance records; no comparative measurement of the strength of task impact within the occupation was obtained.
Source: ILO Working Paper 96 (2023); O*NET definitionOriginal source ↗
The overall 2025—2035 projection is a decline of about 4%; no measurement of AI causing job gains or losses in this occupation was obtained. Resource or policy factors must be verified separately in the body text and definite causes cannot be inferred from the projection table.
Source: BLS employment projections (2025—2035); O*NET 45-3031.00Original source ↗
No. Tools can assist with weather and navigation and records, but vessel seaworthiness and work safety, hauling and processing catch, saving lives and regulatory declarations must be borne by trained and qualified personnel, and safety and compliance responsibility is not determined by tools.
Source: NIST AI Risk Management Framework; maritime and fisheries and wildlife regulations and vessel owner proceduresOriginal source ↗
Insufficient evidence: no measured evidence of a disappearance year for this occupation or of tools causing clerical change was obtained this round, and no commitment is made about tools taking over or the occupation continuing.
Source: ILO Working Paper 96 (2023); O*NET 45-3031.00 definitionOriginal source ↗
Learn three things first: one, water and field work and safety skills (lifesaving and firefighting and first aid, rope and mechanical operation, water and weather judgement); two, equipment operation and maintenance (boats or vehicles and navigation and fish finding and gear or traps); three, regulations and catch handling (permits and quotas and legal sizes, catch grading and icing and traceability).
Source: O*NET 45-3031.00; BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook; public descriptions of national fisheries and maritime authoritiesOriginal source ↗
The above are method-level judgements and evidence boundaries and do not represent a definite forecast of job numbers; employment and wage definitions are subject to the BLS employment projections and OEWS and the O*NET original text.
Insufficient evidence: verifiable income statistics for other regions and employment models (deep-sea fishing and inshore catching and inland water catching and aquaculture gathering and wildlife control and hunting guides) could not be obtained; differences between regions, work types and employment forms are large and must be verified position by position.
Insufficient evidence: no exact matching national income for this occupation in mainland China was obtained this round; industry and national averages are background only and are not substituted for personal monthly wages.
| Education background | Common position directions | Notes and verification suggestions |
|---|---|---|
| Verify education against the target work and jurisdiction | Crew and harvesting and work posts | No Chinese recruitment sample was obtained this round, so it cannot be asserted that junior high or high school is the majority starting point or that education requirements are lenient; the US education survey does not carry over as a Chinese threshold. |
| High school or secondary vocational school and above (vessel operation or aquaculture related major) | Vessel operation posts; aquaculture is an adjacent occupation | Individual crew qualifications and vessel certificates are verified separately; aquaculture technical posts are an adjacent direction and their conditions are not treated as the threshold for this catching / hunting occupation. |
| College diploma or bachelor's degree (fisheries or maritime or aquaculture related major) | Fisheries management and technical and management posts | Verify the specific education and experience for fisheries resource, regulatory and management positions separately; no uniform major threshold is presumed. |
| Crew qualifications and lifesaving and firefighting and water safety training | Work and safety management direction | Verify crew qualifications, vessel surveys, permits and training separately by jurisdiction, vessel, operating waters and duties; do not combine all certificates into one personal certificate. |
This page uses industry average wages ('agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery' urban non-private 74,424 yuan / year, 'manufacturing' non-private 113,594 yuan / year, 'wholesale and retail trade' non-private 135,749 yuan / year, 'transport, storage and postal services' non-private 133,981 yuan / year) and national urban non-private units 129,441 yuan / year and private units 71,590 yuan / year as background proxies; these figures cover multiple occupations and cannot substitute for this occupation's income.
The employing scenario for catching and farming and agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery service posts
The employing scenario for aquatic and food processing related posts
The employing scenario for aquatic product distribution and wholesale and retail posts
Editorial suggestion: trial organising approved catch, permit and maintenance records and measure error; no measurement of AI adoption, demand or income change for this occupation in China was obtained.
| Median (50%) | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); the occupational group wage is not passed off as this occupation's wage. | Official annual wage, not personal take-home pay | Occupational group (not this occupation): the agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group 2025 median annual wage is 36,630 US dollars (median hourly wage 17.61 US dollars), background only, and cannot substitute for this occupation's wage. |
|---|
| Highest 10% | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031), so the 90th percentile cannot be given. | Official annual wage, not personal take-home pay | Employment and growth (this occupation): about 28,200 people in 2025, a decline of about 4% over 2025—2035, and about 3,300 average annual openings. |
|---|
Pay · 10th percentile:Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.;Pay · 10th percentile | insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); source | BLS OEWS (no estimate for this occupation)
Pay · 25th percentile:Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.;Pay · 25th percentile | insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); source | BLS OEWS (no estimate for this occupation)
Pay · median:Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.;Pay · median | insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); the most recent wage data recorded in the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is May 2017 (median annual wage 28,530 US dollars) and is outdated; source | BLS OEWS and the Occupational Outlook Handbook
Pay · 75th percentile:Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.;Pay · 75th percentile | insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); source | BLS OEWS (no estimate for this occupation)
Pay · 90th percentile:Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.;Pay · 90th percentile | insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation (45-3031); source | BLS OEWS (no estimate for this occupation)
The median is the midpoint of the employee wage distribution within the same statistical period, not a starting wage.
The industry rows only show the definitions available on this page and cannot be used to infer personal wages or income.
The BLS OOH states that fishers may receive a catch share; this page obtained no comparative measurement of volatility far greater than the industry average and does not infer individual income.
Verify employed crew shares and the owner's net operating income separately; OEWS does not exclude all piece-rate or commission labour remuneration, and operating costs such as fuel and gear are verified separately.
| Industry | Wage median for this occupation within the industry | How to understand this value |
|---|---|---|
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting (OEWS / OOH industry definition) | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, the BLS did not provide industry-specific wages for this occupation; this page does not use third-party estimates. | The current main O*NET industry matches the 2025 projection; that industry group wage is background only and cannot replace the 45-3031 occupational wage. |
| Fishing (OEWS industry definition) | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, the BLS did not provide industry-specific wages for this occupation; this page does not use third-party estimates. | Fishing is the typical employing scenario for this occupation; the specific median could not be obtained because of OEWS data limitations. |
| Hunting and trapping and wildlife control (related industry) | Insufficient evidence: because of data limitations, the BLS did not provide industry-specific wages for this occupation; this page does not use third-party estimates. | Hunting and trapping and wildlife control are the typical work types for this occupation; the specific median could not be obtained. |
| Occupational group (reference, not this occupation) | 36,630 US dollars / year (occupational group proxy) | This value is the 2025 median annual wage of the 'agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group' (median hourly wage 17.61 US dollars, O*NET / BLS) and is used to describe that group's level; it is not the wage for this occupation (45-3031) and is not used as such on this page. |
There is no current wage estimate for this occupation, and income is often settled by catch share or piece rate and by voyage
The current OEWS wage estimate for this occupation is unavailable; no occupation and industry matching wage values were obtained this round, and it is not inferred that all other sources are non-existent.
The preparation level is Job Zone 1-2 (SVP below 6.0)
Employment · employment size | about 28,200 people (2025, BLS occupational projections); definition | the projections include employees, the self-employed and unpaid family workers and are not the same as the OEWS wage and salary sample.
Employment · growth rate | decline of about 4% (Decline, 2025—2035); BLS projections | not the probability of an individual obtaining a position.
Employment · projected job openings | about 3,300 per year (2025—2035 projection annual average); BLS projections | all from replacement needs and not equal to net new positions.
O*NET occupational interest baseline
Work and communication approaches can be trained and need not be limited by personality labels.Assessment results only describe preferences and do not represent ability; interest codes cannot replace the crew qualifications and safety training and equipment operation and catch handling experience required.
The interest code comes from the official O*NET profile (marked RC, that is Realistic and Conventional) and only describes activity preferences; it does not represent ability, recruitment, or conclusions about work quality.
Which Holland interest type is closer to fishing and hunting workers?
The interest code is RC (Realistic—Conventional): it corresponds to doing physical and equipment-operating work outdoors and on the water or in the field, and working per permit and quota and safety and record rules. Interest codes only describe activity preferences and do not represent talent, recruitment, or conclusions about work quality.
Do not use it this way: It is suggested to verify irregular hours, water or field conditions, physical load and safety responsibility, and the permit, settlement and record rules.
Test my Holland career interestsWhich Big Five traits are more relevant to this job?
Editorial suggestion: observe preferences using equipment checks, record verification and team communication samples; this page has not verified the Big Five occupational predictive validity, and traits are not set as recruitment criteria.
Do not use it this way: Personality traits cannot replace water and field work and safety skills, equipment operation and maintenance knowledge, or catch handling and regulatory awareness.
View my Big Five personality traitsCan MBTI be used to judge whether I am suited to fishing and hunting workers?
MBTI can be used for preference reflection, but this page has not verified its predictive validity for recruitment or work performance in this occupation.
Do not use it this way: Do not judge suitability for the position by personality labels; verify training, qualifications and work samples against the specific work.
Understand my MBTI preferencesCan the Enneagram tell me whether I am suited to this occupation?
The Enneagram is a self-reflection tool. The more practical questions for this job are: whether you can maintain judgement in severe weather and equipment failure and personnel emergencies and long periods offshore or in the field, and whether you can uphold operating and record requirements per safety and regulatory rules.
Do not use it this way: If you treat a single low catch or one breakdown or one spell of severe weather as a negation of your personal worth, working in this occupation over the long term will be very difficult.
Explore my Enneagram patternsIf I am not good at maths, can I be a fishing and hunting worker?
This page has not verified the occupational predictive validity of cognitive tests; it is suggested to observe equipment, record and communication samples, without inferring direct correspondence or complete irrelevance.
Do not use it this way: Treating test scores as a recruitment or qualification threshold is not valid; crew qualifications and permits are subject to the competent authority's assessment.
Understand my intelligence and reasoning performanceDo fishing and hunting workers need high emotional intelligence?
Emotional intelligence tests measure emotion recognition and management and can be used to understand your reactions in severe weather, equipment failure, personnel emergencies and the confined environment on board. They are not occupational entry standards and cannot replace safety training and real voyage and work experience.
Do not use it this way: Test results cannot replace water and field work skills, equipment operation and maintenance knowledge, or safety and regulatory awareness.
Understand my emotional intelligence abilitiesFits better when: Has vessel driving and navigation and passenger and cargo carriage and safety management capability; can obtain the corresponding vessel certificates and crew qualifications
Watch for: If you do not accept shifts, navigation safety and passenger and cargo responsibility, first assess what this direction requires.
Explore related career: Water transport occupations directionFits better when: Has deck and mooring and engine room and fuelling and watchkeeping operating capability; can work per vessel procedures
Watch for: This direction is not recommended if you are unwilling to take on long voyages and shifts and engine room work and physical load.
Explore related career: Sailors and ship fuelers directionFits better when: Has growing and feeding and management and pond-side or field work capability; can work per aquaculture or agronomic procedures
Watch for: This direction is not recommended if you are unwilling to take on seasonal field or pond-side physical labour and farming risk.
Explore related career: Agricultural workers directionFits better when: Has felling and transport and timber processing and machinery operation capability; can work per safety procedures
Watch for: This direction is not recommended if you are unwilling to take on high-risk timber machinery work and physical load.
Explore related career: Loggers directionFits better when: Has water and field work and equipment operation and catch handling and safety and regulatory awareness capability; can pass crew qualification and safety training and medical examination requirements
Watch for: This occupation is not recommended if you do not accept irregular hours and being far from land or in the field and physical load and safety risk, or do not accept regulatory and quota constraints.
Explore related career: This occupation (fishing and hunting workers) directionFits better when: Has silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring and data recording capability; can carry out field work per procedure
Watch for: This direction is not recommended if you prefer gathering and catching work and are unwilling to work long term in silviculture and maintenance and monitoring.
Explore related career: Forest and conservation workers directionEditorial suggestion: observe pre-departure checks, records and handover samples within approved scope; this is not a verified most-direct predictor.
Editorial suggestion: work experience must be under mentorship by qualified personnel and within lawfully authorised scope, and you cannot take part in high-risk voyages or hunting on your own; its cost and predictive validity were not verified.
If you are unsure about the direction, you can start with a frontline post as a crew member or in seafood processing or aquaculture or forest conservation, and then gradually move into catching and hunting and work-supervision directions.
The BLS OOH states that US fishers may be paid by catch share; China and the specific crew contract are verified separately, and the vessel owner's costs are not automatically deducted from each crew member's pay.
O*NET lists this occupation as Job Zone 1-2 (little to some preparation needed, SVP below 6.0); interest code RC; the education survey is about 45% below high school, 30% high school or equivalent and 15% some college with no degree; the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook lists no formal educational credential and moderate-term on-the-job training; this occupation is projected to decline by about 4% over 2025—2035, with about 3,300 average annual openings; because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.
Verify qualifications, experience, safety training and medical examination by target country, vessel and duties; no uniform threshold for most positions was verified this round.
Before entering this occupation, confirm your own swimming ability and susceptibility to seasickness and physical fitness and health, and the scope of lifesaving and firefighting and first aid training, so that you do not carry out high-risk water or field work without training.
Whether you can work in this occupation over the long term largely depends on your adaptation to irregular hours and being far from land or in the field and physical load and severe weather and safety risk, your adherence to permit and quota and safety systems, and your equipment operation and teamwork ability, rather than a single catch volume.
Serving crew and workers: this occupation is mainly built on accumulated voyage and work and equipment experience, and the scope of responsibility changes with work type and position and qualification adjustments.
Students and career changers: first verify the target work type (inshore or offshore fishing, inland fishing, aquatic gathering, hunting and trapping, wildlife control) and your country's permit and crew qualification and safety training requirements, then assess whether the direction matches your personal circumstances.
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
Typical scenario:Handling entanglement by hand while equipment is running or bypassing guards
Roles most affected:Equipment and gear failure or rope and mechanical injuries
Possible consequence:May cause crushing injuries and entanglement and loss of equipment control and interrupted operations
How to reduce risk:Check and maintain equipment and gear per procedure and set up guards and shutdown procedures, handling anomalies per procedure
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
Typical scenario:Carrying out high-risk work without wearing a life jacket or organising drills
Roles most affected:A person overboard or injured or hypothermic
Possible consequence:May cause drowning and hypothermia and casualty accidents
How to reduce risk:Equip lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and communication equipment and organise drills, call for help promptly and carry out rescue per procedure
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
Typical scenario:Exceeding quotas or taking individuals below the legal size in order to increase the catch
Roles most affected:Violation of fishing or hunting permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes
Possible consequence:May cause illegality and penalties and resource damage and loss of trust
How to reduce risk:Work per permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes and record and declare truthfully
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
Typical scenario:Omitting icing and traceability records to save effort or disposing of protected species improperly
Roles most affected:Catch hygiene and traceability and wildlife protection
Possible consequence:May cause food safety and traceability failure and ecological damage
How to reduce risk:Process and preserve per hygiene and traceability requirements and record truthfully, and comply with wildlife protection rules
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
Typical scenario:Leaving the vessel or settling the unloaded cargo without confirming the handover contents
Roles most affected:Unclear handover and declaration with the vessel owner or buyers or the competent authority
Possible consequence:May lead to unclear catch and costs and permit documents and unclear responsibility
How to reduce risk:Per the handover procedure, transfer catch and equipment and permits and risk points item by item and explain anomalies in writing
Evidence:O*NET 45-3031.00 detailed tasks and work activities · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Fishing and Hunting Workers
| Entry direction | Starter tasks | Evidence you can prepare | Work you can show without experience | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deckhand and work assistant | Takes part in pre-departure checks and gear operation and catch sorting and cleaning under mentorship | Crew qualification and safety training records, work and duty records | A set of fictional pre-departure check and catch handling key points | Start from an execution post and build water and equipment and catch experience |
| Fishing and hunting and gathering worker (entry into this occupation) | Takes part in setting and operating gear or traps and hauling and sorting and processing the catch or game | Work and catch and safety records, boat or vehicle operation training records | A set of fictional work and catch sorting and safety key points | Need to build equipment operation and safety and regulatory capability |
| Master or work supervisor (this occupation's direction) | Organises departure or hunting and work arrangements and safety supervision and catch handover | Voyage and work and safety and catch and handover records | A set of fictional voyage plan and safety and catch handover key points | Need to build voyage and work organisation and safety management and personnel coordination capability |
| Seafood processing and handling post | Grades and cleans and ices or freezes and initially processes the catch at the processing or handling stage | Processing and hygiene and traceability records, processing operation training records | A set of fictional catch grading and icing and traceability key points | Need to build hygiene and traceability and processing equipment operation capability |
| Forest and conservation worker post | Carry out silviculture and maintenance and patrol and data monitoring of forests and habitat | Silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring records, field work training records | A set of fictional silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring key points | Need to build silviculture and monitoring and field work capability |
Verify education (in O*NET this occupation is Job Zone 1-2, SVP below 6.0; the education survey is about 45% below high school, 30% high school or equivalent and 15% some college with no degree; the BLS lists no formal educational credential) and the relevant water or field work and equipment operation experience requirements, and record the notice date and whether recruitment is still open.
Distinguish 'meeting education and experience standards' from 'being able to independently take on voyage and work and safety responsibility'; both must be considered.
Verify crew qualifications and vessel certificates and medical examination, lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and water safety training, and fishing or hunting permit and quota and hygiene requirements.
Record the requirement and its validity period; re-verify when changing work type or employer.
Job Zone 1-2 (SVP below 6.0); interest code RC (Realistic, Conventional); the work context shows outdoors exposed to all weather every day 89%, more than 40 hours a week 80%, decision freedom very high 60%, continuous contact with others 45%, work schedule seasonal 57%, wearing common protective equipment every day 58%.
The preparation level describes the occupation as a whole and does not represent a specific employer's or competent authority's recruitment and qualification standards; because of data limitations, BLS OEWS does not provide current wage estimates for this occupation.
Verify boats or vehicles and navigation and fish finding and communication and lifesaving and firefighting equipment, nets and pots and lines and traps, rope and winch and lifting and washing and grading and icing or freezing equipment, and weather and sea state and positioning and record tools.
Provide the target species and waters or forest area, available boats or vehicles and gear or traps and navigation and communication and safety equipment, weather and sea state or ground condition forecasts, permits and quotas and legal size rules, crew on board and shifts and safety equipment, expected landing or knock-off time, and one equipment failure or sudden weather change or crew injury situation, as the input for this exercise.
Mark the unit and missing items and state that the material is entirely fictional.
List the missing information that may affect judgement.
State that the exercise uses fictional material and does not represent any real boat position, fishing ground or event.
Checkable outputs: pre-departure checks and weather judgement, work area and gear or trap setting, hauling and sorting and size and quota checks, on-board processing and preservation, landing and unloading and handover, safety and lifesaving and rescue arrangements, and the actions that must be stopped and reported when beyond your own authority or safety conditions.
State the boundary: legal conclusions on vessel safety and navigation and rescue and regulations must be made by the master and vessel owner and the competent authority.
Write out pre-departure checks and weather judgement, work and gear or trap setting, hauling and sorting and size and quota checks, catch processing and preservation, and safety and lifesaving arrangement key points, and state which actions are beyond your duties or safety conditions.
Exercise output: an actionable set of key points for work and safety and catch handling.
List the education, experience, crew qualification and vessel certificate and medical examination and physical fitness and lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and water safety training and permit requirements in the target notice item by item in a comparison table.
Mark which items are met, which need to be completed and which need verification.
Choose a fictional work or voyage task and write out pre-departure checks and weather judgement, work and gear or trap setting, hauling and sorting and quota checks, catch processing and preservation, and safety and rescue and records and handover key points.
Demonstrate the ability to make others understand the organisation of water or field work and the safety approach.
Use one page to record pre-departure check and weather judgement key points, work and catch and quota and size records, equipment and safety and lifesaving checks, and anomaly and handover matters.
Mark the sources relied on and the parts that could not be verified.
Describe the navigation and fish finding and weather and catch and permit record systems used and how they are verified, so that others can reproduce the inspection process.
Mark which steps used digital tools and were manually reviewed.
| Situation | Questions you may be asked | Evidence you can present | Conclusions that cannot be inferred from this |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recruitment and interview | Whether you can explain the work scope and safety and regulatory requirements of this occupation. | Verify whether you can explain pre-departure checks and work and catch handling and safety key points clearly and present training or internship records. | Whether you are recruited is judged by the employer per the prescribed procedure, not determined by you. |
| Qualification and compliance verification | Whether you meet the position's crew qualification and vessel certificate and medical examination and safety training and permit conditions. |
Excerpt the definition and main tasks, and write out the key differences between this occupation and adjacent directions (water transport, crew, logging, agriculture, forest conservation).
Write out seaworthiness and equipment and safety equipment check items, and the conditions for weather and sea state judgement and the decision to go to sea or return.
Write out work area selection, gear or trap setting and operation, and hauling and risk handling and personnel safety key points.
Write out catch sorting and measuring and quota checks, and icing or freezing and grading and hygiene and traceability key points.
Write out lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and communication arrangements, and the anomaly stop-and-report path and landing handover and record matters.
| Qualification / preparation item | Who it applies to | Effect on this occupation | Whether generally required | How to obtain | Approximate duration | Boundary statement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Education preparation (verify jurisdiction and work separately) | Target work and position | Typical entry via the US OOH requires no formal educational credential; China is verified separately | Verify against the target notice and jurisdiction | General education or equivalent | Per individual progress |
Typical scope:Can complete pre-departure checks and catch handling to standard and record them
Readiness evidence:Work and duty records
Credential boundary:Deckhand and work assistant
Next moves:Takes part in pre-departure checks and gear operation and catch sorting and cleaning under mentorship
Typical scope:Can independently complete work and catch handling and record it
Readiness evidence:Work and catch and safety records
Credential boundary:Fishing and hunting and gathering worker (entry into this occupation)
Next moves:Takes part in setting and operating gear or traps and hauling and sorting and processing the catch or game
Typical scope:Can operate and maintain boats or vehicles and equipment per procedure
Readiness evidence:Operation and maintenance records
Credential boundary:Boat or vehicle operation post
Next moves:Operates boats or vehicles and navigation and fish finding equipment and maintains them as required
Typical scope:Can organise safety and lifesaving drills and inspect equipment
Readiness evidence:Safety and drill and inspection records
Credential boundary:Safety and lifesaving post
Next moves:Organises safety and lifesaving and firefighting drills and checks safety equipment and emergency communication
Typical scope:Can process and preserve catch per hygiene and traceability requirements
Readiness evidence:Processing and hygiene and traceability records
Credential boundary:Catch handling and processing post
Next moves:Grades and cleans and ices or freezes and initially processes the catch and records traceability
Typical scope:Can organise voyages or work and control safety and catch handover
Readiness evidence:Voyage and work and safety and handover records
Credential boundary:Master or work supervisor (this occupation's direction)
Next moves:Organises departure or hunting and work arrangements and safety supervision and catch handover
Typical scope:Can maintain equipment and gear per procedure and handle common faults
Readiness evidence:Equipment and gear maintenance records
Credential boundary:Equipment and gear maintenance post
Next moves:Inspects and maintains engines and gear or traps and nets per procedure and handles faults
Typical scope:Can take part in resource and aquaculture and habitat management and technical work
Readiness evidence:Resource and aquaculture and habitat records
Credential boundary:Fisheries or wildlife management and technical post
Next moves:Takes part in fisheries or wildlife resource and aquaculture and habitat management and technical work
Typical scope:Can manage safety and compliance and drive improvement
Readiness evidence:Safety and compliance and improvement records
Credential boundary:Safety management and compliance post
Next moves:Manages safety and lifesaving and firefighting and pollution prevention and compliance and improvement
Typical scope:Can coordinate the operations and costs and sales of a fleet or operation
Readiness evidence:Operations and cost and sales records
Credential boundary:Fleet or operations post
Coordinates the personnel and sailing schedules and costs and sales and compliance of a fleet or operation
Can complete pre-departure checks and gear operation and catch sorting and cleaning to standard
Can carry out work per permits and quotas and safety rules and handle common equipment and catch and personnel anomalies
Can take on a specialisation (water or equipment or processing or safety) within the scope of authority and mentor new staff
Can organise departure or hunting and work arrangements and safety supervision and catch handover
Does not establish:A projection is not an actual outcome, nor does it represent the recruitment volume of a particular region or work type
United States · Fishing and Hunting Workers(45-3031.00)
About 28,200 people (2025); about 3,300 average annual openings (2025—2035)
Employment size
Occupational employment projections include employees, the self-employed and unpaid family work; they are not the same as the OEWS wage and salary sample.
Does not establish:Size and openings are not the same indicator; openings are the annual average over the projection period and include replacement needs
Mainland China · Agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery; manufacturing; wholesale and retail trade (industry categories)
Agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry and fishery non-private 74,424 yuan / year; manufacturing non-private 113,594 yuan / year; wholesale and retail trade non-private 135,749 yuan / year; transport, storage and postal services non-private 133,981 yuan / year; national non-private 129,441 and private 71,590 yuan / year
Industry wage (industry proxy)
National Bureau of Statistics data are pre-tax annual average wages of employed persons in urban units; the wage total includes labour remuneration per statistical rules and cannot be summarised as excluding all bonuses, allowances or overtime pay. National, industry and job group averages cannot replace an individual's income in this occupation or a specific employment contract quote.
Does not establish:Industry labour remuneration cannot uniformly exclude piece rate or shares; employed wages are kept separate from self-employment profit and operating costs.
These are capability relationships, not automatic promotions or credential waivers.
Transfers:Water transport occupations; an adjacent direction, moving from catching and gathering to water transport work. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build vessel driving and navigation and passenger and cargo carriage and safety management capability
View career profileTransfers:Sailors and ship fuelers; an adjacent direction, moving from harvesting work to vessel support positions. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build deck and mooring and engine room and fuelling and watchkeeping operating capability
View career profileTransfers:Agricultural workers; an adjacent direction, moving from catching and gathering to agriculture and aquaculture work. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build growing and feeding and management and pond-side or field work capability
View career profileTransfers:Loggers; an adjacent direction, moving from harvesting work to timber felling work. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build felling and transport and timber processing and machinery operation capability
View career profileTransfers:This occupation (fishing and hunting workers); this page's direction, catching or hunting or gathering and catch handling. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build water and field work and equipment operation and catch handling and safety and regulatory capability
View career profileTransfers:First-line supervisors of agriculture, fishery and forestry workers; an adjacent direction, moving from a work post to leading and supervising harvesting workers. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build agriculture, fishery and forestry harvesting work arrangement and supervision and safety management capability
View career profileTransfers:Forest and conservation workers; an adjacent direction, moving from harvesting work to forest and habitat maintenance. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring and data recording capability
View career profileTransfers:Slaughterers and meat cutters; an adjacent direction, moving from harvesting work to meat and seafood cutting and processing. This is editorial judgement only; qualifications are verified by target jurisdiction and work.
Build next:Need to build cutting and processing and hygiene and traceability operating capability
View career profileThe focus of responsibility and the outputs differ: this occupation's main outputs are catching or hunting or trapping or gathering wild animals and aquatic animals and plants and processing the catch or game; water transport occupations and sailors and ship fuelers output driving and maintaining transport vessels and carrying passengers and cargo or providing on-board support; agricultural workers and farm and ranch and aquaculture workers output growing and feeding and managing terrestrial or aquatic organisms; loggers output felling and transporting and initially processing timber; forest and conservation workers output silviculture and maintenance and patrol monitoring of forests and habitat (without catching or hunting work); slaughtering and meat cutting and seafood processing workers output cutting and packing in processing facilities. The gathering and processing of this occupation is limited to taking part in water or field work yourself.
US O*NET-SOC 45-3031.00 'Fishing and Hunting Workers': interest code RC (Realistic and Conventional), in Job Zone 1-2 (little to some preparation needed, SVP below 6.0); the education survey is about 45% below high school, 30% high school or equivalent and 15% some college with no degree; the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook lists no formal educational credential and moderate-term on-the-job training. Employment, growth and openings use the BLS employment projections definition: 2025 employment of about 28,200 people, a decline of about 4% over 2025—2035, and about 3,300 average annual openings (all from replacement needs). On wages, the US Department of Labor and the BLS state clearly that OEWS does not provide wage estimates for 45-3031 because of data limitations (the wage column of the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is marked unavailable, the most recent being a median annual wage of 28,530 US dollars in May 2017), so this page does not provide this occupation's wage, nor does it pass off the median wage of the 'agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group' as such.
O*NET lists this occupation as Job Zone 1-2 (little to some preparation needed, SVP below 6.0). The work context shows: outdoors exposed to all weather every day 89%; working more than 40 hours a week 80%; face-to-face discussions every day 58%; decision freedom very high 60%; continuous contact with others 45%; work schedule seasonal (only during certain seasons of the year) 57%; wearing common protective or safety equipment every day 58%; exposure to minor burns or cuts or bites or stings every day 45%. The work environment varies with region and waters or land and the species sought, and work is often carried out under hazardous conditions that may cause injury or death.
A more accurate judgement is that weather and sea state lookups, navigation and positioning and fish finding, organising catch and quota and permit records, and equipment maintenance logs will be assisted by tools, and the occupation as a whole will mainly be enhanced; work safety judgement, saving lives, catch handling and regulatory declarations will still be borne by trained and qualified personnel. The ILO 2023 study shows that task exposure varies greatly across occupations, with clerical task exposure highest, while physical and on-site gathering and transport work is limited in overall replacement, and technical feasibility does not mean institutional adoption, so the conclusion is that the way information and equipment support is used will change, not that the occupation will be wholly replaced.
The wage for this occupation is not provided by BLS OEWS: the US Department of Labor and the BLS state clearly that because of data limitations OEWS does not provide wage estimates for 45-3031, and the wage column of the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook is marked unavailable (the most recent being a median annual wage of 28,530 US dollars in May 2017, which is outdated). This page therefore does not provide wage percentiles or a median for this occupation, nor does it pass off the 'agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group' 2025 median annual wage of 36,630 US dollars as this occupation's wage. Income in this occupation is often settled by catch share or piece rate and by voyage or season and after deducting costs such as fuel and gear and crew wages, and fluctuates widely.
O*NET lists this occupation as Job Zone 1-2 (SVP below 6.0); the education survey is about 45% below high school, 30% high school or equivalent and 15% some college with no degree; the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook lists no formal educational credential and moderate-term on-the-job training, usually learned on the job. Most positions also require water and field work capability and equipment operation and catch handling experience, and may require crew qualifications and vessel certificates and medical examination and lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and water safety training and fishing or hunting permits. Specific standards are subject to the competent authority's and employer's regulations.
In the United States, operating vessels or taking on navigational positions may require a merchant mariner credential issued by the US Coast Guard, fishing or hunting work requires the corresponding permits and quotas, and safety and hygiene and wildlife protection rules must be complied with; in mainland China, fishing work requires a fishing permit and compliance with closed seasons and quotas, vessel operation requires the corresponding crew qualifications, and catch handling must meet food safety and traceability requirements. These requirements vary by country and region and work type and must be verified against the competent authority's original text; this page does not provide maritime or legal advice, nor does it equate certification and training completion with being able to take on master or safety decisions or major work responsibility.
The main risks centre on working and navigating in severe weather or sea states, equipment and gear failure and rope and mechanical injuries, a person overboard or injured or hypothermic, violation of fishing or hunting permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes, catch hygiene and traceability and wildlife protection, and unclear handover and declaration with the vessel owner or buyers or the competent authority. Boundaries: vessel seaworthiness and navigation decisions, rescue and abandoning ship and accident reporting, determination of permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes, and catch hygiene and traceability and wildlife disposition must be carried out by the master and vessel owner and the competent authority per law and procedure; this page only suggests directions to check.
US definition (BLS employment projections): 2025 employment of about 28,200 people, a projected decline of about 4% over 2025—2035, and about 3,300 average annual openings (all from replacement needs); the wage is not provided by OEWS. Mainland China has not established occupational wage statistics precisely corresponding to this occupation, and industry averages serve only as background proxies; employment and demand are more affected by resources and policy and markets and recreational hunting trends. Common transition directions include water transport occupations, sailors and ship fuelers, agricultural workers, loggers, first-line supervisors of agriculture, fishery and forestry workers, forest and conservation workers, slaughterers and meat cutters, and fisheries or wildlife management and technical directions; before transitioning, verify the qualification and training requirements of the target position.
FermatMind career content research process
2026-10-11
Sources and fact register for this page (the O*NET 45-3031.00 occupational profile and detailed information, the BLS employment projections (2025—2035) and Occupational Outlook Handbook, the National Bureau of Statistics 2025 industry category average wages, and task and governance materials such as ILO Working Paper 96 (2023) and NIST AI RMF 1.0).
Limitations:US occupational materials do not automatically imply mainland China practice licences, crew qualifications or employer requirements.
Limitations:Certification entries are not a substitute for local licences, crew qualifications or independent work authority.
Limitations:Projected increments or average annual openings must not be interpreted as personal income or a guarantee of recruitment.
Limitations:The occupational group (the agriculture, forestry and fishing occupational group) or third-party data must not be substituted for this occupation's wage.
Limitations:The exact occupational wage gap for mainland China remains open, and industry proxies are not passed off as occupational wages.
Limitations:Not an external occupational fact source and does not replace official statistics or jurisdictional rules.
Limitations:Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
This round is the nine-module author revision and awaits independent review. The current 45-3031 is broader than the former 45-3011; RC, JobZone1—2, the education split of 45% / 30% / 15% and the 2025—2035 employment of 28200 / decline of 4% / 3300 openings remain visible. The OOH current occupational wage gap and the 2017 wage of 28530 are retained, and the group figure of 36630 is not used as a substitute; the group is background only. Injury context exposure is not written as an incidence rate. Employment includes the self-employed and unpaid family work; crew pay and vessel owner costs are kept separate, and the NBS cannot uniformly exclude shares and piece rates. Crew qualifications and vessel certificates are kept separate, and a local ILO link was restored to 2023WP96. This occupation's wage and recruitment sample in China, complete jurisdictional qualifications and durations, AI effects and test validity were not obtained; Hero / FAQ and shared sources still have protected conflicts. No HTML, independent review, Git or publishing.
MBTI (English) · Big Five (English) · MBTI (Chinese) · Big Five (Chinese)
Verify work authority and stop conditions
Verify schedule and seasonal arrangements
Verify record and declaration requirements
Verify pay and settlement composition
List the actual use scenarios and safety and regulatory requirements; do not substitute a tool list for water and field work and catch handling and safety knowledge.
First complete pre-departure checks and weather judgement, then organise work and gear setting by target species and waters or forest area, then haul and sort and process and preserve the catch, and finally return safely and land and unload and hand over and record.
Keep unknown any unconfirmable seaworthiness conditions or permits or quotas or personnel emergencies and ask the master and vessel owner and the competent authority to confirm, rather than handling it on experience alone.
State that the reference approach is only an example and not the only correct method.
This exercise does not constitute maritime or safety or legal conclusions; vessel seaworthiness and navigation decisions, rescue and abandoning ship and accident reporting, determination of permits and quotas and closed seasons and legal sizes, and catch hygiene and traceability and wildlife disposition are carried out by the master and vessel owner and the competent authority per law and procedure.
| Passing qualification verification does not mean you can independently take on navigation decisions or saving lives or major work responsibility. |
| Scenario exercise | Whether you can complete pre-departure checks and work and catch handling and records per safety and regulatory requirements. | Use work and catch and safety and record samples to demonstrate execution capability. | A single capability does not equal being able to independently take on the duties of master or work supervisor. |
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| Voyage and probation | Whether you can complete work and catch handling and safety and records per plan and handle routine anomalies. | Use voyage and work and catch and handover records to demonstrate reliability. | Meeting targets does not replace the navigation and safety and regulatory decisions and responsibility of the master and vessel owner and the competent authority. |
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Ask an experienced master or work supervisor or safety officer to point out omissions in the pre-departure check and work and catch handling steps and record the feedback.
Write down whether you are willing to continue, what you need to build, and which decisions cannot be made by you.
| Individual crew qualifications and vessel certificates (the objects are separate) | Operating vessels or taking on navigational positions (depending on work type) | Meets vessel operation and seaworthiness and crew qualification requirements | Depends on work type and vessel size requirements | Individual training / examination and vessel survey / certification are verified separately per competent authority procedure | Verify per actual training, assessment or survey arrangements; no uniform duration verified | Being certified does not equal being able to independently take on master or navigation decision responsibility |
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| Lifesaving and firefighting and first aid and water safety training | All water or field work positions | Meets the basic requirements of work safety and emergency response | Verify by jurisdiction, work type and duties | Organised and assessed by the competent authority or training institutions | Verify per actual training, assessment or survey arrangements; no uniform duration verified | Training does not equal a substitute for the safety decisions of the master and the competent authority |
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| Fishing or hunting permit and quotas | Carrying out fishing or hunting work | Meets lawful work and quota and legal size requirements | Verify by jurisdiction, work type and duties | Apply to the fisheries or wildlife competent authority | Depends on the competent authority | A permit does not exempt you from safety and hygiene and resource protection responsibility |
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| Medical examination and physical fitness requirements | Most work and navigational positions | Meets the entry conditions for work and navigational positions | Depends on position and employer and competent authority requirements | Handled by the employer or competent authority per procedure | Depends on procedure | Passing the medical examination does not equal having sustained competence |
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| Catch hygiene and traceability training | Positions in contact with catch handling and processing and distribution | Meets food safety and traceability regulatory requirements | Depends on the position's duty requirements | Training and assessment organised by the competent authority or the enterprise | Verify per actual training, assessment or survey arrangements; no uniform duration verified | Training does not exempt you from food safety and traceability responsibility |
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Typical scope:Can carry out resource monitoring and permit and compliance checks
Readiness evidence:Monitoring and permit and compliance records
Credential boundary:Resource and permit and compliance post
Next moves:Assists with resource and catch and quota data monitoring and permit and compliance checks
Typical scope:Can coordinate the operations and compliance of a fishery enterprise or cooperative
Readiness evidence:Enterprise and cooperative management and budget records
Credential boundary:Fishery enterprise and cooperative management post
Next moves:Coordinates the resources and personnel and budget and market and compliance of a fishery enterprise or cooperative