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The Worst Jobs of 2013
USINFO | 2013-08-05 17:36
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 1. Newspaper Reporter
BLS National Salary Median:
$36,000
Projected Job Growth:
-6%
Jobs Rated Score:
1120
A job that has lost its luster dramatically over the past five years is expected to plummet even further by 2020. Paul Gillin says, “the print model is not sustainable. It will probably be gone within the next 10 years.”
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 2. Lumberjack
BLS National Salary Median:
$32,870
Projected Job Growth:
4%
Jobs Rated Score:
1117
The inherent danger of working with heavy machinery in remote locations, coupled with low pay and poor job prospects, ranks lumberjack as one of the worst jobs of 2013.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 3. Enlisted Military Personnel
BLS National Salary Median:
$41,998 (E-7, 8+ years experience)
Projected Job Growth:
Varies
Jobs Rated Score:
1009
Enlisted military personnel is the most stressful job of 2013, as the men and women who volunteer in the Armed Forces are routinely placed in dangerous situations. And as the military draws down, fewer soldiers will be needed.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 4. Actor
BLS National Salary Median:
$17.44/hour
Projected Job Growth:
4%
Jobs Rated Score:
995
Earning a full-time wage as an actor is one of the most difficult career paths one can pursue. Competition is fierce and earnings are typically paltry unless you are one of the lucky fraction-of-a-few to break into the big time. The Screen Actors Guilde-American Federation of Trad and Radio Artists [SAG-AFTRA] has membership in excess of 160,000 – many of these are bit players at best. BLS estimates just 66,500 work in the field full-time.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 5. Oil Rig Worker
BLS National Salary Median:
$37,640
Projected Job Growth:
8%
Jobs Rated Score:
979
Working on an oil rig is risky. Few jobs are as isolated, requiring long hours spent on rigs often located at sea or in fields far from major cities. And while fracking is providing new opportunities in the field, sustainable energy’s growth will pose long-term sustainability challenges to the oil rig worker’s job market. Solar panel installation, for example, skyrocketed by 76% in 2012.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 6. Dairy Farmer
BLS National Salary Median:
$60,750
Projected Job Growth:
-8%
Jobs Rated Score:
976
A dairy farmer provides a necessary service to food consumers, but the work is especially challenging. Larger farms streamline production, which forces smaller farms out of business and results in an anticipated 8% decline in the profession by 2020.
Those remaining in the field are tasked with caring for dozens, hundreds, even thousands of animals. All those cows can make for a physically unpleasant and possibly dangerous work environment.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 7. Meter Reader
BLS National Salary Median:
$36,400
Projected Job Growth:
-10%
Jobs Rated Score:
975
An isolated and often thankless career, meter reader is also one of the fastest declining professions due to advancements in remote reading.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 8. Mail Carrier
BLS National Salary Median:
$53,090
Projected Job Growth:
-26%
Jobs Rated Score:
972
What people used to convey in a greeting card, they now express in a Facebook wall post. What was once penned on paper and sent through the mail is now transmitted instantaneously over the Internet. Technology is making a large portion of the mail carrier’s job obsolete.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 9. Roofer
BLS National Salary Median:
$34,220
Projected Job Growth:
18%
Jobs Rated Score:
971
The construction market is taking a positive turn as the American economy improves, and as such roofers will have more job prospects in the coming years. But the work certainly isn’t for everyone. Long hours spent in the heat and cold of the elements tests ones mettle, and pay is often low.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 10. Flight Attendant
BLS National Salary Median:
$37,740
Projected Job Growth:
0%
Jobs Rated Score:
970
High stress, low pay and a shrinking job market all contribute to flight attendant’s inclusion among the worst jobs of 2013. The BLS projects virtually no change in job prospects, as airlines continue to consolidate and reduce staff.
BLS National Salary Median:
$36,000
Projected Job Growth:
-6%
Jobs Rated Score:
1120
A job that has lost its luster dramatically over the past five years is expected to plummet even further by 2020. Paul Gillin says, “the print model is not sustainable. It will probably be gone within the next 10 years.”
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 2. Lumberjack
BLS National Salary Median:
$32,870
Projected Job Growth:
4%
Jobs Rated Score:
1117
The inherent danger of working with heavy machinery in remote locations, coupled with low pay and poor job prospects, ranks lumberjack as one of the worst jobs of 2013.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 3. Enlisted Military Personnel
BLS National Salary Median:
$41,998 (E-7, 8+ years experience)
Projected Job Growth:
Varies
Jobs Rated Score:
1009
Enlisted military personnel is the most stressful job of 2013, as the men and women who volunteer in the Armed Forces are routinely placed in dangerous situations. And as the military draws down, fewer soldiers will be needed.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 4. Actor
BLS National Salary Median:
$17.44/hour
Projected Job Growth:
4%
Jobs Rated Score:
995
Earning a full-time wage as an actor is one of the most difficult career paths one can pursue. Competition is fierce and earnings are typically paltry unless you are one of the lucky fraction-of-a-few to break into the big time. The Screen Actors Guilde-American Federation of Trad and Radio Artists [SAG-AFTRA] has membership in excess of 160,000 – many of these are bit players at best. BLS estimates just 66,500 work in the field full-time.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 5. Oil Rig Worker
BLS National Salary Median:
$37,640
Projected Job Growth:
8%
Jobs Rated Score:
979
Working on an oil rig is risky. Few jobs are as isolated, requiring long hours spent on rigs often located at sea or in fields far from major cities. And while fracking is providing new opportunities in the field, sustainable energy’s growth will pose long-term sustainability challenges to the oil rig worker’s job market. Solar panel installation, for example, skyrocketed by 76% in 2012.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 6. Dairy Farmer
BLS National Salary Median:
$60,750
Projected Job Growth:
-8%
Jobs Rated Score:
976
A dairy farmer provides a necessary service to food consumers, but the work is especially challenging. Larger farms streamline production, which forces smaller farms out of business and results in an anticipated 8% decline in the profession by 2020.
Those remaining in the field are tasked with caring for dozens, hundreds, even thousands of animals. All those cows can make for a physically unpleasant and possibly dangerous work environment.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 7. Meter Reader
BLS National Salary Median:
$36,400
Projected Job Growth:
-10%
Jobs Rated Score:
975
An isolated and often thankless career, meter reader is also one of the fastest declining professions due to advancements in remote reading.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 8. Mail Carrier
BLS National Salary Median:
$53,090
Projected Job Growth:
-26%
Jobs Rated Score:
972
What people used to convey in a greeting card, they now express in a Facebook wall post. What was once penned on paper and sent through the mail is now transmitted instantaneously over the Internet. Technology is making a large portion of the mail carrier’s job obsolete.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 9. Roofer
BLS National Salary Median:
$34,220
Projected Job Growth:
18%
Jobs Rated Score:
971
The construction market is taking a positive turn as the American economy improves, and as such roofers will have more job prospects in the coming years. But the work certainly isn’t for everyone. Long hours spent in the heat and cold of the elements tests ones mettle, and pay is often low.
Worst Jobs of 2013 - 10. Flight Attendant
BLS National Salary Median:
$37,740
Projected Job Growth:
0%
Jobs Rated Score:
970
High stress, low pay and a shrinking job market all contribute to flight attendant’s inclusion among the worst jobs of 2013. The BLS projects virtually no change in job prospects, as airlines continue to consolidate and reduce staff.
