10 High-Risk Jobs And The Salaries That Come With Them

According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, 3.4 employees for every 100,000 died while on the job in 2020.

The highest death rates are among the two most dangerous industries in America: fishing and hunting, and logging.

The bureau estimated that the fishing and hunting industry lost 132 workers per 100,000 in 2020, and the logging industry lost around 91 per 100,000.

While being a police officer is widely seen as one of America's most dangerous jobs, Statista estimates that there were 696,644 full-time police officers in the U.S. in 2020, with 295 of them dying in the line of duty — representing a 0.0004% fatality rate among police officers.

Following the logging industry, roofers lose around 47 workers per 100,000.

But, for all the danger and uncertainty, are these workers compensated fairly? Let’s look at the highest-risk jobs and the salaries that accompany them.

Fishing and Hunting:
Fatalities per 100,000: 132.1
Median Salary: $39,149

Logging:
Fatalities per 100,000: 91
Median salary: $46,330

Roofers:
Fatalities per 100,000: 47
Median salary: $37,450

Construction trades:
Fatalities per 100,000: 43
Median salary: $58,550

Aircraft Pilot/Flight Engineer:
Fatalities per 100,000: 34
Median salary: $93,300

Garbage collectors:
Fatalities per 100,000: 33
Median salary: $45,430

Iron and Steelworkers:
Fatalities per 100,000: 32
Median salary: $54,830

Truck drivers:
Fatalities per 100,000: 26
Median salary: $80,838

Underground mining/machine operator:
Fatalities per 100,000: 21
Median salary: $53,905

Farmers/Ranchers:
Fatalities per 100,000: 21
Median salary: $44,498

On the opposite end, some of the highest paying low-risk jobs include

University Professor
Median Salary: $80,790

Audiologist
Median Salary: $81,030

Operations Research Analyst
Median Salary: $86,200

Radiation Therapist
Median Salary: $86,850

Statistician
Median Salary: $92,270

Biomedical Engineer
Median Salary: $92,620

Art Director
Median Salary: $97,270

Economist
Median Salary: $108,350

Mathematician
Median Salary: $110,860

Actuary
Median Salary: $111,030

Photo: Sergey Nivens via Shutterstock