Median Annual Wage: $31,240
Education: High school diploma or equivalent (56%); Post-secondary certificate (16%); Less than high school diploma (15%)
Projected Growth: Average (8% to 14%)
Related Job Titles: Pest Control Technician; Chemical Applicator; Lawn Technician; Lawn Specialist; Spray Technician; Integrated Pest Management Technician (IPM Technician); Spray Applicator; Tree and Shrub Technician; Licensed Pesticide Applicator; Pesticide Applicator
Source: O*NET OnLine information for Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation.
More Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Careers
- Mix pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides for application to trees, shrubs, lawns, or botanical crops.
- Fill sprayer tanks with water and chemicals, according to formulas.
- Lift, push, and swing nozzles, hoses, and tubes to direct spray over designated areas.
- Identify lawn or plant diseases to determine the appropriate course of treatment.
- Cover areas to specified depths with pesticides, applying knowledge of weather conditions, droplet sizes, elevation-to-distance ratios, and obstructions.
- Start motors and engage machinery, such as sprayer agitators or pumps or portable spray equipment.
- Connect hoses and nozzles selected according to terrain, distribution pattern requirements, types of infestations, and velocities.
- Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools.
Source: O*NET OnLine information for Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation.
- Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
- Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
- Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Operation and Control - Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Operation Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
- Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Source: O*NET OnLine information for Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation.
