Fallers
Agriculture, Food and Natural ResourcesO*NET 45-4021.00United States
Use axes or chainsaws to fell trees using knowledge of tree characteristics and cutting techniques to control direction of fall and minimize tree damage.
- Median annual earnings
- $48,763
- Projected change
- −11.5%
- Typical education
- High school diploma or less
- Employment
- 5.11K jobs
50th percentile, United States
2025 to 2035
100% of the workforce
Growing to 4.52K by 2035
Explore this career by location
Compare nationwide estimates with state or county job-market data.
Showing United States
Loading available locations…
Build the skills
ASU learning related to this career
These courses and certificates are connected through catalog career relationships and Lightcast skill tags.
Loading related ASU learning
The work
What fallers do
Tasks reported for this occupation, ordered by how often they come up in the role.
- Stop saw engines, pull cutting bars from cuts, and run to safety as tree falls.
- Appraise trees for certain characteristics, such as twist, rot, and heavy limb growth, and gauge amount and direction of lean, to determine how to control the direction of a tree's fall with the least damage.
- Saw back-cuts, leaving sufficient sound wood to control direction of fall.
- Clear brush from work areas and escape routes, and cut saplings and other trees from direction of falls, using axes, chainsaws, or bulldozers.
- Measure felled trees and cut them into specified log lengths, using chain saws and axes.
- Assess logs after cutting to ensure that the quality and length are correct.
- Determine position, direction, and depth of cuts to be made, and placement of wedges or jacks.
- Control the direction of a tree's fall by scoring cutting lines with axes, sawing undercuts along scored lines with chainsaws, knocking slabs from cuts with single-bit axes, and driving wedges.
- Trim off the tops and limbs of trees, using chainsaws, delimbers, or axes.
- Select trees to be cut down, assessing factors such as site, terrain, and weather conditions before beginning work.
- Maintain and repair chainsaws and other equipment, cleaning, oiling, and greasing equipment, and sharpening equipment properly.
- Insert jacks or drive wedges behind saws to prevent binding of saws and to start trees falling.
- Tag unsafe trees with high-visibility ribbons.
Pay and outlook
What the job pays and where it is heading
Annual earnings range
Reported earnings by percentile, United States
- 10th percentile
- $26,548
- 25th percentile
- $35,390
- 50th percentile
- $48,763
- 75th percentile
- $68,434
- 90th percentile
- $115,144
The gold marker shows the median. Half earn more than $48,763 and half earn less.
Employment outlook
2025 to 2035 projection
−11.5%projected to decline
20255,110 jobs
2035 projected4,524 jobs
586 fewer positions over the decade, before replacement hiring.
Preparation
Education levels
What people currently working in the career hold. These are not entry requirements.
- High school diploma or less
- 100%
Skills
Skills employers ask for
Technical skills appearing most often in job postings for this occupation.
How the work gets done
Core competencies
Broad capabilities associated with strong performance in this occupation.
- Operation and Control
- Controlling operations of equipment or systems.
- Critical Thinking
- Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
- Monitoring
- Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
- Operations 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.
- Equipment Maintenance
- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
- 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.
- Troubleshooting
- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
- Repairing
- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
- Complex Problem Solving
- Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
- Quality Control Analysis
- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
- Speaking
- Talking to others to convey information effectively.
- Equipment Selection
- Determining the kind of tools and equipment needed to do a job.
- Coordination
- Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
- Time Management
- Managing one's own time and the time of others.
- Active Learning
- Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
- Mathematics
- Using mathematics to solve problems.
- Persuasion
- Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
- Social Perceptiveness
- Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
- Operations Analysis
- Analyzing needs and product requirements to create a design.
In the market
Job titles and employers
Recent job postings in United StatesCommon job titles
- 01Arborists Crew Leader17 postings
- 02Funeral Assistants6 postings
- 03Climbing Arborists5 postings
- 04Certified Arborists4 postings
- 05Tree Trimmers4 postings
- 06Callers3 postings
- 07Seasonal Associates3 postings
- 08Trimmers/Climbers3 postings
- 09Arborists2 postings
- 10Landscape Maintenance Managers2 postings
- 11Extraction Technicians1 postings
- 12Landscape Apprentices1 postings
- 13Landscape Crews1 postings
- 14Landscape Laborers1 postings
- 15Landscape Specialists1 postings
- 16Lawn Care Technicians1 postings
- 17Quote Managers1 postings
- 18Runners1 postings
- 19Tree Climbers1 postings
- 20Tree Planters1 postings
Top employers
- 01Lewis Services23 postings
- 02Devil Mountain Wholesale Nursery6 postings
- 03SFM Landscape Services, LLC.4 postings
- 04Western Certified Arborists Tree Service & Landscaping4 postings
- 05Teya Development2 postings
- 06Arborworks1 postings
- 07Better Science1 postings
- 08Brandmark Landscape1 postings
- 09Charley's Philly Steaks1 postings
- 10Comfama1 postings
- 11Davivienda1 postings
- 12E.a. Smith & Company1 postings
- 13Fresh Cut Pros1 postings
- 14Live Aloha1 postings
- 15Miller Landscape1 postings
- 16Mse Landscape Professionals1 postings
- 17National Park Service1 postings
- 18Nature's Way Landscaping1 postings
- 19Premier Landscape Management1 postings
- 20Robson Landscaping & Turf1 postings
Keep looking