15 High Paying Jobs That People Do Not Want
In the early 2000s, a new television show called Dirty Jobs first aired on the Discovery Channel. Mike Rowe would spend a day performing some of America’s nastiest, dirtiest jobs for the camera. Usually, those jobs were blue-collar work, meaning they involved some form of manual labor.
However, whether you work a white-collar, blue-collar collar, or some other collar job classification, there are still some jobs that no one wants to do. No matter how much money you throw at these salary bases, people just aren’t lining up at the door to fulfill the employment criteria.
1. Proctologist
Proctologists, admittedly, of all the medical professionals, get the dirtiest job. The pay, which can exceed $300,000 yearly, isn’t even bringing people into the field. Proctologists deal with the digestive and gastrointestinal systems (stomach and intestines). This specialty includes everything to do with your rear end.
For many, one of the drawbacks to this career is the intense schooling and training commitment required to earn the special letters after your name. Being called a doctor isn’t enough of a draw, and apparently, the nice salary isn’t either.
2. Elevator Installer
This one surprised me. Not only do elevator installers and repairpersons make great money, but the job, while technical, is typical of what you’d expect when installing an elevator. Granted, if you’re afraid of heights, it’s probably not for you.
However, outside of the job’s physical demands (it may require lifting heavy objects and working in cramped areas), the pay and benefits seem enough to attract more people to learn the trade. However, that isn’t the case, despite elevator installers and repair persons earning up to $100,000 annually before an excellent benefits package.
3. Crab Fisherman
The show Deadliest Catch put crab fishing on the map and brought home just how dangerous it is to get those beautiful king and opilio crab legs on your dinner plate. Physically demanding and highly dangerous, becoming a crab fisherman isn’t a life of leisure.
However, the money you make (especially as a seasoned fisherman) can be a huge draw for some. For others, the heightened danger makes crab fishing worth the risk. For most, however, the strenuous environment, long hours, severe weather, and hindrance to advancement make it a job in low demand.
4. Railroad Engineer
Becoming an engineer takes work. It takes schooling or training in the trade. Once certified, you’ll be responsible for inspecting and maintaining trains, operating them, monitoring equipment, and ensuring the safety of passengers, employees, and cargo.
However, more than $45 per hour is needed to draw in applicants. This job is both physically demanding and means you’ll be away from home for extended periods. These requirements stop plenty of qualified people from applying.
5. Adult Entertainer
Most people know adult entertainment as the “oldest profession” because people have been doing it forever—workers in adult entertainment date back to antiquity. However, the incredible earning potential (up to $250,000+) doesn’t attract the masses to this particular trade.
It is still considered a “dirty job” for its potential risk of human-to-human transfer of diseases like HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), possibly unhygienic working conditions, heightened risk for assault. Its stigmatized contradiction to traditional values leave many with a sour taste in their mouth.
6. Gastroenterologist
Suppose you’ve ever wanted to know what food looks like as it travels through the digestive tract. Becoming a gastroenterologist (stomach and intestines) would allow you to do just that. It’ll take you at least eleven years to specialize in this medical field, and only during the last three years can you get paid for your work.
While this field of medicine can be gratifying, including a salary upward of $350,000 a year, it is a demanding process to become a GIT (gastrointestinal tract) doctor. The sheer time and money you’ll sink into college and residency training, sleepless nights on call, working up to 80 hours a week, and working in staff-strapped clinics and hospitals makes anyone think twice about entering the medical field.
7. Forensic Pathologist
Despite the high salary of $112 an hour, forensic pathology isn’t a career many are willing to pursue. Forensic pathologists need a bachelor’s degree (usually in Biology or Chemistry) and then go on to earn their degree in medicine.
As a forensic pathologist, you’d be responsible for performing autopsies and discovering the manner of death for anyone needing the information and for those who died suddenly or under suspicious circumstances. You’d also need to be able to review toxicology reports, and the emotional strength required is quite intense. You may also be required to testify in court about your case findings.
8. Electrician
The electrical field is hurting for certified electricians. As older electricians begin to retire, the job gap isn’t filling up with new, younger electricians. Many find the job to be intimidating and dangerous, mainly because electricity can kill you. Between 2011 and 2022, the Electrical Safety Foundation found that 1,322 people died due to electrocution in the workplace.
Still, with an average base salary of $60,000 before overtime and other performance bonuses, being an electrician has its perks in pay. Unfortunately, for every 10,000 retiring electricians, only 7,000 are stepping in to fill those roles. This deficit leaves America with a severe shortage of skilled and qualified electricians.
9. Death Row Executioner
Even given the circumstances surrounding the job of a death row executioner, ending someone’s life isn’t supposed to be easy. The emotional toll could be devastating and, over time, would compound other personal issues or mental health problems one might have.
Most death row executioners are corrections officers who may struggle as this job doesn’t have a set of standard requirements. Many executioners end up quitting due to trauma and stress despite the hefty salary of up to $95,000 yearly.
10. Registered Nurse
Registered nurses can make between $62,000 and $112,000, but more is needed to keep enough nurses in the field. Understaffing, long shifts, and gender pay gaps (especially for people in the BIPOC categories) often lead to burnout. It’s also more complex than picking up a certification. You’ll need formal education through college to put the R.N. initials after your name.
Even with a considerable salary before benefits and overtime, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) reports that nursing schools need to enroll more nurses to keep up with demand. A wide array of nurses are retiring, burned-out nurses are leaving the profession, and an increase in the aging population has all led to a massive shortage of qualified nurses.
11. Urine Farmer
Being a urine farmer isn’t the faint of heart. Usually, farmers will raise white-tailed deer and collect their urine to sell as a hunting lure for bucks who might be roaming the woods across the nation. Aside from being a relatively dirty job, it’s also a pungent one, as deer urine is quite fragrant and can turn your stomach if you have an aversion to strong smells.
This reality is why people aren’t jumping at the chance to become urine farmers. Raising deer takes specific strength and dedication to the craft, but it does come with a caveat. Given the demand for such a product, you can sell a gallon of deer urine for $110 or more. Even so, there aren’t people lining up to do the job.
12. Oil Rig Worker
Oil rig workers can rake in the cash, often making up to $150,000 a year. This job doesn’t require formal education. However, safety training and a TWIC (Transportation Worker Identification Credential) card are needed before you can start working.
There are several reasons that more people aren’t falling over themselves to take on this intense job. Working an oil rig requires long stints away from family and friends (months at a time). This job is physically demanding, dangerous, and can be deadly. The drilling equipment is also loud, even with protective gear, and you’ll work in high temperatures for hours. The demands of this job have caused a gap in the number of people applying to work in the oil rig industry.
13. Coal Miner
The inherent risks associated with coal mining make it a well-paying job. Depending on who you ask, coal miners can make $50,000 to $98,200 a year—the average hovers around $55,000.
Coal mining comes with certain risk factors that make it a hard, intense job to take on. Coal mines are always susceptible to collapse, trapping workers beneath the earth’s surface. They also contain toxic and flammable gasses that can quickly become overwhelming during a cave-in. As a coal miner, you’ll also be at risk for black lung disease from coal dust, and there’s always a chance of falling rocks or heavy equipment accidents doing you in.
14. Criminal Investigator
The one perk of being a criminal investigator is money. As such, you’ll make a base salary of $91,810 annually. However, more is needed to get people into the field.
Drawbacks abound when deciding to be a criminal investigator. You’ll need to be good at working all sorts of odd hours. You’ll also need to love working in adverse weather conditions because crime doesn’t stop when it rains or whips up a blizzard. The mental strain of seeing horrible crime scenes can also take a toll on your mental health. One caveat to this job is that you can specialize in different crime areas like cybercrime or forensic science. You don’t need a degree for this job, but an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in criminal justice or law enforcement does give you a hand-up when applying.
15. Plumber
Being a plumber is a labor of love. Not only do you deal with the piping in houses, taking on jobs that can be massively overwhelming sometimes, but you also deal with some of the nastiest debris humans can create.
As someone who’s cleaned out a shower drain my fair share of times, I’d never want to be a plumber, and hundreds of thousands of people still choose this career path. However, that doesn’t mean we have enough plumbers for the near future. Like electricians, this trade job is about to see thousands of plumbers begin to retire; the estimated need for plumbers will stand at 550,000 by 2027. This shortage could drain billions from the economy as it did in 2022.
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