Seafood Packer

A seafood packer prepares fresh or processed seafood products for distribution by grading, sorting, cleaning, and packing them into containers according to quality standards and customer specifications. Working in seafood processing facilities or on fishing vessels, they ensure products meet food safety requirements and are packaged to maintain quality during transport and storage.

Sort seafood by species, size, and quality grade using visual inspection and calibrated measuring tools. Clean and trim seafood products using filleting knives, deheading machines, and ice baths to remove scales, viscera, and bones. Pack seafood into containers such as ice-lined boxes, vacuum-sealed bags, or foam trays according to product specifications and weight requirements. Apply product labels with batch numbers, catch dates, species identification, and storage instructions as required by food labelling standards. Operate vacuum-sealing equipment and industrial freezing units to preserve product quality and extend shelf life. Monitor product temperature using thermometers to ensure cold-chain compliance and prevent spoilage. Arrange packed products on pallets or into chill rooms following rotation protocols to maintain FIFO stock management. Document packing quantities, product grades, and batch information on production sheets for traceability.

The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate I or compulsory secondary education (ABS skill level 5). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.

The work is physically demanding and cold: you're standing for long shifts in freezing rooms handling sharp knives and slippery products. Pay is typically low and award-based, rarely climbing higher. Seasonal fluctuations mean inconsistent hours depending on catch volumes, plus automation of filleting and grading machines is slowly reducing entry-level positions.

Practically speaking, most positions are in or near port towns rather than inland regions. Very little remote work exists in this role.

Published for ANZSCO unit group 8321, the wider group this job sits in, not for this job on its own.

This is the median for full-time employees who are not managers and are paid at the adult rate, before tax and salary sacrifice. It is a guide to what the work pays, not a wage rate.

Source: ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.

• Adaptability and Flexibilitycore
• Attention to Detailcore
• Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracycore
• Check quality of products on the production linecore
• Clean food and beverage machinerycore
• Goods Receipt Processingcore
• Inventory Trackingcore
• Multitaskingcore
• Policy and Procedure Adherencecore
• Quality Assurance and Checkingcore
• Regulatory and Legislative Awarenesscore
• Stock Counting and Stocktakecore
• Team Collaborationcore
• Time Management and Prioritisationcore
• Workload Self-Managementcore
• Carry out checks of production plant equipment
• Check quality of raw materials
• Continuous Learning and Upskilling
• Data Entry and Accuracy
• Incident Reporting
• Returns Processing
• Risk Identification
• Supplier Communication
• Verbal Communication

• ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
• ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.
• ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.

Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.

Where our numbers come from.

Last updated: 30 October 2026