NOC 84120: Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators
What specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators do
Specialized livestock workers carry out feeding, health and breeding programs on dairy, beef, sheep, poultry, swine and other livestock farms. Farm machinery operators operate and maintain farm machinery and equipment. They are employed on crop, livestock, fruit, vegetable and specialty farms.
Main duties
This group performs some or all of the following duties:
- Specialized livestock workers
- Perform or assist in performing animal husbandry activities
- Implement pasture or pen breeding programs
- Develop and implement feeding programs
- Follow safety and bio-security procedures
- Detect and treat certain diseases and health problems in livestock
- Maintain livestock performance records
- Select livestock for sale
- Set and monitor water lines, air flow and temperature in barns, pens and chicken coops
- Train horses
- Maintain inventory and order materials as required
- May be responsible for the collection of semen and the insemination of donor females
- May supervise general farm labourers.
- Farm machinery operators
- Operate farm equipment and machinery to till soil, plant, cultivate and harvest crops, and load and unload crops or containers of materials
- Perform equipment and machinery maintenance
- Monitor equipment and machinery operations to detect malfunctions
- Follow safety procedures
- May perform minor repairs to farm equipment and machinery.
Job titles under NOC 84120
52 job titles are classified here, including artificial inseminator, cattle herdsperson, dairy herdsperson.
- apiary technician
- artificial inseminator
- baler - agriculture
- baling machine operator - farm
- beef cattle herdsperson
- beekeeping technician
- binder operator - agriculture
- cattle herdsperson
- chick sexer
- combine operator
- cowhand
- cropsprayer machine operator
- cultivator operator
- custom combine operator
- custom harvest crewperson
- custom harvester
- dairy herdsperson
- dressage and stunt horse trainer
- farm equipment operator
- farm machinery custom operator
- farm machinery operator
- farrowing technician
- grain custom harvester
- harvester machine operator
Employment requirements
- Specialized livestock workers may require a college certificate or other specialized training in agriculture or livestock husbandry.
- There are no specific education or training requirements for farm machinery operators. However, a college certificate or specialized courses related to farming, such as farm equipment mechanics, agricultural welding and pesticide application, are available.
- Basic farm knowledge, usually obtained from working on a family farm, may be required for employment.
- A course or certificate in first aid may be required.
Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators wages in Canada
Low, median and high hourly wages from Job Bank’s 2025 wage data. Annual figures assume full-time work (1,950 hours a year).
| Where | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Canada | $15.00/hr | $22.00/hr | $32.00/hr |
Toronto ON | $17.60/hr | $20.00/hr | $28.85/hr |
Vancouver Lower Mainland region, BC | $17.85/hr | $22.56/hr | $32.53/hr |
Calgary AB | $16.87/hr | $23.16/hr | $32.78/hr |
Edmonton AB | $15.00/hr | $25.00/hr | $32.00/hr |
Ottawa ON | $17.60/hr | $20.00/hr | $41.79/hr |
Winnipeg MB | $16.00/hr | $22.12/hr | $60.39/hr |
Québec City Quebec region, QC | $16.10/hr | $21.00/hr | $30.00/hr |
Hamilton Hamilton–Niagara Peninsula region, ON | $17.60/hr | $20.51/hr | $32.50/hr |
Kitchener-Waterloo Kitchener–Waterloo–Barrie region, ON | $17.60/hr | $21.00/hr | $50.48/hr |
London ON | $17.60/hr | $23.08/hr | $33.00/hr |
Victoria Vancouver Island and Coast region, BC | $17.85/hr | $22.51/hr | $33.76/hr |
Saskatoon Saskatoon–Biggar region, SK | $18.00/hr | $27.00/hr | $37.50/hr |
Regina Regina–Moose Mountain region, SK | $17.00/hr | $27.50/hr | $40.00/hr |
| Where | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
Nova Scotia | $16.50/hr | $19.00/hr | $31.95/hr |
New Brunswick | $15.65/hr | $20.00/hr | $31.41/hr |
Quebec | $16.10/hr | $21.00/hr | $30.00/hr |
Ontario | $17.60/hr | $21.15/hr | $32.50/hr |
Manitoba | $16.00/hr | $21.54/hr | $33.00/hr |
Saskatchewan | $17.00/hr | $27.50/hr | $40.00/hr |
Alberta | $15.00/hr | $25.00/hr | $32.00/hr |
British Columbia | $17.85/hr | $20.00/hr | $32.00/hr |
Using NOC 84120 for your resume or Express Entry profile
- IRCC asks you to make sure the main duties listed for your NOC match what you actually did at your job. If they don’t, look for another unit group whose duties do.
- Describe your own work in your own words. Recruiters and ATS software look for concrete tools, results and scope, not text copied from the NOC.
- Applying from outside Canada? Run your resume through the Canadian resume format checker to catch things Canadian employers don’t expect, like a photo or date of birth.
- Use the job title the employer’s posting uses. The 52 titles above are how the same work is named across employers.
Not in this group
Similar jobs classified under a different NOC code:
- Agricultural service contractors and farm supervisors (NOC 82030)
- Harvesting labourers (NOC 85101)
- Livestock labourers (NOC 85100)
- Managers in agriculture (NOC 80020)
Frequently asked questions
What is the NOC code for specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators?
Specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators are NOC 2021 unit group 84120. Example job titles in this group include artificial inseminator, cattle herdsperson, dairy herdsperson, farm machinery operator.
What TEER is NOC 84120?
NOC 84120 is TEER 4 (High school and on-the-job training). Usually requires completion of secondary school, or several weeks of on-the-job training. TEER 4 and 5 work does not count as skilled work experience for Express Entry’s Federal Skilled Worker or Canadian Experience Class programs.
How much do specialized livestock workers and farm machinery operators earn in Canada?
Job Bank's 2025 wage data puts the median at $22.00/hr, about $43,000 a year full-time, with a range of $15.00/hr to $32.00/hr.
Related occupations
Sources: Statistics Canada, National Occupational Classification (NOC) 2021 Version 1.0; Employment and Social Development Canada, Job Bank wages (2025). Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. OfferJetAI is not affiliated with the Government of Canada. Check IRCC’s NOC guidance before you apply.