The present work market can be challenging, but getting your hands dirty might be beneficial. If you don’t mind getting a little dirty, check out this list of dirty ways to make money.
Please keep your thoughts out of the gutter, even though cleaning the gutters could be a wonderful place to start!
Table of contents
The number of college graduates and employment requiring a degree increased dramatically in the second half of the 20th century. Millions of Americans now have access to a college education because of the passage of the Higher Education Act in 1965 and the G.I. Bill after World War II. With the availability of student loans, the proliferation of for-profit colleges, and online learning, the tendency has only continued.
While there has always been a demand for specialized employment, technological advancements have also contributed to an increase in so-called “white collar” jobs or those suit-and-tie employees. They avoid getting their hands dirty and instead sit at a computer. Additionally, there has been a significant rise in internet income and gig economy employment.
But even if our society has made great strides in recent years, there is still a demand for people who are prepared to perform unskilled labor. Jobs that are unpleasant, messy, or filthy are considered dirty jobs since the bulk of society is unwilling to complete them. Amazingly, you can make a decent amount of money despite their unsavory nature.
WHY TAKE A DIRTY JOB?
In the popular Discovery program, Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe, undesirable jobs and the people who are prepared to perform them were exposed. Rowe worked 300 dirty jobs throughout the show’s eight seasons, and it idealized the blue-collar mentality required to carry out the frequently repugnant tasks daily.
There are other great reasons to think about doing a dirty profession, aside from the fun of having your job featured in a TV show. In addition to being in high demand, dirty jobs are also reliable, frequently pay well, and offer exceptional job security.
The demand for competent tradespeople is already on the rise, and there is a growing scarcity of personnel in this field. In 2020, a million skilled workers were anticipated to be needed; by 2025, that number is expected to rise to at least 2 million. In addition to being more likely to be older and close to retirement, workers in trades and other unclean jobs also tend to be less likely to be young people than they once were.
As a result, many unfilled trade jobs and other undesirable jobs provide fantastic opportunities for people to make excellent money, mainly without the need for an expensive education. Additionally, businesses and trade schools offer incentives to recruit students and employees in response to the labor shortage.
There is no better moment to get started if you’re eager to make money and willing to undertake a nasty job.
For those prepared to put in a little more work, here are 30 dirty methods to get money. Although the bulk of these jobs doesn’t require much knowledge, they span the entire gamut regarding compensation and degree requirements.
Dirty Ways to Make Money: jobs involving animals
Farmer
A farmer is a person who cultivates the land, grows crops, or keeps livestock. Beef, dairy, sheep, and pig farms are common animal farms. Corn, cotton, fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, rice, and wheat are among the common crops grown by farmers. In addition, farmers grow crops like hay and alfalfa for livestock consumption.
Despite the widespread belief that farming is a profession of the past, it is still very much in demand. Despite a decline in farming, there were still more than 2 million farms in the United States as of 2020, covering 897 million acres.
Because American farmers produce the majority of our food and the vast majority of our animal products, farming is crucial to society. Anything that we cannot produce or raise ourselves must be imported, which raises costs and may result in the loss of millions of jobs in manufacturing facilities.
Farming is a crucial job, but it’s not simple. Most farms in the United States are family-run, meaning that a small number of people perform all of the labor. While modern tools and technology have made it feasible to cultivate enormous tracts of land with a few people, the work still involves long hours outside in the elements and a willingness to get your hands dirty.
Livestock Sperm Collector
A significant industry is animal breeding. Most ranchers and cattle farmers keep animals for food, breed, and stock maintenance.
Horse breeding may be profitable in a similar way, with money-making stallions, mares, and foals bringing in millions each year. The annual stud fee for a premier race or show horse stallion can be in the hundreds of thousands.
Although breeding animals is not new, advances in technology, reach, and artificial insemination methods have made sperm collection and sales a common practice in breeding programs. If you can ship the sperm, you can sell more of it, and the animals are also much safer.
Although it is profitable, sperm collection is a strange and uncomfortable operation. Typically, a fictitious mount with an artificial vagina is utilized to collect sperm when collecting semen. In rare instances, a live animal may be mounted as the stud animal, with the sperm being collected in the process. The stud can also be manually massaged to collect the sperm.
Fisherman
Although many of us enjoy fishing in our spare time, did you know that you could also make money from it?
A significant industry that contributes significantly to the global food supply is commercial fishing. The main focus of the commercial fishery, which ranges from family-run businesses to big corporations, is on diverse fish and shellfish species.
On their boats, fishermen and women may spend weeks working, and their pay is often based on the size and quality of their catch. Commercial fishing isn’t just money, though. It’s a dangerous job that requires you to work with stinky fish in all kinds of weather.
There were 188 fishing fatalities in the United States from 2010 to 2014, with fatality rates varying from 21 to 147 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers. This exceeds the fatality rate for all American workers by a wide margin.
Groomer
Being a pet groomer is an additional, dirty way to make money. Although people frequently associate pet groomers with dogs, you may also groom cats, horses, and other animals.
Cleaning and caring for an animal are referred to as grooming. This might involve grooming, bathing, cutting nails, and various other related tasks.
veterinary
One unethical approach to making money is as a veterinarian. They may choose to focus on caring for little animals, big animals, exotic animals, or zoo animals. While some veterinarians focus on particular areas, the majority are in charge of the majority of the care for the animals they treat. Additionally, when treating illnesses or injuries, this profession might get messy.
Exterminator
This subsequent dirty method of earning money is not for the weak of heart. Exterminators specialize in employing chemicals and traps to get rid of insects, rats, and other pests inside a house or place of business. However, they must first identify the issue and create a strategy for getting rid of the pest from the area. Exterminators frequently have to climb under houses and into attics to dispose of the deceased animals as part of this job.
Dog Walker/Waste Remover
Pet owners go to considerable efforts to ensure the happiness of their animals, but they aren’t always eager to perform the necessary maintenance tasks. As a result, dog walkers and poop scoopers have become more in demand recently and are a wonderful way to make extra money. Additionally, pet sitting has grown to be a very popular side hustle.
While there are dog walking and waste removal businesses like Rover, you could also offer similar services on a freelance basis by posting an ad on a website like Facebook Marketplace. Setting your own hours and supplementing your income during downtime makes these nasty professions appealing to many.
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Dirty Ways to Make Money: Jobs in the Medical Field
Doctor
Being a doctor is a very filthy job that is not for the faint of heart. Most of your patients as a doctor will either be ill or damaged in some manner, so you’ll frequently encounter all kinds of terrible scenarios. You’ll probably need a strong stomach to be a doctor, especially if you’re a surgeon or specialize in a particularly unpleasant field.
Nurse
Unbelievably, nurses frequently have dirtier jobs than doctors. Nurses carry out most of the treatment and provide the majority of care while doctors diagnose patients and create treatment plans for them. Nurses working in hospitals and care facilities must also help patients with toileting, cleaning, and treating wounds.
Hair Removal Specialist
A growing sector of the beauty and cosmetology industries is hair removal. People who work in the hair removal industry remove unwanted hair from different portions of clients by commonly employing waxing or laser treatments. Consult with clients to discover the best methods and tools for hair removal, waxing, or laser technicians.
Dirty Ways to Make Money: Cleaning jobs
Roof and Gutter Cleaning
The description of this nasty work is accurate. To prevent damage and extend longevity, roof and gutter cleaners are in charge of clearing leaves, moss, and other debris from the roofs and gutters of homes and businesses. Roof and gutter cleaning is a specialty of businesses, but you may also freelance these services for a little additional money.
Pool Cleaner
Another position that can be a full-time pool service job or a side gig is pool cleaning. A swimming pool technician works on pumps, filtration systems, and swimming pools. Typically, a pool cleaner who is working extended hours will only clear debris.
Portable Toilet Cleaner
This is a job, yet it’s also among the most repulsive ways to get money. The delivery of porta potties, sewage disposal, cleaning of the toilet, and restocking of sanitary supplies inside the toilet prior to deployment are all services provided by portable toilet cleaners.
Window Cleaner
One of the riskier jobs is window washing, but it’s also a fascinating profession. High-rise window washers are available to clean the windows of thousands of high-rise structures worldwide. Window washers are skilled with ropes, knots, safety harnesses, and rappelling, and high-rise window washing has been compared to urban mountaineering.
Housekeeping/Janitor
Although there are plenty of freelance and small company maid services, housekeeping is not a recent vocation. People who maintain residential residences or hotels are generally referred to as housekeepers, whereas janitors are responsible for maintaining commercial buildings and larger establishments.
Cleaning up a crime scene
Crime scene cleanup is one of the most horrific methods to generate money. These people, also known as forensic cleaners, are in charge of disinfecting and cleaning the scene of a crime in order to get rid of all signs of it. You’ll frequently be exposed to blood, other bodily fluids, and harsh odors, so be warned that this unpleasant profession requires a strong stomach and may be emotionally taxing.
Roadkill Registrar
Animals killed by vehicles on the road are found by roadkill collectors, who then dispose of them. Roadkill hunters patrol a certain area or stretch of road in search of animals hit by cars and killed there. Roadkill collectors frequently operate on call for the government or for private firms.
Waste Management
Working at landfills, picking up trash from houses or companies, or getting rid of hazardous material are just a few of the many available waste disposal jobs. Similarly, a person’s work in the waste management sector could range from operating trucks to cleaning up and processing waste.
The operator of Landfill Equipment
Millions of tons of waste are generated annually in the United States. And much of it is disposed of in landfills. Any heavy machinery used to move and sift materials at a landfill must be operated safely. And this responsibility falls on the landfill equipment operator.
Removal of Hazardous Materials Personnel
Workers who remove hazardous items have one of the dirtiest and riskiest jobs on our list. These people, sometimes known as hazmat workers, locate and get rid of hazardous substances like asbestos, lead, and radioactive materials.
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Dirty Ways to Make Money: Maintenance jobs
Plumber
Though plumbers have often been made fun of, the job is respectable and pays well. Plumbers maintain, install, and repair water and other pipelines in homes and other buildings. In addition, depending on the situation, plumbers could have to operate outside in bad weather and climb beneath houses.
Oil Rig Tech
An oil rig technician or mechanic must install, repair, and maintain the equipment used for oil drilling. Offshore rig workers could spend weeks at a time away from their homes.
Mechanic
A mechanic is someone who constructs, maintains, and repairs machinery. Although most people identify the name “mechanic” with someone who works on cars. Based on the kind of machinery they operate, mechanics are often divided into two groups: heavyweight or lightweight.
Septic Tank Tech
The majority of the time, septic tanks are used in rural locations without access to municipal sewage systems. Prior to redistributing sewage into the environment, these tanks collect and treat it. Septic tank installers and maintainers flush out these systems on a regular basis.
Sewer Inspector
When inspecting sewer lines for damage or debris, a sewer inspector employs a snake line with a camera. Sewer inspectors are most frequently consulted as part of home inspections conducted by prospective buyers. Although they may also be hired by homeowners or cities experiencing systemic problems.
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Some Other Dirty Ways to Make Money
Safety and Health Inspector
A health and safety inspector assesses the working conditions in various industries to ensure that they are secure for workers and that the output is equally secure.
Coal Miner
The process of removing coal from the ground to be utilized as energy is known as coal mining. Although technology and methods have greatly improved coal miners’ working conditions, it is still a difficult and nasty job.
An investigator for crime scenes
A crime scene investigator or technician gathers, recognizes, and examines physical evidence from crime scenes.
Mortician/Embalmer
Morticians or embalmers, the dirtiest jobs on this list, are in charge of preparing corpses for burial. And also organize funeral services. Morticians plan the funeral and help the family through the process of burying their loved ones. Whereas embalming is the act of preparing human remains to prevent decomposition. A mortician or funeral director may embalm a body as part of the funeral preparations.
Online Used Sock Sales
Online income generation is possible in a variety of ways. Thinking about selling your worn socks if you’re searching for odd, nefarious methods to make money online. You may make money online by selling worn-out, odorous socks to strangers.
Construction
Construction is the penultimate dirty job on this list, and it includes a wide range of potential responsibilities and employment. Roads, infrastructure, and housing are built and maintained by construction workers. Engineers, managers, skilled employees in trades and managers are all employed in the building industry.
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Conclusion
In conclusion, the majority of these nasty professions offer good opportunities for people to make money, either as a career or in their spare time. Although there is a lot of variances, most unclean jobs included pay between $40,000 and $60,000 per year.
Pursuing one of the dirty occupations on this list might be worthwhile if earning money while getting dirty doesn’t bother you. Since most people don’t want to do them, dirty professions are frequently steady, in high demand, and well-paying. While many of these jobs create great careers, other unclean jobs can help you supplement your income or help you cash in quickly.
