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Halloween: From blood takers to embalmers, spookiest UK jobs on offer

Pumpkins have become the ubiquitous symbols of halloween. Photo: Romy Arroyo Fernandez/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Pumpkins have become the ubiquitous symbols of halloween. Photo: Romy Arroyo Fernandez/NurPhoto via Getty Images

In lieu of a COVID-19 safe haunted house, or a rule of six halloween party, jobseekers looking for a spooky outlet could be in luck this halloween.

Over 2,000 spooky jobs are on the market in the UK, according to job search engine Adzuna, including openings for bomb disposal technicians, forensic psychologists, crime scene cleaners and embalmers.

An analysis of over 680,000 jobs available in October showed the spookiest hiring jobs this Halloween and what they pay.

There are currently 1,055 openings for phlebotomists, making this the top hiring Halloween job. Not for the squeamish, this role is for experts in drawing blood, with advertised salaries averaging £39,681 ($51,754).

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The second top hiring Halloween job is for hazardous waste technicians, with 242 openings on offer. Workers in this field must clear and dispose of dangerous waste, including potentially infectious bodily fluids and radioactive materials, and can expect average advertised salaries of £26,974 in return.

There are also hundreds of roles on offer for prison correction officers (205 roles), field ecologists studying bat populations (129 roles), and funeral directors (109 roles).

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Among these spooky vocations, epidemiologists, scientists who study infectious diseases like ebola, can expect to be paid the most handsomely, with average pay packets of £56,624. Meanwhile, forensic psychologists, who used psychological training to profile criminals — like in the TV series Criminal Mind — pay an average of £47,143.

Coroners, charged with investigating sudden or unexplained deaths, advertise an average of £43,004.

Not all spooky jobs come with a big pay packet, however. Advertised salaries for funeral directors average just £20,061, prison correction officers typically make £20,672, and animal slaughterers just £24,520.

Andrew Hunter, co-founder of Adzuna, said: “Halloween lovers are in for a (trick or) treat this year, with over 2,000 creepy job openings on offer across the UK.

“If you’re a Silence of The Lambs fan and the idea of getting inside the mind of criminals makes your spine-tingle, a job as a forensic psychologist might appeal. Those with a steady nerve may wish to consider roles as hazardous waste technicians or bomb disposal experts. And science nuts could train as epidemiologists or field ecologists – but be prepared for spooky subject matter!”

Watch: How to answer difficult interview questions