Funeral Director Job Description Templates for Family Funeral Homes
6 free templates for the firm where the owner is also the licensed manager: funeral director, director and embalmer, apprentice, attendant, removal technician, and office manager. Download as DOCX.
Most job description templates for this role were written by people who have never taken a first call at three in the morning. They list duties in the abstract, skip the license entirely, say nothing about the on-call rotation, and leave out the one federal rule that shapes how every employee in the building is allowed to speak to a family.
Funeral homes are the classic American family business: a name on the building, a second or third generation in the arrangement office, and an owner who is also the licensed manager, the recruiter, and the person driving the transfer van tonight. The Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 25,100 morticians, undertakers, and funeral arrangers and 13,910 funeral home managers in wage and salary employment (BLS OEWS, May 2025), and projects overall employment of funeral service workers to grow 4 percent from 2024 to 2034.
At FirstHR we write hiring templates for owners without an HR department, and this trade needs them more than most. The six below cover a licensed funeral director, a dual-licensed director and embalmer, an apprentice, a funeral attendant, a removal and transport technician, and an office manager, each with the licensure, classification, and Funeral Rule notes the generic versions leave out.
TL;DR
A funeral director job description has to state four things generic templates skip: the state license requirement, the on-call rotation, the FLSA classification, and Funeral Rule training for anyone who might discuss prices. Licensed directors earn a national median of $55,010 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Six templates below, downloadable as DOCX.
Hiring at a Family Funeral Home Is Its Own Problem
A family funeral home hires against two constraints at once: a small pool of licensed candidates and a job that runs on a pager. You cannot widen the pool by lowering the credential, because the state board sets it, and you cannot hide the schedule, because everyone in the trade already knows what nights look like.
That is why the posting carries more weight here than in most industries. A licensed director choosing between two firms is choosing whose reputation to stand behind for the next decade. Everything you leave unsaid, they will assume, and the assumption is rarely generous.
The second constraint is that nobody in the building is a recruiter. The owner runs the search between calls, which is the same pattern we see across every small employer, and our guide to hiring for a small business covers the sequence that keeps it from stalling. Here the sequence just has a license verification step bolted onto it.
Four Roles, Four Different Postings
The word staff covers four legally distinct situations inside one small building. Two of them require a state license, all four can trigger the Funeral Rule, and only one of them has any chance of being exempt from overtime. Writing one generic posting for all of them is how classification problems start.
Licensed funeral director
Arrangements and services
Meets the family, conducts the arrangement conference, presents the required price lists, files the death certificate and permits, and directs the service. The license belongs to the person and is issued by your state board.
Embalmer or preparation room
A separate license in many states
Embalming, restorative art, dressing, and casketing. Many states issue a separate embalmer license, and many small firms hire one person who holds both. The preparation room carries its own safety rules.
Removal and attendant staff
Unlicensed, hourly, non-exempt
First calls, transfers, visitation setup, processions, and driving. Usually no license required, always hourly and overtime-eligible, and never permitted to quote prices or take arrangements.
Office and family service
The paperwork engine
Billing, insurance assignments, certified copies, vital records follow-up, and records retention. Small firms run this on one person, and the classification question here is the one owners get wrong most often.
Write to the License, Not to the Title
Titles in this trade are inconsistent across states and firms. Mortician, undertaker, funeral arranger, and funeral director all appear on the same job, and some states issue a combined funeral director and embalmer license while others separate them. Write the posting around the credential your state board actually issues and the duties the person will actually perform, then list the alternate titles in the body so search results and candidates find you either way.
What Belongs in the Posting
A funeral director job description does four jobs at once: it introduces the firm, it filters for the license, it protects you legally, and it closes a scarce candidate. Most postings in this trade do only the first and then list duties everybody already knows.
The parts candidates read first
Firm name, town, and how long you have been there
Call volume and the mix of burial, cremation, and pre-need
Who else is on staff and who covers what
Schedule and how the on-call rotation actually works
The parts that filter applicants
License required, license eligible, or unlicensed
Reciprocity or endorsement support if you hire across state lines
Driving record and lifting requirements
Background check notice
The parts that protect you
FLSA classification stated on the posting
On-call and call-back pay terms in writing
Funeral Rule training as a condition of family contact
Equal opportunity statement and essential functions
The parts that win the hire
Pay, plus the on-call differential in dollars
License renewal and continuing education paid
Real time off and how coverage is arranged
A named person to apply to, not an anonymous inbox
The most common omission is the on-call rotation. Candidates want to know how many nights, how many weekends, whether there is a second person for a two-man removal, and what happens on holidays. Silence there reads as a firm that has not solved the problem, and experienced directors have already worked somewhere that had not. Our guide to writing a job description covers the general structure in more depth.
6 Funeral Home Job Description Templates to Download
Download all six as one file or copy them individually. Each follows the same structure: firm overview, position summary, key responsibilities, required qualifications, a licensure or compliance note, an equal opportunity statement, and how to apply. The bracketed fields are the only parts you need to change.
Download All 6 Funeral Home Job Description Templates
Funeral director, director and embalmer, apprentice, attendant, removal technician, and office manager. All in one download.
Licensed Funeral Director
The core hire
Arrangements, paperwork, service direction, and on-call rotation, with the licensure and Funeral Rule language written in.
Director / Embalmer
Dual license
For the small firm where one person does both halves, with the preparation room duties and the exposure limits stated plainly.
Apprentice / Intern
Your pipeline
For sponsoring a mortuary science student toward licensure, with board registration, case logs, and honest hourly pay terms.
Funeral Attendant
Part-time, by service
For visitation and service staff, with setup, guest care, procession duties, and a hard line on who may quote prices.
Removal and Transport
First calls at any hour
For the transfer role, with identification and chain of custody steps, vehicle duties, and the on-call pay rules spelled out.
Office Manager
Billing and records
For the administrative anchor: invoicing, insurance assignments, vital records, retention of price lists, and personnel files.
Template 1: Licensed Funeral Director
The core hire: arrangements, paperwork, service direction, and the on-call rotation, with the licensure and Funeral Rule language already written in.
Licensed Funeral Director Job Description
LICENSED FUNERAL DIRECTOR JOB DESCRIPTION
Funeral home: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Owner / General Manager / Licensed Manager of Record]
Employment type: Full-time, salaried, with rotating on-call duty
FLSA status: [Exempt / Non-exempt] (see classification note before posting)
Compensation: $_ per year plus on-call differential
ABOUT [FUNERAL HOME NAME]
[Funeral Home Name] is a [family-owned / independent] funeral home in
[City, State], serving [number] families a year across [traditional burial,
cremation, veteran services, and pre-need arrangements]. We have been on
[street or town] since [year], and the same name is still on the sign and on
the door of the arrangement room.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Funeral Director takes first calls, conducts arrangement conferences with
families, prepares and files the legal paperwork required for each death, plans
and directs visitations and services, and remains the family's single point of
contact from the first phone call through aftercare.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Answer first calls and coordinate removal and transfer of the deceased
•Conduct the arrangement conference and present the General Price List, the
Casket Price List, and the Outer Burial Container Price List as required
•Prepare and provide the itemized Statement of Funeral Goods and Services
Selected at the conclusion of the arrangement conference
•Obtain authorizations, including written authorization to embalm
•Complete and file death certificates, burial and transit permits, and
[state] vital records filings within the deadlines your state sets
•Handle pre-need inquiries and maintain pre-need files
•Follow up with families on aftercare, insurance assignments, and
outstanding balances
•Keep the facility, fleet, and preparation area presentable and compliant
•Take part in the on-call rotation, including nights, weekends, and holidays
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•Current [State] funeral director license in good standing, or license
eligibility with reciprocity or endorsement in progress
•[Associate degree or higher] from an accredited funeral service or mortuary
science education program
•Passed the national board examination and any [state] law examination
•Valid driver's license and a clean motor vehicle record
•Must clear a criminal background check before the first assignment
•Composure and plain language with families on the worst day of their lives
LICENSURE AND COMPLIANCE NOTE (read before posting)
Nearly every state and the District of Columbia license funeral directors, and
the license is held by the person, not the firm. Working across state lines
generally requires a separate license in each state. Most states also require
continuing education to renew. Verify the specific requirements with your state
licensing board and confirm the candidate's license number and status directly
with the board before the start date, not after. Every employee who speaks with
families about goods, services, or prices needs to be trained on the FTC Funeral
Rule, because the firm is liable for what any staff member says. This is general
information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Funeral Home Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per year, [on-call differential], [health coverage],
[retirement plan], [continuing education and license renewal paid]
To apply, email __ with your resume and license number.
Template 2: Funeral Director and Embalmer, Dual License
For the firm where one person meets the family in the morning and works the preparation room in the afternoon, with the federal exposure limits stated plainly.
Funeral Director / Embalmer (Dual License) Job Description
FUNERAL DIRECTOR / EMBALMER JOB DESCRIPTION (DUAL LICENSE)
Funeral home: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Owner / Licensed Manager of Record]
Employment type: Full-time, with rotating on-call duty
FLSA status: [Exempt / Non-exempt] (see classification note)
Compensation: $_ per year
ABOUT THIS ROLE
[Funeral Home Name] is hiring a dual-licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer.
At our size the same person meets the family in the morning and works in the
preparation room in the afternoon, so we are looking for someone who is strong
at both halves of the job and does not treat either as an afterthought.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Funeral Director / Embalmer performs embalming, restorative art, dressing,
casketing, and cosmetics, and also conducts arrangement conferences, files the
required paperwork, and directs services for the families assigned to them.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Preparation room
•Perform embalming, restorative art, and cosmetics to a standard that supports
an open-casket viewing when the family requests one
For sponsoring a mortuary science student toward licensure, with board registration, case logs, and honest hourly pay terms rather than a vague learning arrangement.
Funeral Director Apprentice / Intern Job Description
FUNERAL DIRECTOR APPRENTICE / INTERN JOB DESCRIPTION
Funeral home: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Supervising Licensed Funeral Director]
Employment type: Full-time [or part-time around class schedule], hourly
[Funeral Home Name] keeps a small pool of attendants who work visitations,
services, and processions. This is the role families remember without knowing
the name: the person who held the door, found a chair for the grandmother, and
made the room feel calm.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Funeral Attendant prepares the chapel and visitation rooms, greets and
directs guests, assists with the casket and flowers, supports the procession,
and resets the facility between services.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Set up the chapel, visitation room, register stand, and memorial displays
•Greet families and guests and direct them to the correct room and seating
•Assist with casket movement, pallbearers, flowers, and personal effects
•Distribute service folders and manage the guest register
•Assist with procession lineup, parking, and traffic flow
•Reset rooms between services and keep public areas spotless
•Drive [lead car / family car / flower van] when assigned
•Follow all confidentiality expectations about the families we serve
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[High school diploma or equivalent: set your bar]
•Valid driver's license and a clean motor vehicle record if driving
•Ability to lift and move [weight] with assistance and to stand for a full
service
•Professional dress and a calm, quiet presence
•Availability on [evenings, weekends, and short notice]
•Must clear a criminal background check before the first assignment
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
Funeral attendants are non-exempt employees: hourly, entitled to overtime past
forty hours in a week, and owed pay for all time you require them to be at the
funeral home, including setup and reset time before and after the public part of
a service. A licensed director is not required for this role in most states, but
attendants must never conduct an arrangement conference or quote prices, because
anyone who discusses goods, services, or prices with a family triggers the FTC
Funeral Rule disclosure obligations on the firm. Train attendants to hand price
questions to a licensed director. This is general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Funeral Home Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per hour, [minimum call-in hours per service],
[uniform allowance]
To apply, email __ with your resume and availability.
Template 5: Removal and Transport Technician
For first calls at any hour, with identification and chain of custody steps, vehicle duties, and the on-call pay rules spelled out. If you also hire drivers for other work, the driver templates cover the general version.
Removal and Transport Technician Job Description
REMOVAL AND TRANSPORT TECHNICIAN JOB DESCRIPTION
Funeral home: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Funeral Director on duty / Operations Manager]
Compensation: $_ per hour plus $_ per call after hours
ABOUT THIS ROLE
[Funeral Home Name] needs a Removal and Transport Technician for first calls at
[hospitals, nursing homes, hospice, private residences, and the medical
examiner's office] in [service area]. Most of this work happens at night. It is
the first thing a family sees us do, and it sets the tone for everything after.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Removal Technician responds to first calls, transfers the deceased to our
care with dignity and correct identification, completes the transfer paperwork,
and maintains the transfer vehicle and equipment.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Respond to dispatch within [number] minutes of a first call
•Confirm identification and complete the transfer release and chain of custody
documentation at the place of death
•Perform the transfer with appropriate equipment and body mechanics, including
difficult residential removals with stairs and tight spaces
•Interact with hospital, hospice, nursing home, and law enforcement staff
professionally
•Speak with present family members briefly, respectfully, and without quoting
prices or discussing arrangements
•Transport to the funeral home, crematory, airport, or another firm as directed
•Clean, disinfect, and restock the vehicle and equipment after every call
•Log mileage, call times, and vehicle condition
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•Valid driver's license and a clean motor vehicle record
•Ability to lift and maneuver [weight] with a partner and with equipment
•Training in bloodborne pathogens and universal precautions, or willingness to
complete it before the first call
•Discretion, presentable appearance, and reliability at 3 a.m.
•Must clear a criminal background check and a motor vehicle record check before
the first assignment
•[State registration or apprentice registration if your state requires it]
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
Removal work is the clearest overtime exposure in a small funeral home. This
role is non-exempt: pay for every hour worked and pay overtime past forty hours
in a week. Whether waiting time counts depends on the facts. An employee
required to stay at the funeral home while on call is working; an employee free
to be at home and simply reachable usually is not, though enough restrictions on
their freedom can flip that. Write the on-call rules down, count response time
and travel time as hours worked, and never let this role discuss prices or
arrangements with a family. This is general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Funeral Home Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per hour, $_ per after-hours call, [mileage],
[minimum hours guaranteed per call]
To apply, email __ with your resume and availability.
Template 6: Funeral Home Office Manager
For the administrative anchor: invoicing, insurance assignments, vital records follow-up, retention of price lists, and personnel files. For a front-desk-only role, the receptionist templates are a closer fit.
Funeral Home Office Manager / Family Service Coordinator Job Description
FUNERAL HOME OFFICE MANAGER / FAMILY SERVICE COORDINATOR JOB DESCRIPTION
Funeral home: __ ([City, State])
Reports to: [Owner / General Manager]
Employment type: Full-time
FLSA status: [Exempt / Non-exempt] (see classification note)
Compensation: $_ per year
ABOUT THIS ROLE
[Funeral Home Name] is hiring an Office Manager to run the administrative side
of the firm so our licensed staff can stay with families. This is the role that
keeps the price lists current, the death certificates moving, the insurance
assignments filed, and the receivables from quietly becoming a problem.
POSITION SUMMARY
The Office Manager handles billing, collections, insurance assignments, vital
records follow-up, vendor payables, records retention, scheduling, and the
front-of-house experience for families and visitors.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
•Answer the phone and route calls, including after-hours answering service
handoffs
•Prepare invoices from the itemized statement of goods and services selected,
post payments, and manage collections
•File and track life insurance assignments, veterans benefits, and
[state] burial assistance claims
•Follow up with physicians, medical examiners, and vital records offices on
outstanding death certificates
•Order certified copies and deliver them to families
•Maintain the price lists in current form and keep the file copies the rule
requires
•Retain price lists for at least one year from the date last distributed and
each completed statement for at least one year from the arrangement conference
•Order supplies, manage vendor invoices, and reconcile monthly
•Maintain personnel files, license renewal dates, and training records
•Keep pre-need files and trust or insurance documentation organized
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
•[Number] years of office management, bookkeeping, or medical billing
experience
•Comfort with confidential and emotionally heavy material every day
•Accuracy with names, dates, and legal documents where a typo is a real problem
•[Funeral home management software] experience preferred
•Must clear a criminal background check before the start date
CLASSIFICATION AND COMPLIANCE NOTE
Do not assume this role is salaried and exempt because it is an office job with
a manager title. An administrative exemption requires the primary duty to
include the exercise of discretion and independent judgment on matters of
significance, plus a salary that meets the federal test and any higher state
threshold. Bookkeeping, invoicing, filing, and answering phones are not enough
on their own. If the role is non-exempt, track hours and pay overtime. Also note
that if this person answers price questions from families by phone, the FTC
Funeral Rule telephone disclosure obligations apply to that call. This is
general information, not legal advice.
EEO STATEMENT
[Funeral Home Name] is an equal opportunity employer and provides reasonable
accommodations for the essential functions of this role.
COMPENSATION AND HOW TO APPLY
Compensation: $_ per year, [benefits summary], [schedule]
To apply, email __ with your resume.
State Licensure and Apprenticeship
Nearly every state and the District of Columbia require funeral directors to hold an individual license, and it is issued to the person rather than to the firm. Boards generally require a minimum age of twenty-one, an accredited funeral service or mortuary science education program, a passing board examination score, and a supervised apprenticeship that commonly lasts one to three years.
Colorado was the well-known exception. A 2024 state law created license types for funeral directors, mortuary science practitioners, embalmers, cremationists, and natural reductionists; applications opened in 2025, and licensure becomes required in 2027. If you hire in Colorado, write the posting for where the requirement is heading rather than where it has been.
The license belongs to the person, not the firm
Nearly every state and the District of Columbia license funeral directors, and the credential sits with the individual. The funeral home itself usually carries a separate establishment license, which does not substitute for the individual one. Most boards ask for the same four things: a minimum age of twenty-one, completion of an accredited funeral service or mortuary science program, a passing score on a national or state board examination, and a supervised internship or apprenticeship that commonly runs one to three years. Continuing education is required to renew in most states, and working in a second state generally means a second license. Colorado was the long-standing exception with no mandatory individual licensure, and that changed: Senate Bill 24-173 created license types for funeral directors, mortuary science practitioners, embalmers, cremationists, and natural reductionists, applications opened in 2025, and licensure becomes required in 2027. Verify status directly with the board before the start date. This is general information, not legal advice.
The Funeral Rule follows the employee, not the job title
The Federal Trade Commission's Funeral Rule requires you to give a General Price List to anyone who asks in person about funeral goods, services, or prices, to answer price questions over the phone without requiring a name or an office visit, to show a Casket Price List and an Outer Burial Container Price List before showing the merchandise, and to hand the family an itemized Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected at the conclusion of the arrangements discussion. The obligation attaches to the conversation, which means an attendant, a removal driver, or an office assistant can trigger it. You must keep price lists for at least one year from the date you last distributed them and each completed statement for at least one year from the arrangement conference. The FTC states that violations can carry penalties of up to $53,088 per violation, so rule training belongs in onboarding for every employee, not only licensed staff.
On-call time is the overtime trap
Attendants, removal technicians, and apprentices are non-exempt, an office role qualifies only if it clears the administrative duties and salary tests, and even licensed directors are frequently non-exempt in practice, because the professional exemption requires both a primary duty in a field of science or learning acquired through prolonged specialized instruction and a salary that clears the federal test and any higher state floor. Then the hours pile up. Under Department of Labor guidance, an employee required to remain on call at the funeral home is working during that time; one who may stay at home and simply be reachable usually is not, unless the restrictions on their freedom are heavy enough to change the answer. Response time, travel to the place of death, and the removal itself are all hours worked. Write the on-call policy down, pay a stated differential, and track actual call times rather than reconstructing them from memory at the end of the pay period.
The preparation room is a regulated workplace
Two federal safety standards apply to any firm with a preparation room. The formaldehyde standard sets a permissible exposure limit of 0.75 parts per million as an eight-hour time-weighted average, a fifteen-minute short-term limit of 2 parts per million, and an action level of 0.5 parts per million that triggers periodic exposure monitoring and medical surveillance. The bloodborne pathogens standard requires a written exposure control plan, hepatitis B vaccination offered at no cost to employees with occupational exposure, personal protective equipment, and annual training. The bloodborne pathogens standard reaches anyone with occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials, which includes removal staff and not only embalmers, and the formaldehyde standard reaches every employee exposed to the chemical. Put initial exposure monitoring, the vaccination offer, and documented training into your onboarding sequence, and keep the records where you can produce them. This is general information, not legal advice.
Requirement
How to handle it in a funeral home posting
State license
Mark it required, license-eligible, or not required per role, and verify the number with the board yourself
Reciprocity
If you would sponsor an out-of-state candidate through endorsement, say so; it widens a very small pool
Education
Name the accredited program requirement for licensed roles; leave it out for attendant and removal roles
Apprenticeship
Register with the board before the first day, because unregistered hours usually do not count
Cremation certification
Required in many states for anyone operating the retort; state it if the role includes cremation
Driving record
Required for anyone driving a coach, lead car, or transfer vehicle; run the motor vehicle check pre-hire
Background check
State that employment is contingent on clearance completed before the first assignment
Safety training
Bloodborne pathogens and formaldehyde training and the hepatitis B vaccination offer, documented during onboarding
Classification
Non-exempt for attendants, removal staff, apprentices, and most office roles; test both prongs for directors
Background screening in this trade is not a formality, because staff enter private homes at the worst moment of a family's life and handle personal property without supervision. Our guides to running a background check and to state background check laws cover the notice and consent requirements.
The Funeral Rule Is a Staffing Question
The Funeral Rule is a hiring and training issue, not only a pricing issue, because the disclosure obligation attaches to whoever is speaking with the family. An attendant who answers a price question on the phone puts the firm on the hook exactly as a licensed director would.
The rule, codified at 16 CFR Part 453, requires a General Price List for anyone who asks in person about goods, services, or prices, telephone price disclosures without demanding a name or an office visit, a Casket Price List and an Outer Burial Container Price List before merchandise is shown, and an itemized Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected at the conclusion of the arrangements discussion. It also bars an extra fee or surcharge when a family buys a casket elsewhere.
Every Employee Who Talks to Families Needs Rule Training
The Federal Trade Commission's compliance guidance is explicit that the trigger for handing over a General Price List is a face-to-face discussion about goods, services, or prices, and that it can happen anywhere, including at a residence during a removal. Staff should carry price lists. Price lists must be kept for at least one year from the date last distributed, and each completed itemized statement for at least one year from the arrangement conference. Put rule training in onboarding for every employee, keep a signed acknowledgment, and refresh it when your prices change.
The FTC publishes a detailed compliance guide for funeral providers with sample price lists and a sample itemized statement, and it states that violations can carry penalties of up to $53,088 per violation. Two lines in every job description close most of the exposure: one requiring rule training before family contact, and one stating that only licensed staff conduct arrangement conferences and quote prices.
What to Pay Funeral Home Staff
National medians are the starting point, not the answer, because pay in this trade tracks call volume and market more than title. A single-location rural firm and a busy metropolitan firm sit on opposite sides of every figure below.
National Medians for Funeral Service Occupations
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025), the median annual wage was $78,790 for funeral home managers, $55,010 for morticians, undertakers, and funeral arrangers, $58,780 for embalmers, $43,650 for crematory operators, and $35,680 for funeral attendants (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS national estimates).
Role
National median (BLS OEWS, May 2025)
Note for a family firm
Funeral home manager
$78,790 per year ($37.88 per hour)
Often the owner or the licensed manager of record
Mortician, undertaker, funeral arranger
$55,010 per year ($26.45 per hour)
The licensed director conducting arrangements
Embalmer
$58,780 per year ($28.26 per hour)
Frequently the same person as the director at a small firm
Crematory operator
$43,650 per year ($20.98 per hour)
Certification required in many states
Funeral attendant
$35,680 per year ($17.16 per hour)
Part-time, scheduled by service, always non-exempt
Apprentice or intern
No separate national figure
Pay hourly at or above your attendant rate, plus overtime
Office manager
No funeral-specific national figure
Benchmark to local administrative roles, then test the exemption
Where you can compete without touching base pay is the rest of the package: a stated on-call differential, paid license renewal and continuing education, a minimum call-in payment for after-hours removals, and a coverage plan that lets people actually take a vacation. Publish a good-faith range where pay transparency laws require it, and put the differential in dollars rather than calling it competitive.
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On-call time is where small funeral homes create real wage liability without noticing. Attendants, removal technicians, and apprentices are non-exempt, so every hour they are required to be at the funeral home counts, and every removal counts from dispatch through return.
Federal guidance draws the line at freedom of movement: an employee required to remain on the premises while on call is working, while an employee free to be at home and simply reachable generally is not, unless the restrictions on their time are heavy enough to change the analysis. Response-time requirements, mandatory sobriety, and geographic limits all push toward compensable. Our breakdown of on-call pay works through the test, and overtime rules covers the calculation once the hours are counted.
Two Habits That Prevent Most Wage Claims Here
First, write the on-call policy into the handbook and the job description: rotation length, response window, differential, minimum call-in pay, and who covers a second simultaneous call. Second, have staff log call time as it happens rather than reconstructing it at the end of the pay period, because the reconstruction is always wrong and it is always wrong in the direction that creates a claim. If you are unsure which side a role falls on, our guide to exempt versus non-exempt classification walks through both prongs.
Hiring Without an HR Department
Funeral home hiring fails in predictable places: the posting is generic, succession is assumed rather than planned, and the licenses and training records live in a drawer where nobody sees them expire. Each has a fix.
The owner is the licensed manager, the recruiter, and the person on call tonight
At a family firm the job description gets written by the same person who took the 2 a.m. first call, and it gets written in the twenty minutes between a removal and a visitation. That is why so many funeral home postings read like a paragraph of duties with no license requirement, no schedule, and no pay. Candidates in this trade are scarce and they read carefully, because they are choosing whose name they will stand under. The fix is a fixed structure you reuse: firm story, call volume, license requirement, schedule and on-call reality, pay with the differential in dollars, and a named person to reply to. Write it once, keep it in a file, and change the details rather than starting over each time someone retires.
The next generation is not automatically the next director
Succession in this business used to be a given and now it is a plan. If a son or daughter is coming into the firm, the apprentice posting is still worth writing, because the state board does not care about the last name: registration, supervised hours, case counts, and the examination apply the same way. Writing the role down also protects everyone else on staff from guessing where they stand. If the next generation is not coming, you are hiring a licensed director from outside the family, and that person will ask about ownership, buy-in, and whether the sign on the building will ever include their name. Decide your answer before you post, because the question arrives in the first interview.
Licenses, training records, and clearances live in a filing cabinet and expire quietly
A funeral home carries more per-employee documentation than almost any business of its size: state license numbers and renewal dates, continuing education certificates, apprentice board registrations and case logs, bloodborne pathogens and formaldehyde training records, hepatitis B vaccination offers and declinations, motor vehicle record checks, background checks, and Funeral Rule training acknowledgments. When that lives in a drawer, the first time you notice a lapse is when someone asks for it. FirstHR was built for this: the onboarding wizard runs the same sequence for every hire, built-in e-signature handles acknowledgments and policy sign-offs, training modules deliver safety and rule orientation before the first call, and document management stores certificates against each employee profile with renewal dates attached. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR. Note that FirstHR is an onboarding and HR platform, not a payroll provider.
A funeral director job description has to state the state license requirement, the on-call rotation, the FLSA classification, and the pay including the differential; generic templates skip all four.
Nearly every state and the District of Columbia license funeral directors individually, typically requiring a minimum age of twenty-one, an accredited program, a board exam, and a supervised apprenticeship of one to three years.
Colorado, long the exception with no mandatory individual licensure, enacted a 2024 law creating license types for funeral directors and related occupations, with licensure required in 2027.
The Funeral Rule obligation follows whoever speaks with the family, so attendants and removal staff need training too, and price lists and itemized statements must be retained for at least one year.
National medians (BLS OEWS, May 2025) run $35,680 for funeral attendants to $78,790 for funeral home managers, with licensed directors at $55,010.
Attendants, removal technicians, and apprentices are non-exempt, and on-call time counts as hours worked when the employee is required to remain at the funeral home or is otherwise restricted enough to be working.
A funeral home carries license renewals, board registrations, safety training records, vaccination offers, and driving checks for every employee. FirstHR runs the same onboarding sequence for every hire, with e-signature for acknowledgments, training modules for rule and safety orientation, and document storage with renewal dates attached so nothing expires quietly. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should a funeral director job description include?
A funeral director job description should include nine things: the firm and its history in two sentences, annual call volume and the mix of burial, cremation, and pre-need, the specific duties from first call through aftercare, the state license requirement stated as required or license-eligible, the education and apprenticeship expectation, the driving and lifting requirements, the background check notice, the FLSA classification, and the pay with the on-call differential in dollars. The schedule deserves its own lines. Candidates in this trade already know the work; what they cannot know from the outside is how your on-call rotation runs, how time off gets covered, and whether license renewal and continuing education are paid. Say all of that in the posting rather than saving it for the second interview, because the strongest candidates are usually deciding between two family firms rather than between this job and a different career.
Do funeral directors need a state license?
Yes, in nearly every state and the District of Columbia, and the license belongs to the individual rather than to the funeral home. Requirements vary by board, but most ask applicants to be at least twenty-one, to complete an accredited funeral service or mortuary science education program, to pass a national and/or state board examination, and to serve a supervised internship or apprenticeship that commonly lasts one to three years. Most states also require continuing education for renewal, and practicing in more than one state generally means holding a license in each. Colorado was the long-standing exception with no individual licensure requirement; a 2024 law created license types for funeral directors, embalmers, cremationists, and related occupations, applications opened in 2025, and licensure becomes required in 2027. Confirm the license number and status directly with the state board before the start date rather than relying on a copy the candidate provides.
How much does a funeral director make?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025), the national median annual wage was $55,010 for morticians, undertakers, and funeral arrangers and $78,790 for funeral home managers. Embalmers had a median of $58,780, crematory operators $43,650, and funeral attendants $35,680, which works out to $17.16 an hour. Those medians reflect wage and salary employment nationally, so a rural single-location firm and a busy metropolitan firm will sit on opposite sides of them. Benchmark against comparable independent firms in your market, then price the parts of the job that are not base salary: the on-call differential, paid license renewal and continuing education, a vehicle or mileage, and how time off actually gets covered. In a trade where licensed candidates are scarce, those terms often decide the hire more than the salary line does.
Are funeral directors exempt from overtime?
Not automatically, and assuming they are is one of the most expensive mistakes a small funeral home makes. Attendants, removal technicians, apprentices, and most office employees are non-exempt: hourly and entitled to overtime past forty hours in a week. For a licensed director, the learned professional exemption requires both a primary duty in a field of science or learning customarily acquired through prolonged specialized instruction and a salary that clears the federal salary test plus any higher state threshold, so the analysis is fact-specific rather than automatic. On top of classification sits the hours problem. Department of Labor guidance treats an employee required to remain on call at the funeral home as working during that time, while an employee free to stay home and simply be reachable generally is not working, unless the constraints are heavy enough to change the answer. Write the on-call policy down and track actual call times.
What is the FTC Funeral Rule and how does it affect hiring?
The Funeral Rule is the Federal Trade Commission regulation at 16 CFR Part 453 that governs how funeral providers disclose prices. It requires you to give a General Price List to anyone who asks in person about funeral goods, services, or prices, to answer price questions by telephone without demanding a name or an in-person visit, to show a Casket Price List and an Outer Burial Container Price List before showing merchandise, and to provide an itemized Statement of Funeral Goods and Services Selected at the conclusion of the arrangements discussion. It also bars a casket handling fee for a casket bought elsewhere. The hiring consequence is that the obligation attaches to whoever is talking to the family, so an attendant or a removal driver can trigger it. Train every employee who might field a price question, document that training in onboarding, and retain price lists and statements for at least one year as the rule requires.
What is the difference between a funeral director and an embalmer?
A funeral director works with the living and an embalmer works in the preparation room, and in many states they are two separate licenses. The director takes the first call, conducts the arrangement conference, presents the required price lists, files the death certificate and permits, coordinates the cemetery or crematory, and directs the visitation and service. The embalmer performs embalming, restorative art, cosmetics, dressing, and casketing, and works under the federal formaldehyde and bloodborne pathogens standards. At a small family firm one person very often holds both licenses and does both jobs on the same day, which is why the dual-license template on this page exists. Write the posting for the license or licenses you actually need, because a candidate who holds only one will not apply to a posting that demands both, and you will never see the applicant you wanted.
How do I hire a funeral director for a family-owned funeral home?
Start with the license question, because it decides your candidate pool: licensed and local, licensed elsewhere and willing to seek reciprocity or endorsement, or license-eligible and finishing an apprenticeship. Post a specific description with call volume, schedule, on-call rotation, and pay including the differential. Screen for arrangement conference skill by asking candidates to walk you through a real one, and check references with a licensed manager who watched them work rather than an office contact. Verify the license number with the state board yourself. Then run onboarding as a sequence rather than a pile: signed offer, background and motor vehicle checks, board verification, Funeral Rule training, bloodborne pathogens and formaldehyde training, vaccination offer, handbook acknowledgment, and renewal dates recorded. FirstHR runs that sequence with e-signature, training modules, and document storage with expiry tracking. Applicant tracking is coming soon to FirstHR.
