A Reddit thread from earlier this week saw a user ask: "What are some lazy jobs that pay a ridiculous amount of money?" The responses ranged from blue-collar trades to federal government roles. A few answers even left commenters openly reconsidering their career paths!
The highest-voted responses fell into several distinct categories.
1) Railroad Engineers and Conductors
One of the most upvoted comments came from a user who identified as a train engineer, describing the job as "quite lazy" and stating that hourly pay is currently $68 with an increase to $75 expected by 2029.
A follow-up comment noted that railroad conductor roles can also be relaxed. To that, the engineer responded: "Conductor can be super lazy or super labor-intensive depending on location."
2) Members of Congress
With more than 14,000 upvotes, the top comment named U.S. senators and House members as holding one of the most lucrative low-effort roles in the country. Members of Congress are officially in session for around 88 days a year and get a base pay of $174,000 yearly.
The comment also mentioned congressional stock trading activities. Some commenters in the thread also brought up congressional stock trading as an additional perk, referencing ongoing controversy over trades made with access to sensitive information.
3) Fire Safety Directors
According to another commenter, high-rise building fire safety directors represent an overlooked but well-compensated role. The user stated that initial pay may vary from $70,000 to $150,000 to $200,000.
As opposed to doing hands-on labor every day, the job mainly requires one to be available in case of an emergency.
4) Cruise Ship Lecturers
A user who works as a lecturer on cruise ships called it "one of the best jobs I've ever had." According to the commenter, the role involves about three hours of work over the course of a two-week journey, during which the business pays for flights, lodging, meals, and any other expenses while the ship sails to other locations.
The user mentioned that they just gave a talk on the atomic bombing of Nagasaki while on a cruise in Japan. They have a Ph.D.
5) Wastewater Treatment Operators
A few users mentioned Wastewater treatment as an overlooked but profitable industry. One commenter who is going through operator training told us that they make $32 per hour while in training and expect to make about $105,000 annually after getting their license, after taking overtime and shift differentials into account.
The commenter acknowledged that the smell was the main drawback of the role. Although a four-year degree is not needed here, you will need a state certification.
6) Construction Project Managers and Consultants
A commenter who identified as a construction project manager said they earn more than $325,000 a year while working roughly three hours a day on well-run projects.
The majority of the work for clipboard-carrying site consultants (such as OSHA inspectors and military construction managers), this commenter said, is just walking around, taking notes, and occasionally filing a brief report. In fact, several users noted the same thing.
7) Hedge Fund Programmers
One user mentioned earning about $500,000 a year as a programmer at a hedge fund who created reports for top management. The user said, "We are talking pretty basic stuff," saying that the coding is not very difficult.
However, one Redditor who said they were an operations manager offered a pro tip. "The jobs you think are 'lazy' are actually people who have done hard things until they gathered the knowledge to move up."
