← All 785 jobsFile 51-9011
Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 3.6% more of these jobs by 2035, faster than the 3.5% average.
- Rank
- Joint #651 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- +3.6% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $58,040 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 140,800 in the US, with about 13,900 openings a year
The work, 21 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
Still yours: Operate industrial processing or production equipment10%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Monitor equipment operation10%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas9%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Maintain safety or security5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,066 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
Still yours: Maintain operational records5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 510 conversations, and it got them there 94% of the time.
Still yours: Collect samples of products or materials5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Operate pumping systems or equipment5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Test characteristics of materials or products5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Read documents or materials to inform work processes4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 214 Copilot conversations and completed it 87% of the time.
Still yours: Notify others of emergencies or problems4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,656 conversations, and it got them there 84% of the time.
AI helps with this: Prepare mixtures or solutions4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 714 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
AI helps with this: Determine resource needs of projects or operations3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,590 conversations, and it got them there 92% of the time.
Still yours: Load products, materials, or equipment for transportation or further processing3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,462 conversations, and it got them there 90% of the time.
Still yours: Maintain tools or equipment2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Repair tools or equipment2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or products2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 104 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
About 13,900 openings a year, from growth and from people who retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
The jobs closest to this one. None of them is much less exposed.
- Shares 64% of the workCleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders0% AI does, against 4% here+3.4% by 2035 · $43,530 · High school diploma
- Shares 63% of the workMixing and Blending Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders6% AI does, against 4% here-6.1% by 2035 · $48,990 · High school diploma
- Shares 62% of the workChemical Plant and System Operators0% AI does, against 4% here-5.2% by 2035 · $78,120 · High school diploma
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.09, higher than 30% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 51-9011 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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