Here Are the Jobs Most Likely to Be Replaced by Robots, and Those That Are Safe A new study looks at which occupations and which regions could be most impacted.
By Nina Zipkin
The question of the role of robotics and automation in our everyday lives is one that looms large over conversations about what the workplaces and economies of the future will look like. As technology has become embedded into our lives, it's not so much a question of if it will affect the kinds of jobs people hold, but when, where and how.
A group of researchers from Ball State University in Muncie, Ind., conducted a study to better understand which U.S. industries and regions are most susceptible to change driven by automation. They also explored why the subject is such a fraught, hot-button policy issue.
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"Since 2000, manufacturing production in the U.S. has risen more than 10 percent in inflation-adjusted terms, while manufacturing employment has declined by almost 5.5 million jobs," the researchers noted. "Though automation and trade alone do not account for many of the changes that occurred across regions of the United States, the fortunes of manufacturing have special resonance for several reasons. First, manufacturing tends to be highly geographically concentrated, with job losses focused by location and industry. Second, manufacturing jobs have been a source of middle-class wages throughout the middle part of the 20th Century."
The study looked at the top 25 areas that would be most affected by automation. They were highly concentrated in very specific parts of the country -- two counties in Alaska, five in Georgia, three in Virginia, two in Mississippi, two in South Carolina, one in North Carolina, four in Alabama, four in Indiana and one in Kentucky.
The researchers also did a breakdown of which jobs and which regions are most likely to be affected by automation.
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alexisdc | Getty ImagesNot safe: Data entry keyers
Number of employees: 2,168,000
Annual income: $29,460
Hill Street Studios/Tobin Rogers | Getty ImagesNot safe: Mathematical science occupations, all other
Number of employees: 18,000
Annual income: $66,210
Paul Bradbury | Getty ImagesNot safe: Telemarketers
Number of employees: 2,379,000
Annual income: $23,530
PhotoAlto/Eric Audras | Getty ImagesNot safe: Insurance underwriters
Number of employees: 1,034,000
Annual income: $65,040
Westend61 | Getty ImagesNot safe: Mathematical technicians
Number of employees: 12,000
Annual income: $46,600
Thomas Northcut | Getty ImagesNot safe: Sewers, hand
Number of employees: 12,000
Annual income: $23,640
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Number of employees: 904,000
Annual income: $36,450
Boston Globe | Getty ImagesNot safe: Photographic process workers and processing machine operator
Number of employees: 288,000
Annual income: $26,590
Hill Street Studios | Getty ImagesNot safe: Library technicians
Number of employees: 1,018,000
Annual income: $32,310
Rudenkoi | Getty ImagesNot safe: Watch repairers
Number of employees: 27,000
Annual income: $34,750
GettySafe: Recreational therapists
Number of employees: 186,000
Annual income: $45,890
Anadolu Agency | Getty ImagesSafe: Emergency management directors
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Annual income: $67,330
PeopleImages | Getty ImagesSafe: First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
Number of employees: 4,471,000
Annual income: $63,010
Sneksy | Getty ImagesSafe: Mental health and substance abuse social workers
Number of employees: 1,178,000
Annual income: $42,170
monkeybusinessimages | Getty ImagesSafe: Audiologists
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Annual income: $74,890
FatCamera | Getty ImagesSafe: Occupational therapists
Number of employees: 1,146,000
Annual income: $80,150
fotografixx | Getty ImagesSafe: Healthcare social workers
Number of employees: 1,601,000
Annual income: $52,380
Westend61 | Getty ImagesSafe: Orthotrists and prosthetists
Number of employees: 83,000
Annual income: $64,430
Hero Images | Getty ImagesSafe: Health technologists and technicians, all other
Number of employees: 1,022,000
Annual income: $41,260
Hoxton/Tom Merton | Getty ImagesSafe: Hearing aid specialists
Number of employees: 59,000
Annual income: $49,600
