AI Automation Index

Will AI Replace Occupational Health and Safety Specialists?

Task-level automation exposure for Occupational Health and Safety Specialists: 22 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.

E-E-A-T Verified

Developed & audited by Gini Loh

Automation Exposure

39% weighted task index

22 of 22 tasks scored

Median Salary

$90,150 / year

BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation

Employment Level

High

140,610 people hold this job — size, not growth

Projected 2025–35

+18.5% employment change

17,100 openings a year · BLS line item

Pay by state

BLS OEWS publishes 53 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.

$45,630 – $111,530

Highest medians

District of Columbia $111,530

Massachusetts $103,970

Washington $102,920

California $102,840

Rhode Island $101,740

Lowest medians

Puerto Rico $45,630

Guam $68,030

Arkansas $73,130

Texas $79,660

Oklahoma $79,890

State figures come from the 19-5011 row in the May 2025 state panel. States where the estimate was suppressed or too small to publish are absent.

What the score is made of

Each task is mapped to its work activities, scored for AI automation potential, and weighted by how important those activities are to the job. These are the components.

Automation potential 39%

Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.

Physical work 12%

Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.

Judgment & influence 42%

Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.

Routine administration 10%

Share in documenting, recording, and administrative activities.

Rewritten by O*NET 0%

Share of weighted tasks O*NET rewrote in a recent update. Reported, not folded into the score.

Consequence of error 22/100 Low

O*NET's own rating of how serious an uncorrectable mistake would be here — respondents, not us. Deliberately not in the index: the score measures what AI can do with the task content, and multiplying it by stakes would be our judgment dressed as data.

Constituent Task Mix

22 tasks for this occupation, weighted by work-activity importance. Shares below are of total task weight, not task count.

High exposure (≥ 60% of the task is automatable) 18%

4 tasks

Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 36%

8 tasks

Low exposure (below 35%) 45%

10 tasks

How would you survive?

Move your week away from the high-exposure tasks and toward the ones that need judgment. The simulator recalculates the index as you shift the mix.

Simulate Upskilling →

Constituent Tasks

#11063 · Core · 55% automatable

Recommend measures to help protect workers from potentially hazardous work methods, processes, or materials.

decision support — Drafts guidance; community trust and liability human

Advise communities or institutions regarding health or safety issues.

#11066 · Core · 48% automatable

Develop or maintain hygiene programs, such as noise surveys, continuous atmosphere monitoring, ventilation surveys, or asbestos management plans.

decision support — Drafts health program design; implementation and buy-in human

Design public or employee health programs.

#11062 · Core · 10% automatable

Order suspension of activities that pose threats to workers' health or safety.

situated mobility — Physical presence maintaining safety in world

Maintain safety.

#11064 · Core · 30% automatable

Investigate accidents to identify causes or to determine how such accidents might be prevented in the future.

physical manipulation — Scene inspection and evidence gathering human

Investigate accidents to determine causes.

#11067 · Core · 22% automatable

Inspect or evaluate workplace environments, equipment, or practices to ensure compliance with safety standards and government regulations.

visual inspection — Workplace safety inspection needs on-site presence

Inspect work environments to ensure safety.

#11071 · Core · 8% automatable

Collect samples of dust, gases, vapors, or other potentially toxic materials for analysis.

physical manipulation — Physical sample collection

Collect samples for analysis or testing. Collect samples of raw materials or finished products.

#11068 · Core · 48% automatable

Collaborate with engineers or physicians to institute control or remedial measures for hazardous or potentially hazardous conditions or equipment.

interpersonal — Safety consultation involves accountability and human dialogue

Collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or provide treatment. Consult with others regarding safety or health equipment or facilities.

#11065 · Core · 22% automatable

Investigate the adequacy of ventilation, exhaust equipment, lighting, or other conditions that could affect employee health, comfort, or performance.

visual inspection — Workplace safety inspection needs on-site presence

Inspect work environments to ensure safety.

#11069 · Core · 45% automatable

Conduct safety training or education programs and demonstrate the use of safety equipment.

interpersonal — Safety training content aided, live delivery human

Conduct health or safety training programs.

#11072 · Core · 22% automatable

Investigate health-related complaints and inspect facilities to ensure that they comply with public health legislation and regulations.

physical manipulation — Environmental hazard testing needs on-site sampling

Test facilities for environmental hazards.

#23989 · Core · 75% automatable

Write reports.

text generation — Draft operational reports; human tailors and signs off

Write reports or evaluations. Write operational reports.

#11076 · Core · 22% automatable

Inspect specified areas to ensure the presence of fire prevention equipment, safety equipment, or first-aid supplies.

visual inspection — Workplace safety inspection needs on-site presence

Inspect work environments to ensure safety.

#11070 · Core · 60% automatable

Provide new-employee health and safety orientations and develop materials for these presentations.

text generation — Draft healthcare training; clinician reviews accuracy

Prepare healthcare training materials. Conduct health or safety training programs.

#21142 · Core · 63% automatable

Analyze incident data to identify trends in injuries, illnesses, accidents, or other hazards.

data analysis — Trend and relationship detection in data

Investigate safety of work environment. Analyze data to identify trends or relationships among variables. Analyze operational data to evaluate operations, processes or products.

#11074 · Core · 68% automatable

Maintain or update emergency response plans or procedures.

text generation — Procedures drafted; regulatory and site validation human

Develop emergency procedures.

#11073 · Core · 45% automatable

Coordinate "right-to-know" programs regarding hazardous chemicals or other substances.

interpersonal — Safety training content aided, live delivery human

Conduct health or safety training programs.

#11077 · Core · 26% automatable

Conduct audits at hazardous waste sites or industrial sites or participate in hazardous waste site investigations.

visual inspection — Hazardous waste handling oversight is physical and safety-critical

Monitor the handling of hazardous materials or medical wastes. Test facilities for environmental hazards.

#11075 · Core · 48% automatable

Develop or maintain medical monitoring programs for employees.

decision support — Drafts health program design; implementation and buy-in human

Design public or employee health programs.

#11078 · Core · 22% automatable

Collect samples of hazardous materials or arrange for sample collection.

physical manipulation — Environmental hazard testing needs on-site sampling

Test facilities for environmental hazards.

#11079 · Supplemental · 50% automatable

Maintain inventories of hazardous materials or hazardous wastes, using waste tracking systems to ensure that materials are handled properly.

data analysis — Medical supply inventory records and thresholds automatable

Monitor the handling of hazardous materials or medical wastes. Maintain inventory of medical supplies or equipment.

#11080 · Supplemental · 8% automatable

Prepare hazardous, radioactive, or mixed waste samples for transportation or storage by treating, compacting, packaging, and labeling them.

physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment

Prepare hazardous waste for processing or disposal. Package products for storage or shipment. Package materials for transport.

#11081 · Supplemental · 35% automatable

Perform laboratory analyses or physical inspections of samples to detect disease or to assess purity or cleanliness.

physical manipulation — Specimen analysis requires lab instruments and hands

Analyze laboratory specimens to detect abnormalities or other problems.

Embed this calculator on your site ↓

Bloggers & authors: Embed this interactive calculator directly in your articles or comparison guides. It loads dynamically via a responsive iframe (auto-resizing to prevent double scrollbars) and provides a direct, high-value tool for your audience.

<div class="giniloh-calculator-embed" data-calculator="occupational-health-and-safety-specialists"></div>
<script src="https://giniloh.com/embed.js" async></script>

Community Sentiment

Do you agree?

Do you agree with the AI automation risk score calculated for this occupation?

Method

How this was scored

1. Tasks. O*NET task statements for this occupation, from a release whose newest record is dated 08/2026.
2. Work activities. Each task maps to 1–5 Detailed Work Activities; each activity belongs to one of 41 Generalized Work Activities that O*NET rates for importance (1–5) in this occupation.
3. Automation potential. Every work activity carries one score for how far current AI can perform it end-to-end. Tasks inherit the mean of their activities.
4. Weighting. Task weight = 0.35 + 0.65 × (importance − 1)/4, scaled by how often the task is performed and by 0.7 for Supplemental tasks. Importance is the task's own O*NET rating where it exists (18,369 of 18,838 tasks); the rest inherit their work activities' importance. The index is the weighted mean.

Check: across the 910 occupations where O*NET also rates how far machine speed sets the pace, this index moves opposite to it (Spearman ρ = -0.49). The more a job is paced by equipment, the less of its task content AI can address — the relationship you would expect if the scoring is working.

Sources · O*NET 31.0 (task records to 08/2026) · BLS OEWS May 2025 · BLS projections 2025-2035 · rubric v2.1 · tasks for O*NET, not a forecast

See the full method →

Best AI Proof Jobs in a Changing Market

Worried robots are coming for your paycheck? You’re not alone—but the real story is far more hopeful. This guide cuts through the scare headlines to reveal exactly where smart, sustainable career opportunities exist right now. We’ve curated a list of true ai proof jobs—roles in healthcare, skilled trades, and cybersecurity that not only survive automation but thrive because of human judgment and empathy. You’ll get specific, money-making data on projected growth (the BLS says wind turbine technicians, for instance, will grow 44% by 2032), real salary ranges from active job listings, and a simple self-assessment quiz to identify your own most resilient path. Plus, we name companies hiring today and the niche job boards they use. Stop worrying and start planning—your secure career is closer than you think.

Read Article ->