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AI Automation Index
Will AI Replace Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders?
Task-level automation exposure for Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders: 20 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.
E-E-A-T Verified
Developed & audited by Gini Loh Automation Exposure
17%
weighted task index
20 of 20 tasks scored
Median Salary
$43,220 / year
BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation
Employment Level
Very High
379,060 people hold this job — size, not growth
Projected 2025–35
+4.1%
employment change
41,400 openings a year · BLS line item
Pay by state
BLS OEWS publishes 51 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.
$27,970 – $49,450
Highest medians
New Hampshire $49,450
Wyoming $48,890
Missouri $48,070
Maine $47,970
North Dakota $47,390
Lowest medians
Puerto Rico $27,970
New Mexico $35,640
Hawaii $36,810
Florida $37,170
Nevada $37,440
State figures come from the 51-9111 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 17%
Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.
Physical work 69%
Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.
Judgment & influence 10%
Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.
Routine administration 5%
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
20 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) 0%
0 tasks
Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 20%
4 tasks
Low exposure (below 35%) 80%
16 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
#3142 · Core · 12% automatable
Attach identification labels to finished packaged items, or cut stencils and stencil information on containers, such as lot numbers or shipping destinations.
physical manipulation — Marking workpieces is hands-on physical task
Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information.
#3134 · Core · 20% automatable
Sort, grade, weigh, and inspect products, verifying and adjusting product weight or measurement to meet specifications.
physical manipulation — Hands-on dimensional measurement of workpieces
Weigh finished products. Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications. Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading.
#3129 · Core · 40% automatable
Stop or reset machines when malfunctions occur, clear machine jams, and report malfunctions to a supervisor.
text generation — Notifying maintenance needs is routine messaging
Clear equipment jams. Notify others of equipment repair or maintenance needs.
#3124 · Core · 25% automatable
Observe machine operations to ensure quality and conformity of filled or packaged products to standards.
visual inspection — Physical product flaw monitoring is on-machine
Monitor equipment operation to ensure that products are not flawed.
#3127 · Core · 6% automatable
Remove finished packaged items from machine and separate rejected items.
physical manipulation — Physically extracting parts from production equipment
Remove products or workpieces from production equipment.
#3136 · Core · 38% automatable
Monitor the production line, watching for problems such as pile-ups, jams, or glue that isn't sticking properly.
visual inspection — Malfunction detection relies on live physical observation
Watch operating equipment to detect malfunctions.
#3132 · Core · 6% automatable
Inspect and remove defective products and packaging material.
physical manipulation — Physically extracting parts from production equipment
Remove products or workpieces from production equipment.
#3138 · Core · 10% automatable
Start machine by engaging controls.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Package products for storage or shipment.
#3126 · Core · 10% automatable
Tend or operate machine that packages product.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Package products for storage or shipment.
#3135 · Core · 8% automatable
Clean, oil, and make minor adjustments or repairs to machinery and equipment, such as opening valves or setting guides.
physical manipulation — Hands-on repair of production machinery
Clean production equipment. Repair production equipment or tools. Lubricate production equipment.
#3128 · Core · 18% automatable
Regulate machine flow, speed, or temperature.
physical manipulation — Manual temperature control adjustment
Adjust temperature controls of ovens or other heating equipment.
#3125 · Core · 10% automatable
Adjust machine components and machine tension and pressure according to size or processing angle of product.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Package products for storage or shipment.
#3141 · Core · 5% automatable
Supply materials to spindles, conveyors, hoppers, or other feeding devices and unload packaged product.
physical manipulation — Feeding materials into equipment is physical
Feed materials or products into or through equipment.
#3137 · Core · 7% automatable
Stack finished packaged items, or wrap protective material around each item, and pack the items in cartons or containers.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Stack finished items for further processing or shipment. Package products for storage or shipment.
#3140 · Core · 10% automatable
Package the product in the form in which it will be sent out, for example, filling bags with flour from a chute or spout.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Package products for storage or shipment.
#3131 · Core · 40% automatable
Stock and sort product for packaging or filling machine operation, and replenish packaging supplies, such as wrapping paper, plastic sheet, boxes, cartons, glue, ink, or labels.
data analysis — Materials inventory records and forecasting automatable
Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading. Maintain inventories of materials, equipment, or products.
#3139 · Core · 56% automatable
Count and record finished and rejected packaged items.
data analysis — Record production data into structured logs
Count finished products or workpieces. Record operational or production data.
#3143 · Core · 10% automatable
Clean packaging containers, line and pad crates, or assemble cartons to prepare for product packing.
physical manipulation — Physical preparation of materials by hand
Prepare materials for processing.
#3130 · Core · 7% automatable
Secure finished packaged items by hand tying, sewing, gluing, stapling, or attaching fastener.
physical manipulation — Physically packaging products for shipment
Sew clothing or other articles. Package products for storage or shipment.
#3133 · Core · 8% automatable
Clean and remove damaged or otherwise inferior materials to prepare raw products for processing.
physical manipulation — Manual cleaning of materials for production
Clean materials to prepare them for production.
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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
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