AI Automation Index

Will AI Replace Security Guards?

Task-level automation exposure for Security Guards: 14 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.

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Developed & audited by Gini Loh

Automation Exposure

27% weighted task index

14 of 14 tasks scored

Median Salary

$38,020 / year

BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation

Employment Level

Very High

1,283,470 people hold this job — size, not growth

Projected 2025–35

+0.9% employment change

156,000 openings a year · BLS line item

Pay by state

BLS OEWS publishes 54 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.

$21,840 – $64,210

Highest medians

District of Columbia $64,210

Alaska $47,480

Washington $47,100

Vermont $45,550

Oregon $45,500

Lowest medians

Puerto Rico $21,840

Guam $22,090

West Virginia $28,800

Mississippi $29,180

Virgin Islands $31,990

State figures come from the 33-9032 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 27%

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

Physical work 56%

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

Judgment & influence 14%

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

Routine administration 8%

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 0/100 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

14 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) 16%

2 tasks

Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 6%

1 tasks

Low exposure (below 35%) 78%

11 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

#20894 · Core · 6% automatable

Lock doors and gates of entrances and exits to secure buildings.

physical manipulation — Physically blocking access to areas

Block physical access to restricted areas.

#2131 · Core · 15% automatable

Patrol industrial or commercial premises to prevent and detect signs of intrusion and ensure security of doors, windows, and gates.

situated mobility — Patrolling properties is embodied mobile work

Patrol properties to maintain safety.

#20895 · Core · 5% automatable

Respond to medical emergencies by administering basic first aid or by obtaining assistance from paramedics.

physical manipulation — First aid and rescue are hands-on emergency actions

Provide first aid or rescue assistance in emergencies.

#2132 · Core · 20% automatable

Answer alarms and investigate disturbances.

decision support — Investigation is human fieldwork with judgment

Investigate illegal or suspicious activities. Respond to emergencies to provide assistance.

#2136 · Core · 5% automatable

Circulate among visitors, patrons, or employees to preserve order and protect property.

situated mobility — Physical presence maintaining public order

Maintain public order or security.

#2133 · Core · 23% automatable

Monitor and authorize entrance and departure of employees, visitors, and other persons to guard against theft and maintain security of premises.

situated mobility — Managing physical flow of people needs on-site presence

Monitor access or flow of people to prevent problems. Prevent unauthorized individuals from entering restricted areas.

#2134 · Core · 78% automatable

Write reports of daily activities and irregularities, such as equipment or property damage, theft, presence of unauthorized persons, or unusual occurrences.

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

Write operational reports.

#2138 · Core · 27% automatable

Warn persons of rule infractions or violations, and apprehend or evict violators from premises, using force when necessary.

interpersonal — Warning individuals is live, relational, accountable

Use weapons or physical force to maintain security. Warn individuals about rule violations or safety concerns.

#2137 · Core · 72% automatable

Answer telephone calls to take messages, answer questions, and provide information during non-business hours or when switchboard is closed.

interpersonal — Call routing automatable; nuanced calls need human

Answer telephones to direct calls or provide information.

#2135 · Core · 55% automatable

Call police or fire departments in cases of emergency, such as fire or presence of unauthorized persons.

interpersonal — Emergency request requires live accountable action

Request emergency personnel.

#2139 · Core · 25% automatable

Operate detecting devices to screen individuals and prevent passage of prohibited articles into restricted areas.

visual inspection — Surveillance monitoring partly AI, physical setup human

Operate surveillance equipment to detect suspicious or illegal activities.

#2141 · Core · 23% automatable

Inspect and adjust security systems, equipment, or machinery to ensure operational use and to detect evidence of tampering.

visual inspection — Surveillance monitoring partly AI, physical setup human

Inspect equipment to ensure safety or proper functioning. Operate surveillance equipment to detect suspicious or illegal activities.

#2140 · Core · 10% automatable

Escort or drive motor vehicle to transport individuals to specified locations or to provide personal protection.

situated mobility — Driving vehicles to transport people/equipment

Drive vehicles to transport individuals or equipment.

#2143 · Supplemental · 20% automatable

Monitor and adjust controls that regulate building systems, such as air conditioning, furnace, or boiler.

physical manipulation — Physical HVAC control adjustment; some BMS automation

Adjust building climate control systems.

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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 →

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