People Team AI Ask about a date

How exposed to AI is a Recycling and Reclamation Worker?

Of the 18 tasks O*NET lists for recycling and reclamation workers, 0 could be done in half the time with a chat window today. 17 cannot be sped up at all. Here is which.

Exposure means published research judged an AI could halve the time a task takes, at the same quality. It does not mean the task stops needing a person. How to read this

Also called
Bobcat DriverBox SorterConvenience Recycle Center Technician (Convenience Recycle Center Tech)Deconstruction and Decontamination Waste Operations Specialist (D and D Waste Operations Specialist)Non-Ferrous Material HandlerSort Line WorkerSorterTransfer Station Operator
Reachable today Needs software built first Cannot be sped up
18
tasks rated for this occupation
8%
hold a degree, from a survey of 20
2729k
people do this job in the US
47 of 52
least protected in transport

Every task, and what AI can do with it

These are O*NET's task statements for this occupation, exactly as written, sorted into the three bands by the ratings behind this report. Nothing has been reworded.

Only with software built on top

1
  • Record logs of recycled materials or waste chemicals removed from products

Cannot be sped up

17
  • Sort materials, such as metals, glass, wood, paper or plastics, into appropriate containers for recycling
  • Clean recycling yard by sweeping, raking, picking up broken glass and loose paper debris, or moving barrels and bins
  • Operate forklifts, pallet jacks, power lifts, or front-end loaders to load bales, bundles, or other heavy items onto trucks for shipping to smelters or other recycled materials processing facilities
  • Sort metals to separate high-grade metals, such as copper, brass, and aluminum, for recycling
  • Clean, inspect, or lubricate recyclable collection equipment or perform routine maintenance or minor repairs on recycling equipment, such as star gears, finger sorters, destoners, belts, and grinders
  • Operate shredders to reclaim steel from discarded appliances
  • Collect and sort recyclable construction materials, such as concrete, drywall, plastics, or wood, into containers
  • Extract chemicals from discarded appliances, such as air conditioners or refrigerators, using specialized machinery, such as refrigerant recovery equipment
  • Deposit recoverable materials into chutes or place materials on conveyor belts
  • Operate balers to compress recyclable materials into bundles or bales
  • Clean materials, such as metals, according to recycling requirements
  • Dismantle wrecked vehicles by removing parts and labeling and sorting parts into containers
  • Operate processing equipment, such as fiber-sorters and grinders, to sort, crush, or grind recyclable materials
  • Cut discarded products, such as appliances and automobiles, into small pieces using saws, blow torches, or other hand or power tools
  • Collect recyclable materials from curbside for delivery to designated facilities
  • Operate automated refuse or manual recycling collection vehicles
  • Remove copper from circuit boards
What this does not say

This is not a prediction about your job

Nobody surveyed an employer. Tasks are counted equally, so a percentage here is a share of the list rather than a share of your week. And the ratings were made in 2023, which makes every figure a floor rather than a ceiling.

It must never be used to select anyone for redundancy. The full limits are here.

Where to go next

This is the standard task list for the title. The useful next question is which of the tasks you actually do should go near AI, and which should not.

Sort your own tasks Read the full report

Exposure ratings from Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock, GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs, Science 384, 1306–1308, 2024, used under the MIT licence. This page includes information from the O*NET Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. People Team AI has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. Employment figures from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.