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AI exposure Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance

Will AI replace pesticide handlers?

Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation. US occupation 37-3012.

0.0%

of the time pesticide handlers spend on their work goes on tasks where AI is already being used to do that work.of pesticide handlers' working hours go on tasks AI has already started taking off their plate.

Ranked 346 of 756 US occupations. No AI use seen in the work yet, along with 410 other occupations.No handover started yet, along with 410 other occupations.

Average US job 7.7%

Among the least exposed jobs there are.Still waiting for liberation.

What AI already does for pesticide handlersWhat pesticide handlers no longer do alone

O*NET lists 10 tasks for pesticide handlers. None of them shows meaningful AI use at work yet.

What it does not touch, yetWhat still needs a human

10 of the 10 tasks show no AI use at work in the data.

  • Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools.Core task
  • Connect hoses and nozzles selected according to terrain, distribution pattern requirements, types of infestations, and velocities.Core task
  • Cover areas to specified depths with pesticides, applying knowledge of weather conditions, droplet sizes, elevation-to-distance ratios, and obstructions.Core task
  • Fill sprayer tanks with water and chemicals, according to formulas.Core task
  • Lift, push, and swing nozzles, hoses, and tubes to direct spray over designated areas.Core task
  • Mix pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides for application to trees, shrubs, lawns, or botanical crops.Core task
Show the other 4
  • Start motors and engage machinery, such as sprayer agitators or pumps or portable spray equipment.Core task
  • Identify lawn or plant diseases to determine the appropriate course of treatment.
  • Plant grass with seed spreaders, and operate straw blowers to cover seeded areas with mixtures of asphalt and straw.
  • Provide driving instructions to truck drivers to ensure complete coverage of designated areas, using hand and horn signals.

How that compares

Among the 8 building and grounds cleaning and maintenance occupations, pesticide handlers rank 7. The group averages 2.5%, and its most exposed job is First-Line Supervisors of Landscaping, Lawn Service, and Groundskeeping Workers at 10.8%. The average US occupation sits at 7.7%.

All 756 occupations, ranked

Level with 0.0%

  1. 346Paving, Surfacing, and Tamping Equipment Operators 0.0%
  2. 346Pediatric Surgeons 0.0%
  3. 346Pediatricians, General 0.0%

What this does and does not mean

Exposure is observed use, not a forecast. Anthropic maps work conversations with Claude onto the tasks O*NET lists for each job and asks, of the tasks AI could speed up, which are actually being used for at work. A use that does the task outright counts in full and a use that assists a person counts half. The task scores are averaged into the occupation figure by the share of time spent on each task.

A high figure means AI is already part of how this work gets done. It does not mean anyone has been replaced. Anthropic's own reading of the labour market finds no systematic rise in unemployment among exposed workers so far, and about 14% fewer 22 to 25 year olds starting exposed jobs.No measurable rise in unemployment among exposed workers so far, and about 14% fewer 22 to 25 year olds starting these jobs. Gap years for everyone. Labor market impacts, 5 March 2026.

Task list and titles from O*NET 31.0 by the US Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. Scores from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY). Checked 1 November 2026. How the ranking works.