AI exposure Production
Will AI replace pressers?
Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials. US occupation 51-6021.
The reading
0.0%
of the time pressers spend on their work goes on tasks where AI is already being used to do that work.of pressers' 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.
Per cent of working time Square-law scale
Average US job 7.7%
Among the least exposed jobs there are.Still waiting for liberation.
What AI already does for pressersWhat pressers no longer do alone
O*NET lists 28 tasks for pressers. None of them shows meaningful AI use at work yet.
What it does not touch, yetWhat still needs a human
28 of the 28 tasks show no AI use at work in the data.
- Activate and adjust machine controls to regulate temperature and pressure of rollers, ironing shoes, or plates, according to specifications.Core task
- Block or shape knitted garments after cleaning.Core task
- Clean and maintain pressing machines, using cleaning solutions and lubricants.Core task
- Finish fancy garments such as evening gowns and costumes, using hand irons to produce high quality finishes.Core task
- Finish pants, jackets, shirts, skirts and other dry-cleaned and laundered articles, using hand irons.Core task
- Finish pleated garments, determining sizes of pleats from evidence of old pleats or from work orders, using machine presses or hand irons.Core task
Show the other 22
- Hang, fold, package, and tag finished articles for delivery to customers.Core task
- Identify and treat spots on garments.Core task
- Lower irons, rams, or pressing heads of machines into position over material to be pressed.Core task
- Moisten materials to soften and smooth them.Core task
- Operate steam, hydraulic, or other pressing machines to remove wrinkles from garments and flatwork items, or to shape, form, or patch articles.Core task
- Position materials such as cloth garments, felt, or straw on tables, dies, or feeding mechanisms of pressing machines, or on ironing boards or work tables.Core task
- Press ties on small pressing machines.Core task
- Push and pull irons over surfaces of articles to smooth or shape them.Core task
- Remove finished pieces from pressing machines and hang or stack them for cooling, or forward them for additional processing.Core task
- Select appropriate pressing machines, based on garment properties such as heat tolerance.Core task
- Shrink, stretch, or block articles by hand to conform to original measurements, using forms, blocks, and steam.Core task
- Slide material back and forth over heated, metal, ball-shaped forms to smooth and press portions of garments that cannot be satisfactorily pressed with flat pressers or hand irons.Core task
- Spray water over fabric to soften fibers when not using steam irons.Core task
- Straighten, smooth, or shape materials to prepare them for pressing.Core task
- Brush materials made of suede, leather, or felt to remove spots or to raise and smooth naps.
- Examine and measure finished articles to verify conformance to standards, using measuring devices such as tape measures and micrometers.
- Finish velvet garments by steaming them on bucks of hot-head presses or steam tables, and brushing pile (nap) with handbrushes.
- Insert heated metal forms into ties and touch up rough places with hand irons.
- Measure fabric to specifications, cut uneven edges with shears, fold material, and press it with an iron to form a heading.
- Select, install, and adjust machine components, including pressing forms, rollers, and guides, using hoists and hand tools.
- Sew ends of new material to leaders or to ends of material in pressing machines, using sewing machines.
- Use covering cloths to prevent equipment from damaging delicate fabrics.
How that compares
Among the 98 production occupations, pressers rank 76. The group averages 0.8%, and its most exposed job is Computer Numerically Controlled Tool Programmers at 12.1%. The average US occupation sits at 7.7%.
Level with 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.