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AI exposure Construction and extraction

Will AI replace structural iron and steel workers?

Structural Iron and Steel Workers. US occupation 47-2221.

4.9%

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

Ranked 252 of 756 US occupations. More exposed than 66% of them.Further along than 66% of them.

Average US job 7.7%

Around the middle of the pack.Keeping pace with the average job.

What AI already does for structural iron and steel workersWhat structural iron and steel workers no longer do alone

O*NET lists 18 tasks for structural iron and steel workers. AI use at work shows up in 1 of them. Each score runs from 0.5, where every observed use helps a person with the task, to 1, where every use does the task outright.

  1. Read specifications or blueprints to determine the locations, quantities, or sizes of materials required.Core task mostly automated 0.88

What it does not touch, yetWhat still needs a human

17 of the 18 tasks show no AI use at work in the data.

  • Bolt aligned structural steel members in position for permanent riveting, bolting, or welding into place.Core task
  • Connect columns, beams, and girders with bolts, following blueprints and instructions from supervisors.Core task
  • Cut, bend, or weld steel pieces, using metal shears, torches, or welding equipment.Core task
  • Dismantle structures or equipment.Core task
  • Drive drift pins through rivet holes to align rivet holes in structural steel members with corresponding holes in previously placed members.Core task
  • Erect metal or precast concrete components for structures, such as buildings, bridges, dams, towers, storage tanks, fences, or highway guard rails.Core task
Show the other 11
  • Fabricate metal parts, such as steel frames, columns, beams, or girders, according to blueprints or instructions from supervisors.Core task
  • Fasten structural steel members to hoist cables, using chains, cables, or rope.Core task
  • Force structural steel members into final positions, using turnbuckles, crowbars, jacks, or hand tools.Core task
  • Pull, push, or pry structural steel members into approximate positions for bolting into place.Core task
  • Ride on girders or other structural steel members to position them, or use rope to guide them into position.Core task
  • Unload and position prefabricated steel units for hoisting, as needed.Core task
  • Verify vertical and horizontal alignment of structural steel members, using plumb bobs, laser equipment, transits, or levels.Core task
  • Catch hot rivets in buckets and insert rivets in holes, using tongs.
  • Hold rivets while riveters use air hammers to form heads on rivets.
  • Insert sealing strips, wiring, insulating material, ladders, flanges, gauges, or valves, depending on types of structures being assembled.
  • Place blocks under reinforcing bars used to reinforce floors.

How that compares

Among the 56 construction and extraction occupations, structural iron and steel workers rank 1. The group averages 0.4%. The average US occupation sits at 7.7%.

All 756 occupations, ranked

Just above in the ranking

  1. 250Soil and Plant Scientists 5.1%
  2. 252Aircraft Structure, Surfaces, Rigging, and Systems Assemblers 4.9%
  3. 252Payroll and Timekeeping Clerks 4.9%

Just below

  1. 255Airfield Operations Specialists 4.8%
  2. 255Construction and Building Inspectors 4.8%
  3. 255Medical Assistants 4.8%

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.