Compare Occupations

	Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders	Industrial Machinery Mechanics	First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers	Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians	Maintenance Workers, Machinery	Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
SUMMARY	81% Imminent Risk	41% Moderate Risk	38% Low Risk	30% Low Risk	53% Moderate Risk	71% High Risk
JOB SCORE	3.1/10	6.4/10	5.2/10	5.0/10	4.0/10	2.9/10
POLLING	91% (Imminent Risk, Based on 26 votes)	36% (Low Risk, Based on 66 votes)	54% (Moderate Risk, Based on 29 votes)	41% (Moderate Risk, Based on 35 votes)	38% (Low Risk, Based on 94 votes)	70% (High Risk, Based on 103 votes)
GROWTH by year 2034	4.5%	16.1%	1.2%	1.7%	-2.8%	1.1%
WAGES	$40,900 or $19.66 per hour	$63,760 or $30.65 per hour	$71,190 or $34.22 per hour	$64,790 or $31.15 per hour	$60,500 or $29.08 per hour	$46,390 or $22.30 per hour
VOLUME as of 2024	383,860	421,940	685,140	73,410	56,540	805,770
SNOWFLAKE [?] The Snowflake is a visual summary of the five badges: Automation Risk (calculated), Risk (polled), Growth, Wages and Volume. It gives you an instant snapshot of an occupations profile. The colour of the Snowflake relates to its size. The better the occupation scores in relation to others, the larger and greener the Snowflake becomes.
DESCRIPTION	Operate or tend machines to prepare industrial or consumer products for storage or shipment. Includes cannery workers who pack food products.	Repair, install, adjust, or maintain industrial production and processing machinery or refinery and pipeline distribution systems. May also install, dismantle, or move machinery and heavy equipment according to plans.	Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of production and operating workers, such as inspectors, precision workers, machine setters and operators, assemblers, fabricators, and plant and system operators. Excludes team or work leaders.	Apply engineering theory and principles to problems of industrial layout or manufacturing production, usually under the direction of engineering staff. May perform time and motion studies on worker operations in a variety of industries for purposes such as establishing standard production rates or improving efficiency.	Lubricate machinery, change parts, or perform other routine machinery maintenance.	Operate industrial trucks or tractors equipped to move materials around a warehouse, storage yard, factory, construction site, or similar location.

Compare Occupations Side by Side

Curious how automation and AI could affect your career? Our comparison tool lets you view two or more jobs side by side, helping you quickly spot differences in risk level, pay, growth, and popularity. All of this is based on a mix of academic research, user polling, and official labour data.

Automation Risk

Each occupation shows a probability of automation. A higher score means machines and algorithms are more likely to take over the role in the future.

Job Score

A quick summary of how a job performs overall — factoring in wages, growth, volume, and automation risk. It’s a handy way to see the bigger picture at a glance.

Polling Data

Thousands of visitors cast their votes on how “automatable” each job feels. These community insights are shown alongside the calculated probabilities.

Growth & Wages

See how fast each occupation is projected to grow and what people earn on average. High wages don’t always mean high security — automation risk still matters.

Volume of Workers

Explore how many people currently work in each occupation and in which year the data was recorded. Popularity can affect how disruptive automation will be for the wider economy.

The Snowflake Diagram

Each snowflake visualises the balance between automation risk, wages, growth, and job volume. Bigger and greener areas mean stronger performance in that dimension.

Use this comparison page to research careers, guide students, or simply explore the future of work. All data is regularly updated to keep the results relevant.