Compare Occupations

	Recycling and Reclamation Workers	Hazardous Materials Removal Workers	Environmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health	First-Line Supervisors of Helpers, Laborers, and Material Movers, Hand	Recycling Coordinators	Environmental Compliance Inspectors
SUMMARY	77% High Risk	28% Low Risk	24% Low Risk	45% Moderate Risk	35% Low Risk	24% Low Risk
JOB SCORE	3.4/10	3.8/10	5.1/10	5.4/10	5.4/10	6.0/10
POLLING	There hasn't been enough votes on this occupation yet	58% (Moderate Risk, Based on 16 votes)	There hasn't been enough votes on this occupation yet	There hasn't been enough votes on this occupation yet	There hasn't been enough votes on this occupation yet	There hasn't been enough votes on this occupation yet
GROWTH by year 2034	1.5%	1.0%	4.0%	3.7%	3.7%	3.0%
WAGES	$38,940 or $18.72 per hour	$48,490 or $23.31 per hour	$49,490 or $23.79 per hour	$61,890 or $29.75 per hour	$61,890 or $29.75 per hour	$78,420 or $37.70 per hour
VOLUME as of 2024	2,982,530	50,570	39,390	605,510	605,510	397,770
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	Prepare and sort materials or products for recycling. Identify and remove hazardous substances. Dismantle components of products such as appliances.	Identify, remove, pack, transport, or dispose of hazardous materials, including asbestos, lead-based paint, waste oil, fuel, transmission fluid, radioactive materials, or contaminated soil. Specialized training and certification in hazardous materials handling or a confined entry permit are generally required. May operate earth-moving equipment or trucks.	Perform laboratory and field tests to monitor the environment and investigate sources of pollution, including those that affect health, under the direction of an environmental scientist, engineer, or other specialist. May collect samples of gases, soil, water, and other materials for testing.	Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of helpers, laborers, or material movers, hand.	Supervise curbside and drop-off recycling programs for municipal governments or private firms.	Inspect and investigate sources of pollution to protect the public and environment and ensure conformance with Federal, State, and local regulations and ordinances.

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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

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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.