Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse
SOC Code: 45-2092
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse carries a 16% AI exposure score (Low automation risk), with a median annual wage of $35,690 and -3.3% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 504,800 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 16% AI exposure, Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse sits 21 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 3% of them. It ranks among the more AI-resilient roles in the dataset.
Career outlook score
38/100
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse, weighted across 3 of 3 tracked dimensions
A weighted composite of median wage, projected growth, and AI-automation security (inverted exposure), each benchmarked against every other tracked occupation. It describes this occupation's standing across those three dimensions, not a guarantee of future outcomes.
- Median wage F $35,690
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth F -3.3%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) A+ 16% exposure
Lower O*NET task-automability scores lower risk; this dimension scores security, not exposure
Home health and personal care aides is #1 of 832 occupations by employment (4.3M, AI exposure rank #392 at 35%) vs. Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks #1 by AI task exposure (95%, employment rank #17 at 1.6M).
Automation-risk inventory
Exclusive cut of 832 occupations by PlainWorkforce automation-risk band. Orthogonal to the continuous AI-exposure distribution chart below and to this occupation's single risk badge, this is the corpus band mix, with Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse in the Low band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse keeps an No credential bar (109 of 832) and sits in Slow growth (245 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
16% Among the lowest lower than 97% of 832 occupations
Occupations, banded by AI-exposure score
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more occupations. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor) · BLS 2024–2034
Source: O*NET task data (U.S. Department of Labor); AI-exposure scores are PlainWorkforce's analysis. As of BLS 2024–2034.
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse is marked in rose; the top-left corner is the most future-proof.
Source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 (growth) and O*NET (AI-exposure analysis by PlainWorkforce).
Employment Projections
Where This Score Comes From
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse's Low automation-risk tier is computed from O*NET Database 30.0 task-level analysis, where each documented task the occupation performs is evaluated against current generative AI, robotic process automation, and machine-learning capabilities. A score below 40% reflects tasks anchored in physical dexterity, unstructured environments, or high-touch human interaction that current AI cannot reliably replicate.
The employment, wage, and education figures above come from a second, separate federal source: BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034, matched to the O*NET task data by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC 45-2092) code, with the wage figure cross-validated against the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 survey. BLS figures are presented exactly as published, with no adjustment on our part; the SOC-code match is what lets Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse be compared directly against every other tracked occupation on the same basis, not just roles that happen to share a job title.
For career planners, this profile should be read alongside the task, skill, and knowledge breakdowns below and the list of employers whose workforce composition includes Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Sell and deliver plants and flowers to customers.
- 2. Record information about crops, such as pesticide use, yields, or costs.
- 3. Direct and monitor the work of casual and seasonal help during planting and harvesting.
- 4. Participate in the inspection, grading, sorting, storage, and post-harvest treatment of crops.
- 5. Harvest plants, and transplant or pot and label them.
- 6. Regulate greenhouse conditions, and indoor and outdoor irrigation systems.
- 7. Feel plants' leaves and note their coloring to detect the presence of insects or disease.
- 8. Repair and maintain farm vehicles, implements, and mechanical equipment.
- 9. Provide information and advice to the public regarding the selection, purchase, and care of products.
- 10. Harvest fruits and vegetables by hand.
Key Skills Required
- Speaking
- Operations Monitoring
- Active Listening
- Reading Comprehension
- Writing
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Social Perceptiveness
- Operation and Control
- Repairing
Knowledge Areas
- Food Production
- Biology
- Mechanical
- Administration and Management
- Chemistry
- Mathematics
- English Language
- Production and Processing
- Customer and Personal Service
- Transportation
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse?
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse has an AI exposure score of 16%, indicating a low level of automation risk. The majority of tasks in this role require human judgment, creativity, or physical presence that AI cannot easily replicate.
What is the job outlook for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse is projected to decline by 3.3% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 504,800 workers.
What skills are needed for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse?
Key skills for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse include Speaking, Operations Monitoring, Active Listening, and others. Typical entry-level education is No formal educational credential.
How much do Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse earn?
The median annual wage for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse is $35,690, according to BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024). Actual earnings vary by location, experience, industry, and employer. The BLS publishes detailed wage percentiles by region in its Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program.
What education is required for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse?
The typical entry-level education for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse is No formal educational credential. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Short-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse?
Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse roles exist across many industries and employers. Workforce composition is estimated from BLS industry-occupation employment distributions matched to SEC-registered public companies.
AI Exposure Rating
Low automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. Most tasks require human judgment and are resistant to automation.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (16% here).
- Healthcare diagnosing or treating practitioners, all other · AI exposure 16%
- Agricultural equipment operators · AI exposure 16%
- Foundry mold and coremakers · AI exposure 17%
- Helpers--brickmasons, blockmasons, stonemasons, and tile and marble setters · AI exposure 17%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (-3.3% here).
- Furniture finishers · growth -3.3%
- Forest and conservation technicians · growth -3.2%
- Conveyor operators and tenders · growth -3.4%
- Food preparation workers · growth -3.4%
Peers are nearest-neighbor matches on published BLS + O*NET metrics among occupations with ≥10,000 workers in 2024; corpus ranks above sort the full tracked set.
Related Occupations
Showing 6 of 43 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse's numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Farmworkers and laborers, crop, nursery, and greenhouse side by side against another occupation on wage, growth, and AI exposure. Workforce comparison tool
- Understand how the AI exposure score above is actually calculated before treating it as a verdict. Reading AI exposure scores
- See the full ranked list of occupations with the lowest automation exposure nationwide. Safest occupations from AI
AI exposure scores estimate task automatability from O*NET data; they are not a certainty of job loss, and BLS growth projections are estimates, not guarantees.
Data sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2024–2034 and O*NET Database 30.0. Employment figures are rounded. Wage data from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics (OES).