First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
SOC Code: 49-1011
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers carries a 45% AI exposure score (High automation risk), with a median annual wage of $78,300 and +3.1% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 617,500 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 45% AI exposure, First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers sits 8 points above the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 79% of them. Most of its core tasks still require human judgment.
Career outlook score
52/100
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers, 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 B+ $78,300
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth C +3.1%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) F 45% 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 First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers in the High band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers keeps an HS / some college bar (333 of 832) and sits in Average (378 of 832). Lower formal gates with a non-shrinking employment line - skill and AI desks matter more than credentials here.
Where First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
45% Higher than most higher than 79% 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.
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers 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
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers's High 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 in the 40–70% range indicates meaningful automation pressure on specific task categories, but the role as a whole still requires human judgment for coordination, exception handling, or client interaction.
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 49-1011) 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 First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers 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 First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Inspect, test, and measure completed work, using devices such as hand tools or gauges to verify conformance to standards or repair requirements.
- 2. Inspect and monitor work areas, examine tools and equipment, and provide employee safety training to prevent, detect, and correct unsafe conditions or violations of procedures and safety rules.
- 3. Interpret specifications, blueprints, or job orders to construct templates and lay out reference points for workers.
- 4. Monitor employees' work levels and review work performance.
- 5. Perform skilled repair or maintenance operations, using equipment such as hand or power tools, hydraulic presses or shears, or welding equipment.
- 6. Compute estimates and actual costs of factors such as materials, labor, or outside contractors.
- 7. Participate in budget preparation and administration, coordinating purchasing and documentation and monitoring departmental expenditures.
- 8. Monitor tool and part inventories and the condition and maintenance of shops to ensure adequate working conditions.
- 9. Requisition materials and supplies, such as tools, equipment, or replacement parts.
- 10. Confer with personnel, such as management, engineering, quality control, customer, or union workers' representatives, to coordinate work activities, resolve employee grievances, or identify and review resource needs.
Key Skills Required
- Monitoring
- Management of Personnel Resources
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Coordination
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Time Management
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Quality Control Analysis
Knowledge Areas
- Administration and Management
- Mechanical
- Customer and Personal Service
- Administrative
- Personnel and Human Resources
- English Language
- Mathematics
- Computers and Electronics
- Economics and Accounting
- Production and Processing
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers has an AI exposure score of 45%, indicating a high level of automation risk. Some tasks in this role can be augmented or partially automated by AI, but core responsibilities require human judgment.
What is the job outlook for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers is projected to grow by 3.1% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 617,500 workers.
What skills are needed for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
Key skills for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers include Monitoring, Management of Personnel Resources, Speaking, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers earn?
The median annual wage for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers is $78,300, 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 First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
The typical entry-level education for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect Less than 5 years of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves None. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers 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
High automation risk based on 10 analyzed tasks. A moderate share of tasks may be augmented by AI tools.
Nationwide occupations with similar workforce profiles
Two data-derived peer sets for First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (45% here).
- Advertising sales agents · AI exposure 45%
- Broadcast announcers and radio disc jockeys · AI exposure 45%
- Electrical and electronics repairers, commercial and industrial equipment · AI exposure 45%
- First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers · AI exposure 45%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+3.1% here).
- Financial specialists, all other · growth +3.1%
- Funeral attendants · growth +3.1%
- Morticians, undertakers, and funeral arrangers · growth +3.1%
- Parts salespersons · growth +3.1%
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
What to do with this
Use First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers' numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare First-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers 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).