Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation
SOC Code: 37-3012
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation carries a 21% AI exposure score (Medium automation risk), with a median annual wage of $45,200 and +3.8% projected employment growth from 2024 to 2034 (BLS), affecting approximately 29,600 workers. Full task breakdown, skills, and employer data are below.
Proportion of tasks susceptible to AI automation (O*NET analysis)
At 21% AI exposure, Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation sits 16 points below the 37.2% average across 832 U.S. occupations - more exposed than 8% of them. It ranks among the more AI-resilient roles in the dataset.
Career outlook score
58/100
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation, 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 $45,200
Annual median wage, percentile rank vs all tracked occupations
- Projected growth C+ +3.8%
Projected employment change, 2024-2034, BLS Employment Projections
- AI exposure (inverted) A+ 21% 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation in the Medium band.
Credential × growth standing
Open entry with non-declining BLS pace
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation sits among all occupations
AI-exposure score distribution across 832 U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis). This occupation is marked in rose.
Where Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation sits by AI exposure
AI-exposure score distribution across U.S. occupations (O*NET task analysis)
21% Among the lowest lower than 92% 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.
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation vs. its occupational neighbors
AI exposure (horizontal) vs projected 2024–2034 growth (vertical) for occupations in the same SOC group. Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation 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
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation's Medium 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 37-3012) 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation. Adjacent occupations shown further down offer lateral moves that preserve industry knowledge while potentially reducing exposure.
Education & Entry Requirements
Top Tasks (O*NET)
- 1. Mix pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides for application to trees, shrubs, lawns, or botanical crops.
- 2. Fill sprayer tanks with water and chemicals, according to formulas.
- 3. Lift, push, and swing nozzles, hoses, and tubes to direct spray over designated areas.
- 4. Identify lawn or plant diseases to determine the appropriate course of treatment.
- 5. Cover areas to specified depths with pesticides, applying knowledge of weather conditions, droplet sizes, elevation-to-distance ratios, and obstructions.
- 6. Start motors and engage machinery, such as sprayer agitators or pumps or portable spray equipment.
- 7. Connect hoses and nozzles selected according to terrain, distribution pattern requirements, types of infestations, and velocities.
- 8. Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools.
- 9. Provide driving instructions to truck drivers to ensure complete coverage of designated areas, using hand and horn signals.
- 10. Plant grass with seed spreaders, and operate straw blowers to cover seeded areas with mixtures of asphalt and straw.
Key Skills Required
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Critical Thinking
- Time Management
- Reading Comprehension
- Social Perceptiveness
- Coordination
- Complex Problem Solving
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
Knowledge Areas
- Customer and Personal Service
- Biology
- Production and Processing
- English Language
- Administration and Management
- Public Safety and Security
- Education and Training
- Mathematics
- Law and Government
- Transportation
Frequently Asked Questions
Will AI replace Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation?
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation has an AI exposure score of 21%, indicating a medium 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation?
According to BLS Employment Projections 2024-2034, Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation is projected to grow by 3.8% over the decade. Current employment stands at approximately 29,600 workers.
What skills are needed for Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation?
Key skills for Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation include Active Listening, Speaking, Critical Thinking, and others. Typical entry-level education is High school diploma or equivalent.
How much do Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation earn?
The median annual wage for Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation is $45,200, 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation?
The typical entry-level education for Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation is High school diploma or equivalent. Employers generally expect None of related work experience. On-the-job training typically involves Moderate-term on-the-job training. Requirements can vary by employer and specialization.
Which companies employ Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation?
Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation 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
Medium 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 Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation: AI-exposure neighbors and BLS 2034 growth neighbors (distinct comparison neighborhoods, cross-occupation).
Similar AI exposure score
Nearest O*NET task-automability scores nationwide (21% here).
- Athletes and sports competitors · AI exposure 21%
- Automotive body and related repairers · AI exposure 21%
- Automotive glass installers and repairers · AI exposure 21%
- Boilermakers · AI exposure 21%
Similar projected growth (2024–2034)
Nearest BLS employment change rates nationwide (+3.8% here).
- Architectural and engineering managers · growth +3.8%
- Disc jockeys, except radio · growth +3.8%
- Facilities managers · growth +3.8%
- Fire inspectors and investigators · growth +3.8%
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 7 occupations with a comparable automation-risk profile.
What to do with this
Use Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation's numbers above to compare, not just read in isolation.
- Compare Pesticide handlers, sprayers, and applicators, vegetation 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).